Wokingham Today, February 24, 2022

Thursday, February 24, 2022

No. 352 90p

Professor warns lives will be lost by scrapping covid rules PUPPY FOUND IN RUCKSACK P3

By SUE CORCORAN news@wokingham.today THE WORLD Health Organisation professor from Wokingham said that lives will be lost by scrapping the legal requirement for covid isolation now.

From today the government has ended most legal covid restrictions, including compulsory self isolation when someone has covid. Free testing will also be cut back.

Professor Ben Cowling, who did vital early work on covid in China and Hong Kong, also said that keeping free lateral flow tests would help public health.

On Tuesday, Professor Cowling, who is from Sonning and went to Reading School, said that “maintaining the legal requirements for isolation for a few more weeks would reduce the number of infections that occur in the coming month.”

It would also “reduce the consequent hospitalisations and deaths”.

He said: “Daily cases have been declining for more than six weeks since the peak in early January, but this wave is not yet over.

“I think it would make a lot of sense to continue with efforts to suppress transmission until the wave is mostly over, perhaps by the end of March.

“If measures are relaxed too early, the rate of decline in daily cases will slow down and ultimately the current wave will last for longer and infect more people.”

He hoped most people who had covid would continue to isolate. Timely isolation of symptomatic cases was one of the least disruptive measures that could effectively reduce covid spread.

Covid tests will no longer be free for most people from Friday, April 1.

Professor Cowling said that continuing free lateral flow tests free would “certainly benefit public health.”

The test results would help responsible behaviour and help reduce spread, particularly during covid epidemics.

He recommended people with a cough or cold who had to leave home should wear a mask near others, to protect others.

FARMERS’ MENTAL HEALTH DECLINES P8

STORM EUNICE: Hundreds left without power • p4-5 OLLIE YOUNG FOUNDATION 10 YEARS ON

‘I CARRY OLLIE WITH ME .. THIS MONTH IS HARD’ Parents reflect on anniversary and son’s lasting legacy

By NATALIE BURTON news@wokingham.today

THIS Saturday, February 26, marks the 10th anniversary of the death of Ollie Young.

He died from an incurable brain tumour, 12 weeks after first displaying symptoms and just one day before his sixth birthday.

Following the loss of their son, Sarah Simpson and Simon Young set up the Ollie Young Foundation

to raise funds for research into potential treatments for the condition. It also made sure that Ollie’s name would never be forgotten.

Ms Simpson said that when she looks back on the time that has passed, it doesn’t feel as though it’s been 10 years.

“I take each day as it comes, it’s all just happened and now we’re here,” she said. n Continued on page 3

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TREADGOLD ELIZABETH ANN Passed away peacefully in the Duchess of Kent Hospice on 13th February 2022, aged 85 years.

Much loved wife of Sydney, mother to Peter and James and grandmother to Philippa, Rebecca and Imogen.

She will be sadly missed by all who knew her.

A private family funeral has taken place.

Donations in memory of Elizabeth for Sue Ryder Duchess of Kent can be made via www.abwalker.co.uk

WWW.ABWALKER.CO.UK

LAMB MARGARET JOYCE (NEÉ HARTWELL) Passed away peacefully at West Oak Care Home on 10th February 2022, aged 93 years. Much loved, mum, nan, great-nan and great-great nan. She will be sadly missed by all her family and friends.

Funeral service to be held at Easthampstead Park Crematorium on Tuesday 1st March at 10.30am.

Family flowers only please. Donations in memory of Joyce for Stroke Association can be made via www.abwalker.co.uk All enquiries to Tel: 0118 978 4040.

New help hub opens in Woodley church A NEW hub for the council’s community engagement team in Woodley opened this month.

Based at Emmanuel Church on Southlake Crescent, the hub offers a dedicated space where people can meet with the team and each other and get support.

There will be a dropin session each Monday between 3.30pm and 5pm.

It is run in partnership with Emmanuel Church, Share Wokingham, Woodley Lunch Bunch and Woodley Foodbank.

Residents can come in for a cup of tea or coffee and a chat.

They will be able to select items they need from a wide range of products, including fruit, vegetables, baked goods, cupboard essentials

READY TO HELP: The new community hub is open in Woodley Picture: Stewart Turkington and cleaning equipment.

Primary school children will also be able to take part in activities such as arts and crafts and table tennis.

The community engagement team works

every Thursday – some even deliver

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Publisher • David Riley Editor • Phil Creighton Deputy editor • Jess Warren Reporters • Daniel Blackham, Natalie Burton, Jake Clothier Sports reporter • Andy Preston Graphic designer • Charlotte Simpson The Wokingham Paper Ltd publications are regulated by IPSO – the Independent Press Standards Organisation. If you have a complaint about a Wokingham Paper Ltd publication in print or online, you should, in the first instance email: editor@wokingham.today. If it is not resolved to your satisfaction, you should contact IPSO by telephone: 0300 123 2220, or visit its website: www.ipso.co.uk.

Members of the public are welcome to contact IPSO at any time if they are not sure how to proceed, or need advice on how to frame a complaint.

across Woodley, in homes and community venues, and the new hub will offer another space for people to go.

Residents can contact the team for support on a range of issues including housing,

finances, raising a family and anything else affecting them.

The new hub was opened

by Wokingham borough mayor, Cllr Keith Baker and attended by Cllr Bill

Soane, executive member for neighbourhoods and communities.

Cllr Soane said that he was delighted to be invited along to celebrate the success of the new partnership with charities in the area.

“Our community engagement officers have been delivering a fantastic service to residents of Woodley, and the new hub offers them the ability to go even further to offer people what they need, when and where they need it,” he said.

“This not only includes groups such as the Monday afternoon sessions, but also is a neutral, private space for people to come and discuss any issues they may have.” n To contact the team, email: community. engagement.localities@ wokingham.gov.uk

Conservatives launch petition to bring RBH to the borough

By JESS WARREN jwarren@wokingham.today

In print Order a copy from your newsagent

WOKINGHAM.TODAY Thursday, February 24, 2022

A CALL has been made to transplant the Royal Berkshire Hospital from Reading to Wokingham borough.

Speaking at a meeting of the executive, Wokingham Borough Council leader Cllr John Halsall said that Shinfield would be best placed for a more accessible site.

The Wokingham Conservative group has launched a petition which it can present to the government as a sign of residents’ support for the plan.

It comes days after Reading Borough Council expressed their concerns over the proposal.

In the meeting, held on Thursday, February 17, Cllr Halsall said: “We are very enthusiastic to support proposals for the RBH to relocate some or all the services to the borough, which would not only create economic opportunity, but also be integral to our health and wellbeing strategies

for all our residents.”

The RBH is one of a number of hospitals that figure in the government’s plans to revamp healthcare.

The suggested site is part of a proposals to place 4,500 homes at the Hall Farm/Loddon Valley site, alongside the Thames Valley Science Park being developed by the University of Reading. The Rutherford Cancer Centre is already operating from Shinfield.

After the meeting Cllr Halsall said: “The current site for the RBH just doesn’t work – there is no room to expand facilities that are badly in need of updating.

“We believe that it makes sense for a new hospital to be built in Wokingham borough in an area with good access and the space for an expansive and modern RBH.” This view was at odds with Reading, its deputy leader, Cllr Tony Page, who said that the borough council had not yet explained how the site would be accessible

by public transport, walking and cycling, and link to central Reading.

Cllr Charles Margetts, Wokingham Borough Council’s executive member for health, wellbeing and adult services, said that moving the hospital close to the M4 would provide “good access and the right infrastructure”.

The proposal for a new site has been supported by Cllr Clive Jones, Wokingham Liberal Democrat leader, who is also an elected governor for the hospital.

He said: “Personally, I’m all in favour of it. I’ve never hidden my enthusiasm for a brand-new hospital on a new site.

“It is really important that we aim really high and try and become a teaching hospital. That way, we will attract the best consultations, and the best healthcare professionals: the best midwives, physiotherapists, occupational therapists — the best of everything.

“If we were a teaching hospital where the best, most talented

people can improve themselves and improve their own learning .. that’s what I’m really keen on.”

Cllr Jones said that Green Park could also be considered for the relocation.

Andy Croy, Labour’s borough campaign lead said that it is an “absurd” petition.

“Any potential new site for the Royal Berkshire Hospital needs to consider, and the Trust will consider, a complex range of factors and scenarios,” he said.

“What we should be talking about is the crisis the Conservatives have caused in the NHS and at the Royal Berkshire NHS Trust. There are more than 50,000 people on the Trust’s waiting list and more than 2,000 people have been waiting for more than a year.

“These are Conservative waiting times caused by years of Conservative under investment.” n The petition can be seen at: ipetitions.com/petition/relocateroyal-berkshire-hospital

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Remembering Ollie: charity’s 10 years of fundraising success n Continued from front page

“I have learned a lot about myself through running the foundation.”

One of the aspects of running the charity which Ms Simpson enjoys the most is the connection she feels with the other volunteers. This includes Ollie’s dad Simon — even though the couple separated soon after Ollie died, he is still involved in the foundation.

For Mr Young, the foundation is a connection with his son and a motivation to keep going.

He is open about the impact the death of his son has had on him.

“It hit me really badly and I find every February hard,” he said.

“I believe it’s important that men are open about their mental health and talk about it.

“But I carry Ollie with me and I am so proud of the work we do.”

Everyone who works for the foundation is a volunteer, meaning that 100% of money raised goes to the projects it supports.

“Many of the others have memories of Ollie too and have been with us since the beginning, which is amazing,” Ms Simpson explained.

“Sometimes I would love for us to be a bigger organisation, but really I want to keep the personal touch because I like being able to thank each of our fundraisers individually.

“That connection, being part of the community, it’s who we are.”

The Ollie Young Foundation has grown from its humble beginnings when volunteers sold wristbands at Wokingham’s Carnival Pool, where Ollie had enjoyed swimming lessons.

To date, it has spent £446,656 on research projects and supporting other families facing a similar diagnosis. Grants made to Helen & Douglas House and CLIC Sargent

HOME: A resident takes part in the borough council’s Moving with Confidence scheme

Council’s Moving With Confidence scheme is a hero

ABOVE: The Ollie Young Foundation is marking its 10th anniversary on Saturday Pictures: Sarah Simpson LEFT: Artist Pistol creates a portrait for Sarah Picture: Sally Bryant have helped to refurbish their facilities.

Tomorrow, Ms Simpson and Mr Young are visiting the Institute of Cancer Research in London to meet Yura Grabovska, the researcher whose work is currently being funded in their son’s name.

Mr Grabovska is part of The Giloma Team, a wider project that analyses biopsy samples taken from children with brain tumours.

Mr Young is confident that research will find answers. “This is why we set the foundation up — to help others,” he said.

“To see the fruit of our fundraising efforts and knowing that it is real is always exciting,” Ms Simpson added.

“But it’s an achievement to still be going.

“We have avoided some of the issues faced by charities with paid staff, and it’s been a tough couple of years with events being

cancelled or not going to plan.”

One of the events to suffer was last Saturday’s planned stall in Wokingham town centre, which had to be cancelled due to strong winds in the aftermath of Storm Eunice.

But Ms Simpson is optimistic about future plans.

“There’s still lots to look forward too, including the Summer Fun Day, which we are currently planning,” she said.

The fun day is set to return after a two-year absence, and is part of the Ollie Young Foundation 10 for 10 “anniversathon”.

Events in the fundraising drive include a chance to take part in the London 10 Peaks Challenge next month with Team Ollie, a seven aside football tournament in May, and a quiz night in October.

In April there is a competition for entrepreneurs to turn £10 into the biggest profit for the charity.

Watson the cockapoo dumped in Finchampstead Woods in rucksack A PUPPY is receiving aroundthe-clock care after being abandoned in a rucksack in Finchampstead.

The chocolate-coloured cockapoo, now called Watson, was rushed into a nearby veterinary surgery on Thursday, February 10, after witnesses saw him being dumped in a rucksack in Finchampstead Woods.

The clinic admitted Watson, who arrived in a collapsed state and seemed unable to use his back legs.

Its team reported the incident to the RSPCA. Inspector Andy Eddy, who is now investigating the incident, said that Watson is around eight- or nine-weeks-old and initially seemed very poorly.

“Witnesses had been walking through the woods when they saw a man dump a black Reebok rucksack before running off,” Mr Eddy said.

The man is described as

SAFE: Watson is improving every day Picture: RSPCA speaking in a foreign language, wearing a black and white T-shirt, jeans and a baseball cap.

“When they looked inside the rucksack they discovered the little curly-haired pup in a paper bag,” Mr Eddy said.

“Vets initially had concerns as the puppy didn’t appear to be able to use his rear legs and they suspected a neurological problem. However, they’ve run numerous tests and have been unable to come to a conclusion as to what is making him

unsteady on his back legs.”

Mr Eddy said that Watson is getting stronger and is improving every day.

“He’s now bright and bouncy, and his mobility is much better,” he added.

Mr Eddy said he thinks Watson may have been abandoned due to his health problems.

“Perhaps a breeder felt they’d be unable to sell him, or perhaps an owner was concerned about the cost of veterinary treatment,” he said.

“Either way, I’m looking into the circumstances and would be keen to speak to anyone who saw the incident or who may know who is responsible.”

Watson has now been moved to RSPCA Millbrook Animal Rescue Centre in Surrey. He is not yet available for rehoming. The centre asks people not to enquire about Watson as calls may block an emergency call from coming in.

Mr Young is also planning an abseil later on in the year.

Of all the foundation’s activities, it is the fun day that holds special meaning for Ms Simpson and Mr Young. It is one of their favourite parts of their work with the charity.

“I love planning events, it’s one of the things I have learned about myself during the past 10 years,” Ms Simpson explained.

“And our fun days are a real celebration of everything Ollie enjoyed in one feel-good moment.”

For Mr Young, it is the reward of seeing all of the hard work pay off.

“Hundreds of people come and enjoy themselves, and they all know they are there for Ollie,” he said. “It’s incredible.”

The Summer Fun Day will be held in Cantley Park in Wokingham on Sunday, August 14, between 11am and 2pm. n For more information, visit: www. ollieyoungfoundation.org

A SCHEME to get older Wokingham residents moving has been declared a local hero.

Get Berkshire Active has given Wokingham Borough Council’s Moving with Confidence programme a physical activity hero award.

The awards were given to individuals, organisations, charities, schools, community groups and sports clubs that have positively impacted others in the county last year.

Cllr Parry Batth, executive member for environment and leisure at Wokingham Borough Council, said that he is “delighted” with the recognition.

Moving With Confidence first launched in 2020 and gaining funding from the borough council in February last year.

“We saw an increase in older residents who were deteriorating physically due to covid restrictions keeping them indoors and less mobile,” Cllr Batth explained. “There was an increase in associated risks such as falls, loss of muscle strength and declining confidence going out and about.”

The programme helps residents to recondition through low-intensity, strengthening exercises which help them to build their confidence and become more mobile. Since receiving funding last year, it has helped 157 people. The scheme works with referral partners including Age UK Berkshire and the Link Visiting Scheme.

Cllr Batth added that the scheme has helped to improve the physical activity, mental health and wellbeing of participants.

“We support residents to lead happy, healthy lives, while nurturing communities,” he said.

Now in its 10th year, Get Berkshire Active is a charity which aims to transform lives through sport and physical activity.

- ‘’Dram Lovers’’ - Whisky Club 13th March at 5pm A 'club' is just a name.We bring open-minded, a thirsty for knowledge and adventure Whisk(e)y lovers and guide them on their journey through selection of interesting Whiskies.

At Chalk Restaurant the idea is to learn and discover new whisky at each of our tastings. Each whisky has a story behind, to the flavours, and the distillery and all these stories add up to the finish product, the product you are about to taste at each of our events. So whether you’re a whisky fanatic or just beginning your own whisky journey, join us at Chalk to socialise and learn more.

Welcome Cocktail | Whisk(e)y Tasting | Finish off with a glencairn glass of your favourite dram

Whisky Selection - Speyside | Cardhu 12 Years Old | Discovery Glenrothes 11 Years Old | Balvenie 14 Years Old Caribbean Cask | Craigellachie 13 Years Old Once you’ve developed an appetite, we invite you to stay for dinner with a very special twenty percent off food. £29.95 per person

To book please call us direct on 0118 979 8805 or email us at enquiries@chalkrestaurants.com www.chalkrestaurants.com Chalk Restaurant, 31 Broad Street, Wokingham, RG40 1AU

4 | NEWS

Ruscombe local plan consultation opens A CONSULTATION on the draft neighbourhood plan for Ruscombe has opened.

The plan has been prepared

by Ruscombe Parish Council and village residents.

It contains policy proposals on housing, the environment, transport, community facilities and business development.

If adopted by Wokingham Borough Council, it will guide future planning applications within the parish.

The plan and supporting documents can be viewed online at: engage.wokingham. gov.uk Hard copies will be made available at Civic Offices, Shute End, Wokingham.

The consultation closes at 4.45pm on Friday, March 25.

Keyless thefts on the rise POLICE are warning motorists to be on their guard after seeing an increase in keyless car thefts.

They warn that criminals only need to be within a few metres of a car to capture the signal.

Thieves use special equipment to intercept the codes, and this can be done when the thief is outside a home and the key is inside.

Thames Valley Police warns that thieves can still unlock, start and steal cars when the keys are secure inside.

It urges residents to store affected car keys in a metal tin or signal-blocking pouch when not in use.

Alternatively, keyless cars could be blocked in with another vehicle, making it harder to steal.

Some keys also have an option to turn off the signal transmitted.

New dance festival WOODLEY will host a new festival this summer.

The town centre will be welcoming an International Dance Festival on Saturday, July 16. The town centre is working with Vibez Dance Studio for the event.

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WOKINGHAM.TODAY Thursday, February 24, 2022

STORM EUNICE

Power cuts, smashed vehicles and uprooted trees: Storm Eunice hits EXCLUSIVE

By JESS WARREN jwarren@wokingham.today STORM EUNICE battered the borough on Friday.

High winds brought more than 150 trees crashing down, with many blocking roads. Some crushed cars as they fell. Large portions of the borough lost power, as electricity lines went down.

Met Office chief meteorologist Frank Saunders said that an active jet stream was helping to drive low-pressure systems across the country.

Speaking ahead of the storm, he said: “Storm Eunice is expected to track eastwards from early on Friday, bringing the most significant winds to the central and southern areas of the UK, with some gusts possible in excess of 95mph in exposed coastal areas.”

PICTURE: Jules Childs

CRASH: A fallen tree blocks Holmes Crescent, Wokingham Picture: Brian Moffat

Trains

Rail operators urged passengers not to travel as Storm Eunice continued to cause disruption.

South Western Railway suspended all services with many key routes blocked due to fallen trees. And Great Western Railway was unable to run trains across much of its network.

GWR allowed customers with tickets to travel on Friday to use them up to and including Monday, February 21.

Services

The ambulance service that operates across Reading and Wokingham declared a critical incident as Storm Eunice made its presence felt.

Demand on its 999 service and travel disruption led to higher demand on South Central Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust (SCAS)’s operations.

As a result, patients were left facing longer times for emergency call-outs.

To help with demand, it requested offduty staff come in to help out, as well as volunteer community first responders and co-responders, while additional vehicles are being deployed.

Paul Jefferies, SCAS’s assistant director of operations, explained that declaring a critical incident allows SCAS to seek further support from its partners.

Thames Valley Police issued an urgent call for people to stay inside during Storm Eunice.

DAMAGE: A large tree came down on the London Road, Wokingham Picture: Zoe Breadmore A spokesperson for the force said they were seeing people outside, and urged residents to stay indoors as much as possible

Damage

In Twyford, high winds brought a down a tree on to flats.

The eucalyptus landed on the balcony of flats behind the parade of shops in the village centre, on London Road.

A van was struck by a falling tree on Sonning Lane, Sonning, with other trees also coming down.

And a tree fell on to the A4 near Burchetts Green roundabout, narrowly missing vehicles travelling along the stretch of road.

A garage collapsed in Wokingham town centre.

The roof was blown down on to three cars underneath, on Ellison Way at around 11am.

A van was crushed after being struck by a falling tree on the London Road,

opposite Loch Fyne.

The tree was blocking both lanes and hit a white van as it fell by the pedestrian crossing.

A tree damaged three cars and the roof of the barn at the Wade Day Centre in Wokingham.

It fell at the site on Reading Road, and all members and staff were inside when the tree fell — so no one was injured.

A tree surgeon responded within one hour of the incident being reported to clear debris and assess other tress in the area.

Members will be advised when the site can reopen but Philip Mirfin, chair of trustees at Wade, is hopeful normal service will resume on Tuesday, February 22.

Also in the town, a large oak tree was brought down by Storm Eunice.

The tree, on Frog Hall Drive, fell at around noon on Friday and blocked the road.

Wokingham Today was told that the tree narrowly missed hitting cars and

PICTURE: Caroline Boardman the resident of one property, who had just returned indoors.

More trees came crashing down on Heathlands Road, between Wokingham and Crowthorne.

Jessi Eltringham said that he was stuck in the middle of the road, after one tree came down near Gray’s Farm, and another near the exit to Nine Mile Ride.

He said: “We were stuck in the middle earlier but managed to clear enough at one end to squeeze through.”

In Arborfield, a driver became trapped between two fallen trees on School Road.

“Luckily someone had a chainsaw for us to cut it up to let me out,” they said. “Absolute nightmare.”

And another tree crashed down on Biggs Lane, blocking the route.

Power cuts Power outages were reported widely across the borough, with some places still in the dark on Monday.

Room mates: Pet rabbit in with horses after being made homeless during storm A FAMILY pet has gained new roommates after losing his home in the stormy weather.

The rabbit’s hutch was destroyed by the wind, so he hopped over to join his neighbours in their stables.

Owner Eve Mears said that she found out about the new living arrangement for her son’s rabbit after completing late night checks on her horses.

“The sweetest thing was how gently the horses treated him,” she said. “They had even shared their food.”

NEW FRIENDS: The bunny was found in the stable Pictures: Eve Mears

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Thursday, February 24, 2022 WOKINGHAM.TODAY

STORM EUNICE Woodley WISE host meeting

THE Woodley WISE Over 50s Forum will hold its next meeting on Tuesday, March 8.

The group meet in Coronation Hall on Headley Road.

A member of the Co-op Estate Planning team will be the guest speaker, and talk on the topic Tax, Care and Toy Boys.

The session runs from 2pm to 4pm, and entry is £3.

RIPPED: Damaged Shinfield Players Theatre roof Picture: Dijana Capan

n For more details, or to book a place, email: Woodleywise@ gmail.com or call: 0118 969 6206.

Climate views

BLOCKED: A tree came down on Biggs Lane, Arborfield Picture: Vicky Collins SMASH: Fallen tree at Wade Day Centre damages three cars Picture Philip Mirfin centre, with longer-lasting powercuts starting in Hurst, some of Woodley, Twyford, Wargrave, Hare Hatch, Crazies Hill, Waltham St Lawrence and Knowl Hill, by 10.30am.

Lines went down just before 11.30am for more parts of Woodley, Winnersh, Sindlesham, Arborfield and Spencers Wood.

Crowthorne and Finchampstead also lost power.

Power went off in one part of Woodley at 11.50am on Friday, and was still down on Monday, with an engineer yet to be sent out by noon that day.

Also left without power until Monday

were parts of Hurst, Remenham, and Wokingham.

Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks said on its website: “Storm Eunice is currently and continues to cause significant impact to the electricity network and our customer supplies.

“Due to this we cannot guarantee electricity supplies will be restored son.

Our workforce, which was enhanced in preparation for the storm, has been mobilised and we’re working hard to restore customer supplies as quickly and safely as possible.”

HIT: A tree fell onto flats on London Road, Twyford Picture: Chris Beresford

THE CLIMATE emergency from the perspective of someone from Africa will be the focus for the March Diversity lecture at Newbold College.

The Binfield-based learning centre will be welcoming Dr Zivayi Nengomasham, the Director for Programs and Planning at ADRA Africa.

She has worked all over Africa for more than two decades on sustainable development, and specialises in Strategic Planning.

Her talk is entitled The Environmental Crisis Through The Eyes of a Christian Woman in Africa, and will take place on Tuesday, March 8, from 7.30pm, both in person and online. n For more information, log on to newbold.ac.uk/diversity-centre

Hurst residents left for three days without power after Storm Eunice WHEN STORM Eunice hit Hurst in Friday, residents were left fearing for their safety, writes Sue Corcoran.

A tree felled by the high winds left a power cable hanging low over Sawpit Road, with drivers continuing to use the route.

“It was getting a bit dark and cars were still hurtling through there,” said one resident from the area. “It would only have taken a bus or a truck and the cable could have been snapped.

“So I dragged a wheelie bin into the middle of the road and put a flashing light on top. Other residents organised cones across the road.”

Hurst Parish Council chair, Cllr Wayne Smith and Cllr Paul Palmer were among the helpers.

Jules Childs from Arborfield said that she spent three days trying to find out from Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks if the cable was live.

“SSEN told me on Friday evening to tell people to stay five metres away,” she said.

“They said it was likely it was live but they couldn’t tell.

“I tried for three hours on Saturday and Sunday to contact them to find out if it was still live, but I couldn’t get through. People were walking past the cable and under it.”

HELPING: Tree surgeon Andre Dubourg Picture: The Treeple Her mum Mary Childs, living close to the fallen cable, was left with no power for heating or cooking.

Miss Childs took her mum to her home in Arborfield for three days until the power was restored on Monday.

Other nearby residents moved out to friends and relatives. Patricia Pascoe, 75, stayed at a friend’s from Saturday.

She said: “Fortunately I’d cooked a meal before the power went off on Friday. I had two small candles for light that evening. It was hard to read.”

Summer Stanley, 27, said: “It was horrible. There was no TV, no heating and I couldn’t cook.”

She and her one-year-old son, Hendrix, stayed with her mum for three days.

“I was lucky to have her close by,” she said.

On Monday the cables had

been lifted up from the road.

Homes in Broadcommon Road and other Hurst roads lost power for varying periods due to the storm.

Tree surgeon company The Treeple, The People for Trees, dealt with 45 storm hit trees in three days.

Jake Smith, from Lower Earley, said: “On Friday we spent all day removing trees from roads round Hurst area.

“We didn’t charge that day, we just ensured people were safe and able to get about on the roads again. It was care in the community.

“In Mill Lane, Sindlesham by The Poachers pub there was a tree in the road. The police helped us drag the branches away. A large oak tree was down across the road at the Straight Mile at Hurst.

“An apple tree came down over the Jolly Farmer’s fence at Hurst. There were many little trees down. We were still cutting almost in the dark on Friday.”

On Saturday they were tackling two trees which threatened power and telephone lines in School Road, Hurst. The tree surgeons had stopped by earlier to lighten the load from branches on the cables and to clear them from the road.

Give your kitchen the WOW factor with new worktops

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6 | NEWS

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‘Our new-build home is full of patched-up repairs’ say buyers CEILING: The Peters family say they are fed up with the list of repairs to their new build home Picture: Jeromé Peters

EXCLUSIVE

By JESS WARREN jwarren@wokingham.today A FINCHAMPSTEAD family have been struggling with a house full of “patched-up” repairs, after moving into their newbuild last summer.

Jeromé Peters and his wife Clarissa, whose names have been changed, moved into their family home with their daughter in August, but have been met with more than 140 problems.

The couple have kept a snagging list of issues in the property at Finchwood Park, and said that the continuous repairs are putting a strain on their lives.

Mr Peters said that there have been issues with uneven flooring, and large gaps underneath doors.

There have also been problems in the walls, he said.

“The internal walls between rooms and wet rooms were all empty, with no insulation,” said Mrs Peters. “We were told that this was normal, until we managed to get the internal documents for the specifications. We as a customer had to prove them wrong.

“They came with the solution after days and days of discussions. They have blown

stuff inside, leaving our walls with lots of patched up holes.

If we hang anything up, stuff comes out of the walls.”

Mrs Peters, who is now seven months’ pregnant, said that the ongoing repairs are disruptive to their family.

She said: “We feel trapped with them because we cannot just sell and buy another house and they force us to accept for their cheap way to deal with problems, with sleepless night and not fully functional house.

“Is it so disappointing, when this should be a joyful moment to our family it is turning into a nightmare dealing with the company.”

She added: “We know that most of our neighbours are having issues similar, the same and sometimes worse.

“I am definitely not recommending buying a Legal and General home to anyone.

When someone asks me, my answer is: Run from it.”

Mr Peters said that he doesn’t think his family will sell their house and move.

“I will fight as much as I can to get the repairs done,” he said.

“These are not cosmetic things, but big things.

“I think they are just expecting me to give up. They sold us the dream, but to live in the house is not nice.”

A spokesperson from Legal and General Homes said: “We pride ourselves on providing an excellent customer experience, and are very sorry that on this occasion we have fallen short of our own high standards and that this customer is not satisfied with their home.

“L&G Homes has been and remains committed to resolving the customer’s concerns and will continue to work with our customer to do so.”

ENVIRONMENTAL HELP: Graham Sims, chair of the trust with Reading Borough mayor Cllr Rachel Eden at the launch of the new green plan for the Royal Berkshire Hospital

Hospital launches new green plan THE ROYAL Berkshire Hospital NHS Foundation Trust (RBFT) has launched a new green plan.

It sets out how the trust aims to reduce its carbon emissions to net zero by 2040 and how it meets sustainability goals over the next three years.

Reading borough mayor Cllr Rachel Eden received a copy and was given a tour of the main hospital site on London Road, to see some of the carbon saving projects already underway.

Cllr Eden paid tribute to the

work of the trust’s staff, and said: “Given all the pressure on them, it’s wonderful that they are nevertheless rising to the challenge of becoming a net zero organisation.

“Reading is known for being one of the leading communities globally in moving to a sustainable future.”

The plan includes key pledges for reducing impact on the environment in areas such as waste, travel and transport, medicines, anaesthetics and

energy usage.

Measures already in place across the trust include a de-steaming project, which involved the installation of a low temperature hot water system.

It is hoped this will save 800 tonnes of carbon and 17.9 million litres, of water per year.

A cycle village for staff, which has space for 100 bicycles and has showering and changing facilities has also been opened. n For more information on the plan, visit: royalberkshire.nhs.uk

DONATION: Philip Mirfin (second from left) presents Tim Hanton and Andy Goffin of Wokingham Lions a cheque for £10,000 as the group takes on the Winter Carnival organisation Picture: Daniel Blackham

New Winter Carnival organisers welcomed with £10,000 donation WOKINGHAM Winter Carnival will have new organisers taking over this year.

After 21 years involvement, serving as committee chairman for the last five, Philip Mirfin will be handing over the reins to the Wokingham Lions Club.

Following the announcement, Mr Mirfin presented Andy Goffin, president of the Wokingham Lions and Tim Hanton, new chair of the Winter Carnival, with a cheque for £10,000 to help fund the 2022 event.

Mr Mirfin said: “Despite last year being a tight year with money and very few sponsors, this shows the success of how the carnival has been organised over the years.

“We managed to cut costs and control the money to still donate a reasonable amount to the three charities but also hand over £10,000 as an investment in this year’s carnival.”

The Wokingham Lions Club

has organised the May Fayre since its inception in 1995, and Mr Hanton is excited at the opportunity to take on the carnival.

He said: “Firstly, thank you to Philip and the committee for all your hard work over the many years.

“For the Lions club it is an honour and a fantastic opportunity to take on the task of organising the carnival.

“Although there are many synergies between the Winter Carnival and the May Fayre, we want to keep them as two separate events.”

Mr Hanton also said that conversations are underway to plan this year’s event and despite some enforced changes, the carnival will retain many aspects that have made it such a success.

Along with the cheque given to the Wokingham Lions, Mr Mirfin was on hand to present cheques to the three nominated

Wokingham second lowest for sexual health service spending

WOKINGHAM spends the second lowest amount on sexual health services since 2021, new research has revealed.

Last year, £960,000 was spent on services including STI testing and treatment, contraception and promotion, prevention and advice.

Rutland, the smallest county in England by both population and land area, spent the least, with £268,000 going towards sexual health services in the same period.

This contrasts to Birmingham, the secondlargest city in England, which spent £16,462,000 since 2021.

In Wokingham, 75% of the funding was spent on STI testing and treatment.

Contraception took up 24% of the budget, with sexual health promotion, prevention and advice taking up the remaining 1%.

Research from Public Health England has previously found the borough to be one of the healthiest places to live, which could explain the low budget.

The funding is demand-led for both STI testing and contraception, meaning that the £960,000 spent reflects the resident demand.

charities from last year’s event.

More than £8,000 was raised in 2021, and has been shared between The Link Visiting Scheme, Home-Start Wokingham and the town mayor’s chosen charity, the 3rd Wokingham Scouts.

Amy Fennell, fundraiser at Home-Start Wokingham, described the amount awarded as “incredible”.

Mr Mirfin ended the presentation by thanking the outgoing committee for all of their hard work in organising the annual event.

He said: “I want to thank you all for your assistance throughout my time as chairman and for your contributions towards the event.

“I must also say a big thank you to Grant Horsley and the fairground team for all their support given over the years and I’m sure that will continue for many more to come.”

Wokingham Town Council holds its annual meeting WOKINGHAM Town Council is to hold its annual meeting next week.

The event will share updates from the committees that its councillors sit on: Finance, Planning, Amenities, Arts & Culture and Civic.

There will be a chance to ask questions and learn more about the council’s plans for the year ahead.

Town Mayor Cllr Tony Lack said: “This is not a council meeting; it’s a public meeting facilitated by Wokingham Town Council and is a chance for our registered electors of the town, to ask us questions and receive updates on our activities.

“Please do come along to chat to your Councillors and find out more.”

Questions can be submitted in advance, but must be emailed to townclerk@wokingham-tc. gov.uk by Friday, February 25.

The event takes place at Wokinham Town Hall in Market Place on Tuesday, March 1, from 7pm to 8pm. n For more details, log on to: www.wokingham-tc. gov.uk

Thursday, February 24, 2022 WOKINGHAM.TODAY

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Shinfield man Woodley family has ‘had enough’ of living in overcrowded council house shuts path to ‘protect others’ EXCLUSIVE

By JESS WARREN jwarren@wokingham.today

A SHINFIELD resident who closed a path to the public said that he did so to protect residents from harm.

Nigel Olsen said that he erected fences to preserve and protect residents at the end of Leyland Gardens.

The path connects the western end of Leyland Gardens with a registered public right-of-way running between Hollow Lane and the eastern end of Leyland Gardens.

Last month, Wokingham Today reported that some residents would like to see the route registered as a public right of way.

However Mr Olsen said that he believes it is an issue of safety.

“There have been break-ins from the lane into adjoining properties as well as people parking cars and then going to The Black Boy pub [now The Shinfield Arms] and coming back making tons of noise,” he said.

“In the autumn we also had individuals trying to break into the cars and making way down the lane as a getaway on to Hollow Lane.”

Mr Olsen said that the path “has always been [his] property” and that it is no longer “purposeful” to keep the route as Shinfield grows in population.

He said that residents have been

“blighted through burglary and antisocial behaviour as a result of the path”.

A spokesperson for Wokingham Borough Council said that they are currently investigating the evidence submitted with the public right-ofway claim.

They are also looking at “any other evidence available to determine whether there is evidence of any public rights”.

“This process is a complex legal investigation and includes discussions with the landowner as well as an examination of all other evidence available to the council such as historical records,” they added. “We are in the process of gathering and analysing the evidence that has been submitted.”

Mr Olsen said that if the access is granted as a public right-of-way, he will sue Wokingham Borough Council for “loss of property value”.

He added: “If that fails, I will then lodge an appeal with the Court of Appeal. And if that fails through judiciary normal channels, I will then fight this as a human right.”

The council spokesperson added: “We have a duty to keep the map under constant review, receive and determine applications claiming rights of way, and make orders to change the map when a right of way is reasonably alleged to subsist.”

By JESS WARREN jwarren@wokingham.today

A WOODLEY resident has “had enough” of living in an overcrowded council house.

Karla James lives with her partner and four children in a two-bedroom property.

According to Cllr John Kaiser, the council’s executive member for housing and finance, they are one of more than 350 families currently living in an overcrowded council home.

Cllr Kaiser gave this figure in a Wokingham Today article published last month, and said that “unfortunately the demand far outweighs the supply”.

When asking her housing officer about a bigger home, Ms James said that they told her “some people sleep in their living room”.

Ms James said that since moving into the property around three years ago, she has had numerous issues with its quality.

At the moment, she is particularly concerned with mould that “keeps coming back” in her home.

She has 10-week-old twins who were born prematurely at 34-weeks and kept in intensive care.

“The walls are mouldy, damp and dripping,” she said. “I had to get the extractor fans changed in the bathroom and kitchen.

“Then the council said the mould was because there wasn’t enough loft insulation,” she said.

“They sent someone out to fix that,

BEDROOM: Three children and two adults share a room Picture: Steve Smyth but all of the mould has come back.”

Ms James said that her partner almost fell through the bathroom floor into the lounge around a 17 months ago. He was holding one of their newborn children at the time, when “rotten floorboards” broke beneath him.

Ms James said that a water pipe stopped him from falling all of the way through.

After this, Ms James had hoped that the borough council would replace the floor.

“They just over-boarded it,” she said.

She is concerned that if the new floor is attached to the “rotten” one, it may also fall through.

“I’ve had enough of the way that people are treating me,” she said. “I’m sick of it. The council needs to take this house back and tear it down before they put another family in here.

“Nobody is willing to help us. They

say we have to wait our turn.”

In January, Cllr Kaiser said that there are more than 2,000 households currently on the borough council’s housing register.

“Each case is assessed and awarded a priority banding in line with our allocations policy based on the applicant’s current housing situation and need,” he said. “There is a limited number of council and partner housing association homes within the borough.

Speaking this week, Cllr Kaiser said that residents who apply to join the Housing Register can continue to access advice and support from the council’s homelessness and housing needs team who will explore all housing options available to every applicant.

“This could include registering for Homeswapper and looking for a mutual exchange or supporting applicants to submit medical or social priority applications if appropriate,” he said.

“We are in the process of adopting a new housing allocations policy to reflect current legislation, take account of shifts in demand and ensure we are allocating social homes to those most in need.”

As part of this, Cllr Kaiser said that the borough council will be introducing a new five-year local connection test.

This will prioritise residents in the borough for social housing.

“We recognise that overcrowding is a significant issue for residents and have made provision within the new policy to award appropriate priority to those living in overcrowded homes.”

8 | NEWS

Vaccine bus returns to borough THE COVID vaccine bus is returning to the borough, to offer more jabs to residents.

The Health on the Move Van will be in various locations, each time operating from 10am until 4pm.

On Monday, February 28, and Tuesday, March 1, it will be at the Finchampstead Baptist Centre.

On Friday, March 4, it will be at the Rainbow Centre in Rainbow Park, Winnersh.

And it will be at Lower Earley Library, in Chalfont Close, on Wednesday, March 2, and Saturday, March 6.

A spokesperson for Berkshire West CCG encouraged everyone who is eligible, to have a Covid vaccination.

“It’s proved to be the most effective way of protecting ourselves and each other and helping stop the spread of the virus,” they added.

Join the mini-mile SPACES for a children’s race at Cantley Park are now available.

The Children’s Mini Mile race takes place on the same day as the Wokingham Half Marathon – this Sunday.

The event is for ages four to 11. Those under eight must be accompanied. It begin at 10.15am and costs £10 to enter. n For more, visit: wokinghamhalfmarathon.com/ mini-mile

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WOKINGHAM.TODAY Thursday, February 24, 2022

Covid has increased poor farmer mental health reports University MENTAL HEALTH: The pandemic has worsened existing support systems research shows Picture: Heather Gill on Unsplash

EXCLUSIVE

By JESS WARREN jwarren@wokingham.today POOR mental health has increased in farmers, reports a new study from the University of Reading.

The institution worked with Exeter University and Sheffield University to discover that while Covid-19 led to worsening mental health among farmers, those surveyed were already struggling prior to the pandemic.

Incoming changes to the basic payment system to support farmers following Brexit were a major factor for worsening mental health, alongside isolation, bureaucracy, and climatic conditions.

Last week, MPs, agricultural leaders and academics heard about results from the Landscapes of Support for Farming Mental Health project.

It was funded by the ESRC in response to the global pandemic and the impact it had on farmers.

Neil Parish MP, chair or the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Select Committee attended the presentation.

He said that his parliamentary committee has

launched an inquiry into rural mental health and is hoping that valuable lessons will be learnt from the research project.

He added: “Expert research into this issue from the ‘Landscapes’ team and others will help inform the recommendations we’ll

eventually make to the Government about how its support to rural communities on mental health matters can be improved.”

Dr David Rose, Elizabeth Creak associate professor of agricultural innovation and extension at the University of Reading led the research.

He said one of the biggest impacts of the pandemic was to widen the already existing cracks between farmers and their support networks.

This, he said, exacerbated the poor mental health that many farmers were already experiencing.

“Covid itself was just the tip of the iceberg, with the biggest change to agriculture as a result of Brexit beginning in January 2021,” he added.

“Against the backdrop of huge regulatory change, the first wave of the global pandemic was especially hard on farmers with the driest spring on record, the removal of formal and informal support networks and major shifts in patterns of consumption and demand.”

The research also found that some services from charities, trade and governmental bodies were unavailable during the pandemic.

Dr Caroline Nye, research fellow at the Centre for Rural Policy Research at the University of Exeter said: “Formal support systems for the agricultural community have long played a vital role towards maintaining not only business resilience but also personal wellbeing.

“The challenges currently

faced by farmers continue to put pressure on their business, their resources, and their health.”

She said that it is important to understand how farmers can be better supported into the future, adding that the sector faces some of the most important transitions in agriculture of this generation.

Dr Ruth Little, lecturer in Human Geography and member of the Institute for Sustainable Food at the University of Sheffield said that Covid-19 and post-Brexit policy uncertainty created a “perfect storm’” to fuel stress and anxiety.

“This project points to important evidence on both the need for support mechanisms to be in place and indicates ways to ensure that this support is effective, well-funded and as joined up as possible,” she said.

The researchers recommend that mental health first aiders are urgently trained to provide signposting and support for farmers.

They also said that the shift to online provision for support services and charities makes the digital divide on broadband access in rural areas more urgent.

A full report from the project will be published in spring.

OPEN: Staff members Anna Anderson, Rosie Hudson and Saunna Marsh with some of the doughnuts Pictures: Steve Smyth

HUNGRY: Neve Tomlin, James Legg with daughter, Amelia with their doughnuts

Doughnut Time opens to hungry queues A NEW EATERY opened in Wokingham town centre at the weekend.

On Saturday, February 19, Doughnut Time on Denmark Street opened its doors to a stream of people.

The shop was giving out free doughnuts to visitors between noon and 2pm to mark the new store opening.

And the queue stretched across the town centre, with hungry visitors not stopping

FREE: Jimena Diaz-Solano (13), happy with her choice of doughnuts.

for the rain. The shop’s menu includes a variety of doughnuts with special glazes and toppings.

There are also vegan options.

It is open from 9.30am to 6pm,

Mondays to Thursdays, 9.30am to 10pm on Fridays and Saturdays, and 10am until 5pm on Sundays. n For more information, visit: doughnuttime.co.uk

Henley Swimming Festival returns in July A SWIMMING festival is returning to the borough this July.

The Henley Swimming Festival will be held on the banks of the River Thames in Remenham and in the water, on the weekend of Saturday, July 9.

There will be plenty of swimming, as well as film viewings, musical performances and talks at Temple Island Meadows.

Swimmers will be able to camp on Saturday night, and enjoy a day of activities by the river on the Sunday.

This includes paddle boarding, a synchronised swimming display, music from a rock choir, yoga, Zumba and children’s activities.

Ahead of the festival, the organisers have submitted a licensing application to the Public Protection Partnership, which is in charge of licensing for Wokingham Borough Council.

The application is to conduct indoor sporting events, amplified speech for commentary, have live music and recorded music and sell alcohol has been made. The festival site will be open from 7am on Saturday to 5pm on Sunday.

Juliet Hume, the director of operations for the festival, said that the event is well established in Henley’s event diary.

“We are very much looking forward to returning to Temple Island Meadows in 2022 to showcase this stunning stretch of the Thames to open water swimmers and their families,” she said.

“The Festival is fast becoming the must-attend event for anyone involved in open water swimming, and it is exciting to watch it grow as more and more people get hooked on this amazing sport.”

Prior to the main festival, organisers are

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also hosting the ‘Selkie Henley Classic’ event — a dawn swim.

Held on Sunday, June 26, swimmers will arrive on site from 2am and swim from around 4.30am as the sun is rising.

Participants will then swim the regatta course and return to the event area for coffee and breakfast sandwiches.

The tradition was first established in 2004, with the wider festival established in 2011.

“The Classic remains a quirky, event, the only opportunity to safely swim past all the landmarks of the full Regatta course,” Ms Hume added.

“To do this as the sun is rising makes this an unforgettable experience.”

As part of the licensing application, the organisers have applied for a late night refreshment licence on this day. n For more information, visit: henleyswim.com

Wokingham In Need receives Tesco grant EXCLUSIVE

EVERY LITTLE HELPS: Wokingham In Need receives a cheque from Tesco Picture: Daniel Blackham

By DANIEL BLACKMAN dblackham@rdg.today A WOKINGHAM charity has received a grant as part of Tesco’s community grant scheme.

Wokingham In Need, which is dedicated to supporting homeless and vulnerable people, will use the funding to offer primary school children workshops to improve their mental health.

The classes will focus on teaching children a new skill to improve mindfulness, with juggling and spinning plates among the options.

Sue Jackson, founder of the charity, said: “We learnt about the workshops following research by a professor in Israel that showed mindfulness was assisted by learning a new simple skill.

“We then spoke to Cathy at Circus Scene in Arborfield who advised what was needed and we decided to apply to Tesco for funding.”

Tesco’s community grants are available nationwide and support thousands of community projects.

Since its launch in 2016, the

scheme has supported more than 40,000 projects with funding surpassing £90 million.

Louise Jedras, community champion at the Finchampstead Road supermarket, said: “We’re delighted to be able to provide this funding for Wokingham In Need.

“The work it is doing via its workshops for children’s mental health has never been more important than now after the past two years.

“We are proud to be helping the

community in this way.”

The classes will be provided to primary schools for free at the point of delivery and the full donation of £887 will be used to fund them.

Sue Jackson was joined by charity grants coordinator, Sally Grant, to be presented the cheque by Ms Jedras and the Wokingham store manager, Lukasz Zawada. n Applications for Tesco community grants are open, for more information visit: tescocommunitygrants.org.uk

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Man attacked by armed gang A MAN was attacked by a gang wielding weapons including a hammer and a baseball bat, leaving him with serious injuries.

The incident took place in the early hours of Monday morning in Rivermead Road, off Colemansmoor Road in Woodley.

Now, police are appealing for witnesses to come forward.

In their appeal they said that a man in his twenties was attacked around 12.30am.

At least four offenders were involved in the assault, using weapons including a hammer, a baseball bat and a wrench.

The man was taken to hospital where he remains.

The offenders are thought to have left the scene in a dark coloured vehicle.

Thames Valley Police’s investigating officer, Detective Sergeant Iain Watkinson, based at Loddon Valley police station, said: “This appears to be a targeted attack and I’m appealing for anyone who witnessed this assault or knows the identity of anyone involved.

“Anyone with information should call us on 101 or make a report online, quoting reference number 43220078784.”

Anonymous reports can be made to the independent charity, Crimestoppers, on 0800 555 111.

WOKINGHAM.TODAY Thursday, February 24, 2022

South East is worst-performing region for M-way notifications

By PHIL CREIGHTON news@wokingham.today

ALERTS: The M25 is one of the motorways in the south east Picture: Via ORR

THE SOUTH East is the worst region in the country for notifying people of motorway road closures.

New data released last week by independent monitor the Office of Rail and Road placed the region at the bottom of its Benchmarking National Highways report. This outlines the regional differences in performance across National Highways’ motorways and major A roads in England, and is part of a drive for greater transparency.

In one of the indicators reported for the first time, ORR saw significant differences across England in the accuracy and timeliness in the notification of overnight road closures.

National Highways is tasked with ensuring that, nationally, 90% of overnight road closures are published accurately, seven days in advance, by 2024-25.

However, just over half – 55% – were correctly revealed in 2020-21.

And in the south east that was just 42% of closures. The Midlands was top, with 66%.

ORR also saw the South East – the most heavily used trafficked region of the

road network – continue to suffer the highest levels of delays than any other region.

Road users in the South East already suffer the least reliable journeys and spend more time in delays due to roadworks, with an average delay of 7.9 seconds per vehicle per mile against 6.7 seconds nationally.

The region did exceed the national target (86%) for clearing incidents, with 89%

cleared within less than one hour.

ORR’s report found the South East also exceeded the target of 95% of road surfaces not requiring further investigation (97%).

ORR also reports 31 sections of the strategic road network were above the legal air quality levels across the country in 2020-2. Eight of these – nearly a quarter of the total – were in the south east region.

ORR says expects National Highways to make improvements.

Sneha Patel, Deputy Director of Highways at ORR said: “Our annual benchmarking report this year has led to greater transparency around National Highways’ performance and will incentivise its regions to improve further.

“We’ve now got a four-fold increase in the number of

CHEQUE: Justine Ransom and Charlotte Hall from the Wokingham branch of Newbury Building Society present a cheque to Tom Horsfield, Fern Haynes and Georgia Thornton of Sue Ryder at the Duchess of Kent Hospice in Reading Picture: Professional Images/@ ProfImages

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performance indicators that National Highways must report on: that’s a considerable step forward.

“However, there continue to be significant regional differences and we expect National Highways to apply the lessons it has learned about what works well in one region to other parts of the country as part of the steps it will take to meet all nationallevel targets by 2024‑25.”

Wokingham building society branch raises more than £4,000 for Sue Ryder MORE THAN £4,000 has been raised by a Wokingham building society branch.

Earlier this month, Charlotte Hall and Justine Ransom, branch managers of the Newbury Building Society’s town branch, presented a cheque to Tom Horsfield, Fern Haynes, and Georgia Thornton at the Sue Ryder Duchess of Kent Hospice in Reading.

Ms Hall thanked all of the staff members who helped reach the total.

She added: “We are very happy to have been able to support Sue Ryder and the incredible work they do for those living with terminal illnesses in the Thames Valley last year.”

Fundraising activities included a sponsored walk around Virginia Water, which raised more than £1,000, as well as calendar sales, and an annual donation from the society’s charity savings account.

Members who open this account can save and nominate a charity to which the society

makes an annual donation based on the savings balances.

A spokesperson for Sue Ryder said they are grateful for the support.

“This incredible donation to Sue Ryder Duchess of Kent Hospice will allow our nurses and healthcare professionals to be there when it matters for those people living with a terminal illness in the Thames Valley,” they said.

This support extends to the family and friends of patients.

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MP welcomes domestic abuse Foodbank receives share support funding increase of £40,000

By JESS WARREN jwarren@wokingham.today

By JESS WARREN jwarren@wokingham.today

WOKINGHAM Foodbank was one of 70 to receive a share of £40,000 earlier this year.

The organisation was given the donation by The Midcounties Co-operative, after the money was raised in 228 of its stores over the festive period.

Phil Ponsonby, CEO at The Midcounties Co-operative, said: “We know that these are challenging times for many families, and as a cooperative business we’re committed to supporting our local communities.

“A massive thank you to all of our members, customers and colleagues who made a donation to our Food Bank Fund this Christmas.

“We’re so pleased to have been able to raise such a significant amount for our food bank partners and hope it goes a small way in supporting the vital services that they provide, especially as they face increased pressure and demand at this time of year.”

The £40,000 was raised through members, customers and colleagues who were encouraged to make monetary donations via till points, as well as drop essential items into each store’s food bank collection boxes.

The fund was also boosted through Midcounties’ work with its anti-food waste partner, Too Good To Go, to donate £1 from each ‘magic bag’ of discounted food sold to the fund.

The Food Bank Fund was initially launched at the start of the pandemic to help ensure that all those in need could continue to access essential supplies.

Since its launch, it has raised more than £90,000 for its food bank partners.

Annette Medhurst, Wokingham Foodbank manager said she was especially thankful for a donation in the new year.

“We continue to receive a high number of referrals for households across the borough,” she said.

“We are always grateful for all financial donations received but especially so at the moment.

“The donation from the Co-op is incredibly well timed because we routinely need to purchase low stock items at the moment.

“In particular we are buying a lot of cleaning products and toiletries to go out with our food parcels.

“We are thankful for their generosity and how well they support our community.”

ONE of the borough’s MPs has welcomed more funding for domestic abuse support.

The Government has decided to give councils £125 million over the next financial year towards support services for domestic abuse victims.

It will take the total support to date to £330 million.

Of the funding, Wokingham Borough Council will be given £248,061.

Conservative MP Theresa May welcomed the support.

“I want to see an end to all forms of violence against women and girls,” she said.

“Domestic abuse is a horrific crime, and we must do everything we can to prosecute perpetrators and help victims recover and rebuild their lives.”

The money could help fund healthcare, social workers and benefits, interpreters, immigration advice and other specialist services.

Wokingham Borough Council will be able to choose the areas to support, in line with need.

Mrs May added: “I am pleased the Government is giving additional funding to help victims of abuse and their children start again – with better services such as healthcare, social workers and benefits.

“Combined with the Conservative Government’s landmark Domestic Abuse Act, we are helping victims escape

WELCOMED: Theresa May is pleased with an increase in funding to councils over domestic abuse their abusers and making sure that perpetrators feel the full force of the law.”

During her time in office, Mrs May was involved in securing millions in additional funding for domestic abuse projects and providing thousands more beds for domestic abuse victims.

While Home Secretary, she

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developed the action plan of violence against women and girls.

It set out how to support those at risk, help victims and ensure offenders are brought to justice.

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HELPING HAND: Dexter Rosier is raising funds for the Royal Berks Charity by running a mile a day every day this year

Dexter is going the extra 365 miles to support Royal Berks Charity

SOME people like to go the extra mile, but a young lad from Woodley is preparing to go an extra 365.

Fresh from winning a Pride of Reading award last November, Dexter Rosier is currently undertaking a special mile-a-day challenge for the Royal Berks Charity.

Every day across 2022, he will put on his running shoes, to make a total of 365 miles – the equivalent of running 14 marathons.

Dexter had planned to raise £700 for the Royal Berks Charity last year, but it was wildly successful – he raised more than £3,000.

Now, he is aiming to more than double that, and raise £7,000.

The nine-year-old says: “I am running a mile every day for the entire year, after running my marathons last year I wanted to really challenge myself and I thought this would be a good way.

“I am really enjoying it so far and hope to raise as much money as possible for the children’s ward as I

know what a great place it is to be even though you are in hospital.”

As an NHS charity, Royal Berks Charity relies on donations, which are then used to help run specialist services and pioneering research.

The charity said that every person supporting Dexter is helping to support the incredible NHS staff at its hospitals and enhance the level of care provided to thousands of patients and their families every year.

“Someone with Dexter’s desire and willingness to raise funds, along with the support of his family, just goes to show that no matter what your age, with a little imagination and a get up and go attitude, anything is possible,” says Martin Butler, Royal Berks Charity’s community fundraising manager.

If you think you could be another Dexter, I’d love to hear from you.”

Dexter has a JustGiving page set up for donations.

n For more details, email: events@royalberkshire.nhs.uk

Two thirds of Britain’s young workforce have only met colleagues in person once NEARLY two thirds of young workers have only met their colleagues face-to-face once, according to new research.

According to pub company and brewer, Greene King, 65% of adults aged 18 to 24, often referred to as Gen Z, have seen colleagues in person just once since starting a job in the pandemic.

Around 85% of British office workers polled say they are looking forward to a return to the office with getting to spend more time with colleagues and work social events high on the agenda.

And 75% say that pub lunches and after work drinks essential for bonding with colleagues.

Alex Dawson at Greene King, said: “The pub isn’t just a place to drink, the pub is a hub for creative ideas, friendships and team bonding.

“Working from home had a major impact on social activities.

Everything from mid-week lunches to after work drinks had to be put on hold so it’s no surprise people are eager to get back to socialising and spending time together in the pub.

“We are giving people the

BIG VISION: James Singleton used drone photography to capture the beauty of Bearwood Lak

By PHIL CREIGHTON news@wokingham.today LOOKING at this aerial view and you might think it’s some lush foreign clime, but it’s actually Wokingham borough.

The lake is Bearwood, and sits next to trees pretty much as far as the eye can see.

And the beautiful bright blue sky, tinged with just a few clouds make it look like paradise.

The picture has been taken by drone photographer James Singleton.

The owner of photography firm JS Aerial Solutions, James has been busy capturing a bird’s eye view of Wokingham.

This time, he was up early to capture Bearwood Lakes as the sun rose.

“Hard to believe it’s in our back garden,” he said.

James took up drone photography as a hobby four years ago, and now snaps scenic shots from points

Wokingham rescue dogs treated to share of £8,000 food donation

chance to finally enjoy all those special moments with colleagues and friends that may have been missed in previous months due to coronavirus restrictions and we can’t wait to welcome you back”.

Prior to the pandemic almost half of office workers in the country would go to the pub or a local restaurant for lunch up to four times a month with colleagues.

For many, it is viewed as a place to wind down and get to know colleagues.

PUPS at a Wokingham rescue centre have been treated to a food donation.

Greyhound and lurcher rescue centre, Fall in Love with a Rescue, was given a share of a food donation worth more than £8,000.

Last month, pet food manufacturer Burgess Pet Care ran a takeover on its social media sites to highlight the work of greyhound and lurcher rescue centres.

As part of this, Fall In Love With A Rescue was one of six centres in the country to be nominated for a prize.

Jane McCutcheon from the Maidenhead Road centre, says: “January is a very difficult month for our little family-run rescue and this wonderful donation has made such a difference.

“It has allowed us to use the funds that would have been used to feed the pups to save four little souls.

“All of our rescue hounds are doing very well on the Burgess

Supadog Greyhound and Lurcher food and there are no issues with their notoriously sensitive stomachs.”

Charlotte Varley, brand development manager at Burgess Pet Care says that during the pandemic, more greyhounds and lurchers have needed support, with fundraising made difficult.

“It is testament to the commitment of the people running the rescues that they have continued with their amazing work to rehome and support the health and happiness of these beautiful animals,” she says.

“We want to make a difference and to help rescues year-round, which is why for every sack of Burgess Supadog Greyhound and Lurcher sold, we’ll continue to donate 20p in the form of free food to greyhound and lurcher rescues in the UK.” Peter Lancaster, head of marketing at Burgess Pet Care, says that each year, thousands of greyhounds and

NEWS | 29

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Thursday, February 24, 2022 WOKINGHAM.TODAY

of Bearwood

Ascot photographers launch dog portrait book

Honest motherhood Angela Garwood

The happy messy home

O

UR home is a messy one. Not disaster-zone level mess where every surface is covered and you don’t know what lies in the cracks of your sofa. More a happy-messy.

SNAP: Working cocker spaniel flying over a log in the forest Picture: MIL Pet Photography

kes in this stunning picture Picture: James Singleton / JS Aerial Solutions of interest across the borough.

They’ve included Wokingham’s town centre.

He says getting a good sunset photo is all in the timing.

“Generally, my best shots are taken about 10 minutes before the sunset, just before the sun dips over the horizon,” James explains. “At this time, you generally get all the best colours coming out.

“You really need there to be some clouds over the horizon to catch the

light as the sun goes down: glowing iridescent pinks, oranges and yellows.”

The photographer says aerial photography gives a great perspective of places you already know.

And James follows all the regulations that drone pilots have to follow.

He uses a 250g device, meaning he can fly it responsibly near public spaces. n To see more of his work, visit www. jsaerial.co.uk

MEALS: Fall in Love with a Rescue, was given a share of a food donation worth more than £8,000 Picture: Burgess Pet Care

ASCOT photographers have launched a fundraising project for Berkshire Search and Rescue Dogs.

Chris Miller and his wife Sue are part of an international group of professional pet photographers, called the Tails of the World Collective.

As part of this, they have launched Tails of Windsor and Ascot, a fundraising coffee table book. Their company, Millers Image Limited, was selected to join the collective after a rigorous portfolio review.

The group was founded by Caitlin J. McColl following the success of her first book, Tails of Melbourne.

Her dream was to unite pet photographers across the globe in a mission to raise funds for animal charities with beautiful photography and heart-warming stories.

“When Chris formally applied to join the Tails of the World Collective, I was so happy to officially welcome him on board,” Caitlin says.

“Their work is absolutely gorgeous, and I have no doubt that Tails of Windsor and Ascot will be a beautiful addition to our series.”

To date, the international collective has raised more than $15,000 for animal charities.

Caitlin thanked Chris and Sue for joining them on their mission.

Chris and Sue hope that their project will capture the true personality of dogs on location.

“All previous editions of this Collective across the world have raised funds for a local charity,” Chris says. “We wanted to do the same here in Berkshire. We are proud to partner with Berkshire Search and Rescue Dogs (BSARD) and our goal is to raise more awareness and at least £2,000 for this amazing charity.”

BSARD is a volunteer Lowland Rescue search dog team on call every hour of the year.

The charity assists search and rescue teams, the police and other emergency services to locate lost or missing vulnerable people within Berkshire.

It is completely dependent on sponsorship and donations to exist and carry out its work.

“Training is such a vital part of preparation for our dogs, and the woods in Ascot are often used for that purpose,” says Graeme Rumbol, chairman of BSARD. “Chris and Sue are regularly out and about in these same woods and so we were delighted to hear that they wanted to help us and raise funds through their book project.”

Chris says that he is excited by the prospect of including so many dog lovers and their companions in the book.

The Millers have a maximum of 55 sessions for the project and have already been overwhelmed by preregistration interest. The book is released on Thursday, December 1. n For more information, visit: www. millersimage.com

POETRY CORNER And how many children do you have?

Here is a poem I wrote about an emotive subject. I do feel we need to have the conversation about baby loss.

lurchers are put up for adoption when their professional careers have ended.

“With the right support, understanding and patience, these wonderful creatures can become fantastic family members,” he says.

“Greyhounds are by nature gentle creatures who love human company and are renowned for being

incredibly affectionate.”

Peter says contrary to popular belief, the dogs can be content on two 20-minute walks per day, with an opportunity to run a few times a week.

“In fact, they often enjoy sleeping between 16- to 18-hours a day on a comfy bed or sofa,” he says.

I answer four, although what I mean to say is five but I don’t want to start that conversation with a well-meaning stranger How can I explain that Sasha no longer exists in this realm She is wet ashes dissolved on a Surrey heath She has passed through a door which I can’t pick the lock to But I am still her mother

PICTURE: Taisiia Shestopal on Unsplash I still birthed her She was still born

We love sharing your poetry.

Email submissions to news@wokingham.today

Fiona Dignan

The sort of home where you’d know if people are due to visit because the place appears noticeably different. Toys are given order on the play-mat. Frames are dusted properly. Objects normally displaced are mysteriously housed.

Upon arrival you’d have no idea that only minutes before there was aubergine chilli splattered across the radiator.

We try and keep the place as tidy as we can, but this could easily become a full-time occupation, and we like to leave the house too. Plus, we have two children who each seem, in their own way, hell-bent on undoing any attempt at organisation in each room. The toddler being the main culprit.

Perfectly positioned cushions? On the floor they go. Endless supply of pens all tidied away nicely into the tin? They simply must all come out at once.

Lego? EVERYWHERE. Obviously.

I rarely venture downstairs without slippers on for fear one of those tiny yet evil bits of plastic will find its way to the sole of my foot. Leo likes to keep a block of Lego to hand then drop it somewhere randomly when he finds something more exciting.

A permanent pile of children’s books, Lego and several soft toys have arranged themselves on the landing and despite looking rather displaced, neither of us have bothered to move them. It’s a convenient space for Leo to play/remain distracted as I attempt to get ready without him pulling at my hair straighteners or digging his finger nails into my bronzer powder.

Each evening, one of us will gather up the children’s belongings, toys mainly, and return them to their areas. It is nice, for those brief few minutes, to feel as though there is some kind of order.

Occasionally we will argue about just how much order there really needs to be.

I’ve had to talk Joel down from a need-tohoover-at-9pm numerous times. It’s our dining room floor that gets blasted with food during dinner with a toddler.

“The floor needs a clean,” he’ll say.

“IT’S 9 O’CLOCK JOEL, YOU WILL WAKE UP THE CHILDREN.” “They’ll be fine.”

He did hoover that night, but I was so angry I never let it go and he never did it again.

A few weeks later he bought one of those spray-mops, he loves it. As do I as it’s ever so quiet and the floor dazzles. We’ve had zero Hooveringrelated arguments since.

Well that’s not strictly true, we have bickered over Hoovers. I love my Henry and he remains loyal to his Shark, so like some weird cleaning fanatics we currently have both in our home.

If I want to make Joel’s day, I will hoover and mop the floor.

It’s wiping up Leo’s meal-time tornadoes that makes me grateful for the child that doesn’t throw her food everywhere. The joy of handing her a plate of food and knowing 99% of it will end up in her mouth. (Well, three small plates, she’s picky about foods being mixed. That’s another column.)

She can even be trusted to enjoy her snacks on the sofa.

We have yet to update our tired, worn-out, yet incredibly comfy sofas.

It seems, as ugly and primitive as they are, we’re both rather fond of the old things deep down.

In fact that’s my main reason for holding on to them; they work with the term I’ve coined for our home; happy-messy.

Angela blogs at The Colourful Kind

30 | VIEWPOINTS

WOKINGHAM.TODAY THE VOICE OF THE BOROUGH

Thank you to our storm heroes

THE past week has seen some of the worst weather we’ve experienced since the great storm of 1987.

While Eunice was anything but nice, it definitely wasn’t a hurricane.

However, it caused widespread havoc and destruction across Wokingham, with Shinfield Players Theatre losing 95% of its roof, cars and vans being crushed by falling trees or collapsed garages and hundreds losing power.

The Met Office only upgraded its warning to a rare red alert in the morning of Friday.

At the time, emergency workers were being called out to clear roads and keep people safe.

To do so in the existing conditions was amazing. With trees coming down, they persevered in the harsh weather.

As did the tree surgeons, the council teams trying to keep roads open, the bus drivers, and the keyworkers who couldn’t heed advice to stay at home.

Thank you to all of you for your efforts, we do appreciate all you’ve done.

CHURCH NOTES

An amazing discovery that changed the world

A

HUNDRED years ago, on 11th January 1922, something amazing happened in a hospital in Canada.

A teenage boy, Leonard Thompson, lay dying of an incurable disease. He, like everyone on that ward, had type 1 diabetes. But then his doctors started an experimental treatment called insulin.

The results were dramatic, reducing Leonard’s dangerously high blood-sugar levels to near normal and reversing the life-sentence of the disease.

Today more than 150 million people worldwide can enjoy life, thanks to the Godgiven knowledge, skill and perseverance of those Canadian doctors.

It’s a wonderful story. Sadly, though, the Bible makes it clear that everyone on the planet is facing another incurable disease, one that no doctor can ever treat.

It’s heart disease: I have a heart that is set on pleasing myself and ignoring my Creator, while breezily living in the world He made.

But there is hope. Not medication, but the offer of a heart transplant.

The Lord Jesus explained that “it is from within, out of a person’s heart, that evil thoughts come...”

(Mark 7 verse 21).

His death on the cross, taking our sin on Himself, and His glorious resurrection, made it possible for people facing a death sentence, you and me, to have a new heart and a new life. “I will remove from them their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh.” (Ezekiel 11 verse 19).

Helen Hotchkiss is a member of Christ Church Wokingham, which meets on Sundays at St Crispin’s School at 10.30am.

She is writing on behalf of Churches Together in Wokingham

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Your letters

Send your thoughts to letters@wokingham.today

Cycle routes THE shocking failure of Wokingham Borough Council to disclose the proposals for the new cycle track in Woodley is unforgivable. Nobody knew about this, not even our local council.

This is just another case of the ideology of this Tory council and the Highways department who have no respect for the community that it represents. One is grateful to Chris Saunders who managed to unveil many faults with this scheme which was not subject to any form of consultation whatsoever.

I paraphrase the various objections.

1. Severe congestion will be created on alternative roads.

2. Traffic diverted through unsuitable residential roads.

3. Total chaos for emergency call-outs for residents in Woodlands Avenue.

4. CO2 levels increased as cars take longer journeys.

5. Officers at fault with design guidance and not completing the job.

6. Deliberate poor consultation with local residents, but given to pro cycling groups outside the area.

All of the above are due to us being run by a Tory dictatorship which has no thought for the opinions of the local residents. We are of no importance to them. It is time we had some independent councillors to represent our feelings rather than a political party.

Each week we have Cllr Halsall’s hype about the housing numbers which he says that he is powerless to alter. He should be waging war on

DEAR Cllr John Halsall, We would like to follow-up on our letter dated 29 November 2021 regarding seeking White Ribbon Accreditation for Wokingham Borough Council. Disappointingly we are yet to receive a response.

We understand you have consulted with a representative from the White Ribbon organisation, and that the Equalities Working group have met and discussed this issue.

You have concluded that White Ribbon accreditation would needlessly duplicate work the council is already undertaking.

The Equalities Working Group do not publicly publish meeting minutes, and the statements from the leader of that group, Cllr Blumenthal, in Central Office to get them reduced to a more acceptable level.

How on earth can you vote for a party that is spending £17m on making it easier to drive, but creating more emissions. It should be spent on greener modes of transport. Not everyone is able to ride a bike.

This has to change if we are ever able to get democracy back in Wokingham.

If you don’t know or cannot trust any councillor, don’t vote at all.

I have no wish to see the country damaged yet again by a foolish Treasury orthodoxy, aided by a Central Bank lurching from being too loose and inflationary to being too tough.

It is too late now to head off the round of inflation they have helped create. They both need to recognise that growth will bring the deficit down and the belated ending of money printing will start to slow inflation after April/May without further action. The hit to real incomes ahead will also slow the economy.

I have seen Treasury theory do so much damage over my lifetime.

I urged John Major not to push the UK into the inevitable boom bust that the European Exchange Rate Mechanism was bound to deliver. He went ahead, triggering an inflation followed by a bust which collapsed house prices and took down

the last WBC meeting were lacking detail and focussed on Domestic Abuse rather than more broadly on prevention of all male Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG).

We would therefore very much welcome a response to our letter which details the broader strategy the council is taking to end male VAWG. In discussions with you outside the council offices on 25 November, you committed to review and assess the value other councils have gained from White Ribbon accreditation. We have also been in correspondence with other White Ribbon accredited councils and would welcome the opportunity to discuss what learnings we have that

YOU have printed letters from several readers who have written in to highlight

the widespread, but illegal, use of e-scooters in Wokingham.

Riders are putting pedestrians and themselves at risk. Nearly two weeks ago, there was a report in The Sunday Times which included a table setting out the number of e-scooters seized by police.

The Sunday Times asked all police services to provide the information on seizures of e-scooters, by means of a request under the Freedom of Information Act. Twenty seven services provided a response, so it can’t have been too much of a burden to do so. However, 10 failed to respond, at all. The remaining nine refused to provide the

many small businesses. It cast the Conservatives out of office for 13 years.

I watched as Gordon Brown helped generate a Treasury orthodoxy that decided to correct a credit bubble they had created by a disastrous aggressive curtailment of cash and credit. This bankrupted large banks and brought on the predictable great recession.

On the back of that, Labour have been out of office for 11 years so far.

Today inflation is too high.

Tomorrow it will be higher, when the full energy price rises add to bills.

Wage growth so far is below inflation. The cost of living squeeze will hit confidence and limit many people’s ability to spend on discretionary items.

Some say the inflation is the result of supply-side shortages brought on

by Covid, international supply chain disruptions, and the general shortage of gas in Europe. Others point to the way the Bank of England continued creating extra money, buying up bonds, and keeping interest rates around zero long after the initial pandemic shutdown.

Whichever explanation you prefer, it all points to a coming sharp decline in the pace of growth, a big reduction in consumer spending outside the basics, and a peak or surge in inflation.

It does not look like a wage/price spiral setting in given the deflationary impact of the huge energy price rises and the consequences of the most severe advanced country monetary tightening on offer.

The Bank of England has stopped all money printing, has raised interest rates and is even thinking of money shrinking whilst the ECB plans a further €40bn a month and the Bank of Japan carries on buying as many bonds as it takes to keep the 10-year rate of interest near zero.

The Bank of England should give its tightening time to work before considering too much action.

The Treasury have one main argument against my proposal that we should cancel the extra National Insurance, end VAT on fuel, and cancel VAT on green products to make it cheaper to save energy at home: they say the deficit is too high so they need to hike taxes to reduce the amount we need to borrow.

I agree the UK has to get the huge deficit down. The Treasury said they could live with a deficit of £233.9bn this year. I thought that was too high Now the Treasury thinks the deficit will come in at £183bn, £50bn lower. It is currently running more than £60bn lower with just three months more to report. In that case the Treasury on its own argument can easily afford to cancel the £12bn

Cedric Lander, Woodley

E-Scooters

Sir John Redwood

L

We love to hear from you! Send us your views on issues relating to the borough (in 250 words or less) to Wokingham.Today, Crown House, 231 Kings Road, Reading RG1 4LS or email: letters@wokingham.today We reserve the right to edit letters Views expressed in this section are not necessarily those of the paper

We would like a White Ribbon reply

Westminster Diary

ET me have another go at explaining to the Government why they must remove the National Insurance tax rise, and cut VAT, before the full cost of living squeeze hits in April.

WOKINGHAM.TODAY Thursday, February 24, 2022

can be applied locally for the benefit of Wokingham borough.

You also committed to reviewing whether you would personally take the White Ribbon pledge, “I promise to never commit, excuse or remain silent about male violence against women”.

We would like to hear whether you have signed up to this (sign up here: Promise — White Ribbon UK).

Louise Timlin, branch lead, Wokingham and Reading Women’s Equality Party Cllr Sally Gurney, town and parish councillor Juliet Sherratt - Wokingham resident Cllr Sarah Kerr - borough councillor data. Thames Valley was one of them.

Could someone take this up with the Chief Constable and ask him why Thames Valley Police think that they can flout the law in this way?

Name and address supplied

Blue bag challenge IT would be intriguing to know just what folk actually do put in those blue sacks.

Some time ago, I asked a neighbour this very question. He looked at me as if I was a bit simple, and replied “household waste, of course”. When I asked him exactly what he thought that was, he couldn’t say.

As a single person household, most of National Insurance increase next year and forgo around £5bn of VAT revenue.

I have a strong economic reason why they need to do this. Why has the deficit fallen? It is because the economy has grown more than they thought. It is also because the Treasury/OBR model of the economy underestimates just how much extra tax revenue they will collect if the economy grows faster.

By the same token, if they insist on slowing the economy too much this spring they will collect less tax revenue than they thought. They could end up with a bigger deficit from too tough a squeeze.

I do not want the Government to fall for Treasury austerity economics again and plunge us into another slowdown – which will lead to more self defeating cries from the Treasury for higher taxes and lower spending.

Of course we need to get inflation down. The Bank has now taken some necessary action to start to do that in the second half of this year.

The single biggest problem is the price of energy. The Government needs to get on with licencing and encouraging more domestic production of oil and gas, and more domestic capacity for reliable electricity supply. This is the way to address the chronic domestic shortage and to start to unwind the foolish dependence to sky-high priced imports from a continent even more short of energy than we are.

Sir John is the MP for Wokingham

Local services I like the way in which Wokingham Today publicises local services – for example, in the Report, ‘Fuel Bank to be standing alone service’ – 17th February.

So often, people suffer hardship needlessly, because they don’t know about the help that is available.

This was the case with a mentally ill lady who came to see me, recently.

She explained that her benefits had been axed, and that, due to mental breakdown, she was only doing a small amount of work, with very little income.

As a result, she had fallen into debt and rent arrears. She feared that she would lose her house, and be turned out onto the street.

I arranged for her to access the Wokingham Citizen’s Advice Debt Counselling Service. They would be able to liaise with her Housing Association, and arrange for her to pay off her arrears in instalments.

Citizen’s Advice also arranged for her to get help with fuel payments, and to receive a voucher for the foodbank – excellent services – all three.

I explained that I would get the lady’s benefits reinstated. The benefits system, with which I have regular contact, bewilders me. People who could work, go on getting benefits indefinitely, while those who can no longer work, don’t!

This was the case with a man who also came to see me, recently. Until his health broke down, he had always been a grafter. After an initial period of sick leave, he had been forced to traipse for miles, in order to attend a benefits assessment. There he was told that he did not qualify for benefit, and that he would have to seek work.

This man suffers from heart disease, angina, with pain and breathlessness on exertion, from

Pam Jenkinson, The Wokingham Crisis House

Flooding Page 8 of last weeks Wokingham Today had a superb article headed Hall Farm (Arborfield) homes will be built on low risk flood land says Council.

Cllr Wayne (no homes in Hurst) Smith said that specialist flood risk assessments were commissioned before the site was considered and he followed that remark that decisions were made using the Environmental Agencies flood zone map.

The Environmental Agency Flood Maps, Cllr (No houses in Hurst) Smith refers to are outdated as they do not factor in climate change, Bearwood Lakes Category A dam overlooking Hall farm or recent developments on Mole Road. The truth is the Environmental Agency have not been consulted on the viability of the Hall Farm scheme in flood risk terms.

Which consultant carried out the councils Hall farm assessment I wonder? The same consultant used

by Reading University in the past in Wokingham I wonder? A conflict of interest perhaps?

Comments from Phiala Mehring, Vice Chair of the National Flood Forum and Chair of the Loddon Valley Residents Association who is well versed with flood associated with the River Loddon are very worrying.

Ms Mehring points out that flood

Volunteer Corner Helena Badger

T

HIS year marks 50 years of listening for the Bracknell, Wokingham, Ascot & Districts.

This year also marks the 40th year of the Bracknell Samaritans run. The run will be held on Saturday 25th June at Easthampstead Park School. There are 5K, 10K and a Teddy bear race for children.

We are looking for volunteers to help running up to the event, on the day itself or even after the event! Some of these roles include;

registration, manning the water stations, marshalling along the route, setting up the course beforehand, taking down signage after the event and marketing the event. If you can help with any of the above, please get in touch. Please see the website for more details. n Are you interested in fashion?

Are you organised? Do you have a few hours you could volunteer each week?

The Cowshed are looking for a small team of volunteers to run our Little Black Dress shop.

Cllr Gary Cowan, independent borough councillor for Arborfield at Wokingham Borough Council

Ovarian Cancer WOMEN are being failed as the awareness crisis in ovarian cancer deepens. Symptoms of ovarian cancer are being ignored – both by those experiencing them and their GPs. This March, for Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month, Target Ovarian Cancer is urging the public to sign open letters to governments across the UK and tell them what is needed to combat the crisis. We desperately need to make progress in people’s knowledge of the symptoms.

In 2010 my mother, the actress Marjie Lawrence, was diagnosed with ovarian cancer just three weeks Our charity supports local people of any background facing a time of personal crisis or hardship.

This role will include sorting, pricing, washing and organising the items to make it look beautiful for customers coming in. You may also be involved in the planning of sale evenings and events. n MS Society Reading Wokingham and Districts Group provides support to those with MS, or those who care for someone with MS. We are looking for a MS Support Volunteer.

This role may vary depending on needs, but is likely to include: nforming people about health, care, benefits and other relevant services in the area, assisting people who require help to complete grant applications and helping to collate supporting paperwork, offering support to attend a social activity for the first time, reducing isolation by visiting hospitals

before she died. Had we and her doctors been aware of the symptoms, Marjie might be alive today. If diagnosed at the earliest stage, 9 in 10 women will survive. But two thirds of women are diagnosed late, when the cancer is harder to treat.

I’m writing to ask your readers to take just two minutes of their time to learn the symptoms and spread the word to their families and friends.

The main symptoms of ovarian cancer are: persistent bloating, feeling full or having difficulty eating, tummy pain, and needing to wee more often or more urgently.

If you believe in a future where every woman diagnosed with ovarian cancer has the best chance of survival, please show your support and add your name to the open letter: campaign.targetovariancancer.org.uk/ openletter

Sarah Greene, Target Ovarian Cancer Patron

Yemen THERE’S a growing conflict and humanitarian emergency in Yemen that’s been largely forgotten by the world. Families are living in a silent crisis and more than four million people have lost their homes. Families seeking refuge have been uprooted, often more than once, by shifting frontlines in a civil war that’s dominated the country since 2014. They’ve had to leave behind homes, livelihoods, possessions and loved ones.

Families are living in makeshift shelters made of sticks, palm branches, rags and anything they can find. Some fear heavy Spring rains could trigger a repeat of the flash flooding seen in 2020 and 2021 – against a backdrop of coronavirus and the spread of diseases like cholera and malaria. Camps are overcrowded, which means diseases spread quickly.

At disaster relief charity, ShelterBox, we’re about to start distributing emergency shelter in Yemen. The water filters, mosquito nets, kitchen sets, soap, and wash basins we’ll provide will help families protect themselves from diseases.

Tents will provide shelter for those sleeping in the open and tarpaulins and ropes will help families living in makeshift shelters make them more resilient to the weather.

It’s possible thanks to our supporters. To find out about our Yemen Appeal please visit the ShelterBox website - shelterbox.org.

Lucy Greenwell, ShelterBox or residential settings.

It also includes helping the Lead Support Volunteer collate local services signposting lists, connecting people to other sources of help such as peer networks and social events, promoting our publications or web based services, and signposting people to up to date information about services either from external sources or local groups.

The role also focuses on supporting the group’s shared responsibility for designing and delivering services in line with our principles of quality service delivery so that they are safe, effective and have a positive impact on those and using them and referring any in-depth support needs to our national Helpline. If you are passionate about what we do and can help, please get in touch.

Helena Badger, volunteer services manager at The Wokingham Volunteer Centre

WPR_2022-02-21_ReadingToday_33x2 (1)_Just Go

Reader travel ANDRÉ RIEU

& his Johann Strauss Orchestra AndreRieu&JohannStraussOrchestraLiveinNottingham_D.pdf

© Marcel van Hoorn

risk must look at the Loddon as a whole as development elsewhere (Basingstoke) will/can cause problems in Wokingham.

Ms Mehring added that the minute you dabble with rivers you get effects you have not planned for and her golden rule for planning in a climate change environment would be don’t build in and around a Floodplain.

In addition she adds that Wokingham should scrutinise these plants in more detail as development must be made future proof and of course Wokingham should talk and listen to flood groups.

The Conservatives had put all their eggs in the Grazeley basket and when that fell though their solution, to save their precious north of the borough from development was without any real though ramming 4,500 houses in the vicinity of a river and a flood plane.

The outcome is the south of the borough will take all the houses to be built in the next 30 to 35 years and in a climate change world will all be on green fields and edging rivers and the Floodplain.

I asked a question at last weeks Executive on why 4,500 not 2,200 houses? Cllr Wayne (not a house in Hurst) Smith’s terse reply was the Conservative Government had a 30year vision and Hall Farm was it.

Why did the Conservative councillors in the south agree in their secret group meetings to this I will never know, but they did.

If the Conservatives remain in office next May it will be a done deal and more and more green fields in the south of the borough will end concreted over.

Departing Wed 18 May ‘22

©

Paula, Wokingham

asthma, diabetes, and severe bladder infections. He is prescribed fourteen separate lots of medication.

It struck me that, if he attempted to go back to work, he would have to stop at regular intervals, throughout the day, in order to take the next lot of pills. His partner feared that he might drop dead on the building site.

I can only conclude that the benefits system targets former grafters – rather than the long-term unemployed, because they think that it will be easier to get the former back into employment. But not in this case.

The man had been reluctant to appeal their decision – fearing more traipsing for miles, and more refusal; he had intended resorting to living on his, very limited, savings, but I insisted that we re-apply for benefit.

I explained to this man that he might be able to do a small amount of very light work – such as sweeping up, but that, after a lifetime of grafting, and of paying full contributions, he was entitled to what used to be, and should still be called, ‘Incapacity Benefit’.

Violin virtuoso André Rieu returns to the UK for an evening of mesmerising music at Wembley Arena! Don’t miss the ‘King of Waltz’ perform with his Johann Strauss Orchestra at Britain’s most exciting arena with their signature-style of spectacle and flair.

Your break includes Return coach travel from Reading Overnight stay at a selected 3 or 4-star hotel outside London with breakfast Ticket to André Rieu concert at Wembley Arena Return coach transfers from the hotel to Wembley Arena En-route visit to London Ticket upgrades available

2 Days by Coach

only £199

Single Supplement £35

ISLE OF WIGHT ‘Royals & Rails’

IsleofWightRoyals&Rails_D.pdf

© English Heritage

of the time, I use one blue bag every five or six weeks. All bottles go to the bottle bank ; all paper, card, tins, and most plastics can go in the green bag; all food waste into the wonderful little black boxes. The blue bag has mostly those bits of plastic that cannot be recycled and plasticised packets.

Some producers are beginning to use food coverings and bags made from potato or hemp, all compostable or recyclable.

We do have an amazing waste scheme — so “Hats off” to our Wokingham Borough Council.

One blue bag a week should be easy.

VIEWPOINTS | 31

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Thursday, February 24, 2022 WOKINGHAM.TODAY

Departing Mon 30 May ‘22 On this fantastic break we enjoy the Isle of Wight’s peace, tranquillity and natural beauty as well as a nostalgic journey on the Isle of Wight Steam Railway and a visit to fascinating Osborne House, Queen Victoria’s former holiday home - a relaxing few days away.

Your break includes Return coach travel and ferry crossings from Reading 4 nights at the Holliers Hotel, Isle of Wight with dinner & breakfast Entertainment some evenings Heritage train journey on the Isle of Wight Steam Railway Excursions to Osborne House, Cowes & Ryde Optional Island Highlights Tour (£12pp)

5 Days by Coach

only £289

Single Supplement £60

Operated by Just Go Holidays Ltd. Coach package holidays and short breaks are subject to Just Go! Holidays terms and conditions. Your booking is protected by Bonded Coach Holidays (BCH) and the Association of Bonded Travel Organisers Trust Limited (ABTOT); this is a government approved consumer protection scheme. Tours offered subject to availability and government guidelines. Errors and omissions excepted. Prices per person, based on two people sharing a double/twin room. Calls to 033 numbers are free within inclusive minutes packages otherwise standard rates apply.

For more information, or to book, please call

03332 342 527 Quote WPR

or visit justgoholidays.com/WPR 033 numbers are free within inclusive minutes packages otherwise standard rates apply.

32 | BUSINESS

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association with BUSINESSTODAY InWinnersh Triangle

WOKINGHAM.TODAY Thursday, February 24, 2022

Got a business story?

Email news@wokingham.today

A business park that is changing

Reading best for apprentices

READING is one of the best places in the country to start an apprenticeship according to a new study.

The School of Marketing analysed the latest 2021/22 ONS data to see which cities had the highest rate of achievements in apprenticeship schemes.

It found that the Hampshire city of Winchester was the best city to start an apprenticeship, with 130 out of Winchester’s 370 apprentices successfully completing the course, leaving them with an achievement rate of 35.14%.

Reading comes in sixth place, with 90 achievements from 380 apprenticeship starts, giving it an achievement rate of 23.68%.

The town’s most popular subject was business, with 120 of their 380 starts being in this field. Other popular subjects include health and engineering.

A spokesperson from School of Marketing, which offers digital marketing apprenticeships to more than 4,000 people in more than 20 countries, said: “With many young people keen to decide on what to do with their future, this data illustrates what might be the best areas to take up an apprenticeship.

“As many areas begin schemes to help the next generation, like recently with London’s ‘Skill Up Step Up’ campaign, it will be interesting how achievement rates vary over the next few years.”

Reading gets employment boost with new service OPEN: Cllr Leader Jason Brock opens the new Fedcap Offices Picture: Dijana Capan

By PHIL CREIGHTON news@rdg.today

A NEW support service helping people bounce back from the coronavirus pandemic has been officially opened – and it’s already making a difference.

Not-for-profit organisation Fedcap Employment is delivering the UK Government’s new Restart Scheme in the Thames Valley, helping people to pick up skills for the modern workplace and find suitable, sustainable jobs.

Councillor Jason Brock, Leader of Reading Borough Council, officially opened the new office at Reading Business Centre in Queens Walk on Tuesday, February 15.

During the event, attendees were given an insight into how Fedcap Employment has been delivering the Restart Scheme, which helps people who have been out of work for nine months or longer with tailored support.

The organisation’s frontline team can help with everything from

updating CVs to tackling health concerns, and from impressing at interviews to launching new startup businesses.

The 26-strong team are already working with some of the region’s leading employers, including Thames Water, Travelodge and Compass Group.

Since Fedcap began delivering the scheme last year, it has supported more than 1,300 people across the South Central area of England to successfully find new

jobs – including almost a hundred in Reading.

Reading Borough Council leader Cllr Jason Brock said: “Reading is a town of tremendous business success, even in spite of the pandemic, but that success has also created a job market where it’s a huge challenge for some to get their foot in the door.

“We know that there are parts of Reading with entrenched economic inequalities and persistently higher unemployment levels, contributing

to the town being one of England’s most unequal places.

“The approach that Fedcap specialises in – of offering holistic support to get people into employment or starting up their own business – is exactly what’s needed if we’re to help every resident to share in Reading’s success.”

And Brian Bell, Fedcap’s chief executive, said the company was thrilled to open the office, which would be “the heartbeat” of its work in the South Central region.

“Our Reading team is successfully placing one person per day into employment,” he added.

“We’re here to make a difference to people’s lives, and we’ve already started to see the positive impact we can have in the area.

“Day after day, our customers are picking up the skills, confidence and experience that they need to kickstart the next stages of their working lives and careers.” n For more information, log on to: www.fedcapemployment.org

NEW DELIVERY: Reading Buses CEO Robert Williams (left) receiving the keys to his new coaches

Walk off a pub lunch Download the "pubs Walk App" Call us on: 0118 996 8567

www.thequeensoak.com Email us at: brotherton@thequeensoak.com Church Lane, Finchampstead, Wokingham, Berkshire RG40 4LS

No slow coach: modern buses available to hire from Reading Buses READING BUSES is no slow coach when it comes to business.

The bus operator based in Great Knollys Street in Reading has launched two new coaches that can be hired out.

Run from its subsidiary company Newbury & District, the fully accessible Volvo Plaxton vehicles are low emission and have all the mod cons.

Chief executive officer Robert Williams said: “We have a range of modern vehicles

for hire, including buses, coaches, double deckers and an open topper, many with seat belts and a range of options including toilets, space for luggage, wheelchair access and much more.

“We have a range of sizes providing eight to 86 seats, and can provide hire for school trips, corporate travel, airport transfers, weddings, day trips and events for long or shortterm contract hire.”

The most buses use Euro 6 engines which meet the newest

emissions standards.

This allows entry into London’s Ultra Low Emission Zone.

“We understand that venues and museums are seeing a jump in enquiries as Covid restrictions ease as well as schools planning their summer trips out, so it is a great opportunity to ask about travel and coach hire,” Mr Williams said.

n For more details, call: 01635 33855 or email: info@ newburyanddistrict.co.uk

NEWS | 33

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Thursday, February 24, 2022 WOKINGHAM.TODAY

News from your clubs, groups and societies.

Email your news to: news@wokingham.today

INTHECOMMUNITY Austen House enters jubilee competition with pudding RESIDENTS at a Lower Earley care home have been cooking up a storm to enter the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee pudding competition.

Austen House Care Home is hoping to create a pudding fit for a Queen, after the competition was announced in January.

The competition is being run by Fortnum & Mason, to create a pudding that the whole nation can bake for themselves and that will be served not only at Jubilee parties up and down the country, but to the Queen herself.

The best recipes will be judged by Dame Mary Berry, and Masterchef’s Monica Galetti in March.

The care home’s dessert is called Austentatious and includes a vanilla sponge flan base, with strawberry cream and fresh fruits — designed to look like jewels on a crown.

Charles Sadler, general manager at Austen House said: “We’ve all had such a brilliant time taking part in this competition, it has been such fun. Our staff and residents love the Queen and they love to bake so when they heard about the competition, they were all so excited to take part.

“It has been a real collaborative process — thinking about ingredients from all over the world and coming up with a pudding that reflects the Queen’s years of service to this country. Not to mention all the delicious different versions we have had to taste over the last few weeks, it really has been no hardship.”

Care home resident Peter said: “The Queen is an amazing lady, we all wanted to get involved in the pudding competition.

“We had such a giggle coming up with it, deciding what should go in and then coming up with the name. I think we’ve got a winning recipe. We can’t wait to find out what the judges think.”

Ascot Racecourse commits to more community support ASCOT Racecourse has launched a new community and charity programme aimed at helping groups across the area.

Last year, it helped seven good causes with more than £25,000 of grant funding, supported by the Berkshire Community Foundation. They include Berkshire Lowland Search and Rescue.

The racecourse also gave £3,000 to homelessness charities working in Bracknell, Windsor and Slough, Now it is working on this year’s support, which includes offering complimentary tickets to emergency services workers and the armed forces.

It will also be fundraising for Thames Hospice.

The Royal Ascot Schools Art competition will return in 2022 for the fifth consecutive year and focus on themes of the Platinum Jubilee while the Royal Ascot fashion design competition which was launched last year also returns.

Earthquake survivors helped HUNDREDS of families badly affected by the recent earthquake in Haiti have access to clean, safe drinking water thanks to a grant of £25,000 from the Freemasons to the Red Cross.

Freemasons, through the United Grand Lodge of England (UGLE) and Masonic Charitable Foundation (MCF), provided the financial support to the Red Cross, helping it to share relief goods, ensuring good water, sanitation and hygiene to prevent the outbreak of diseases as well as providing access to healthcare to those most in need. The grant comes through the Masonic Charitable Foundation, which is funded by Freemasons, their families and friends, from across England and Wales, including in Reading and Wokingham.

Luke Tredget, head of emergencies at the Red Cross thanked the Freemasons for the support.

Eileen will be having profiteroles for pudding

Robbie wished everybody all the best today

Lila wished for her family

Crowthorne residents help make Valentine’s wishes come WISHES: Helen wished for a Drambuie.

Picture: Pinehurst Care Centre

By JESS WARREN jwarren@wokingham.today

CROWTHORNE care home residents shared what they would love to do on Valentine’s Day. And many of their wishes came true.

Residents at Pinehurst Care Centre wrote down their wishes, which were then shared to the centre’s social media.

Jean, 91, said that she would love to ride her bicycle on Valentine’s Day, and Eileen, 97, said that she would love to have a little walk around the garden.

Joan, 97, said that she would love to have her hair done, and John, 89, said that he would love to go out for dinner.

Other wishes included seeing family, visiting the countryside and enjoying a drink.

Vicki Pembroke, from the centre, said that the post went crazy on social media.

“We’ve been contacted by quite a few people wanting to help make

their simple wishes come true,” she said. “It’s been really lovely.

“The post on Facebook has reached well over 10,000 people,

including one from Canada.”

Ms Pembroke said that the Valentine’s wishes were her idea.

“It’s sometimes difficult to talk about Valentine’s with residents as many of them have lost their husbands or wives so I wanted to make it about something positive and happy,” she said.

As part of this, residents had profiteroles for dessert on Valentine’s Day — which was a wish made by 92-year-old Eileen.

“One lady wished for a Vodka and coke, which her daughter dropped off,” Ms Pembroke added.

“The friends and family wishes will hopefully all come true over the next week or two.”

Ms Pembroke said that she posts about the care centre’s residents a lot on social media, to help family feel connected.

“Over the past two years it’s been difficult to connect to people in person so we’ve really enjoyed the connections we get this way.

“It’s been really heart warming,” she added.

Retired couple share online love story THE STORY of a how two Fleet retirees found love will melt even the coldest of hearts this Valentine’s Day. Mike Marshall, 87, a former marketing professional, decided to try online dating after his wife passed away.

He met Patty Davey, who lives in retirement development Keble Court, Fleet, Hampshire.

Patty was born in India and spent time in Africa with her husband, who was a district commissioner. She was also an officer in the Women’s Royal Air Force. Later she worked for the Foreign Office and also became a borough councillor.

When the pair met, there was an immediate attraction.

Both Mike and Patty say it

TOGETHER: Patty Davey (left) with her husband Mike Marshall at their home in Keble Court, Fleet Picture: Sam Stephenson

was love at first sight.

Their love has been growing ever since, thanks to their similar senses of

humour.

Mike sold his bungalow and moved into a twobedroom apartment in Keble

Court to be closer to Patty.

Mike says that since then, he hasn’t looked back.

“It was one of the best decisions I have ever made,” he adds.

The couple married last autumn at a small ceremony.

“The wedding was fabulous, we loved it and we couldn’t have asked for more,” Mike says.

“Patty walked down the aisle to Marching Through Georgia, played by Acker Bilk’s Paramount Jazz Band.

“If you ever need an example of her wonderful sense of humour, then that’s it.”

The couple have kept their own apartments on the development since marrying.

They like having their own

space for their hobbies — Mike is a keen musician, playing both piano and guitar.

Patty and Mike have just returned from a cruise around the Canary Islands. Mike promises that he has given Patty a gift which expresses his deep love for her and take her out for a meal.

Mike also has some advice for anyone looking for love.

“Don’t be afraid to try online dating, you can take it at your own pace,” he says.

“When you retire and start having more time to yourself, you begin to truly realise how important partners are in your life, whether they’re friends or more.

“We all need someone to keep us company and to share life with.”

34 | NEWS

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COUNCILNEWS

WOKINGHAM.TODAY Thursday, February 24, 2022

PHIL CREIGHTON and local democracy reporter James Aldridge report from the annual budget meetings of Wokingham Borough Council and its executive, held on Thursday, February 17

Increase for social Transport housing rents modelling plan THE EXECUTIVE voted to approve an increase in rents for its social housing.

Tenants will be asked to pay an additional 4.1%, while those renting garages will be asked to pay an increase of 3.8%.

Introducing the fees, Cllr John Kaiser said that sheltered room guest charges would be capped at the current rate of £9.50 per night.

“I think it’s very important we support this fund,” he said, adding. “Social homes are becoming very important in this borough for various reasons, not least that even affordable homes are no longer affordable by the people on the lowest incomes.”

He said that in the new local plan, he hoped that the council could adopt a policy of 50% social housing on developments. “No doubt that will be challenged on viability,” he said. “But that’s for the future.”

Approval for school places THE EXECUTIVE approved changes to the school admission arrangements for the school year 2023/24.

Speaking from Africa, executive member for children’s services, Cllr Graham Howe, said that the date for applications will be brought forward from January 15 to December 21, aligning it with neighbouring local authorities.

There would be some changes to intake: Colleton in Twyford and Radstock in Earley would see primary places reduce from 60 to 45.

Loddon Primary would reduce from 90 to 60.

Farley Hill, which is now in Arborfield Green, would see its catchment area increase to include Sherman Avenue, Fox Close, Archer Grove, Poperinghe Way and Highfield Park, with the school intake increase to 60.

TRANSPORT modelling will be undertaken by the council ahead of any determinations in the new local plan.

Cllr Jim Frewin wanted to know if he, and residents, could have access to the detail and cost of such anyalysis.

Cllr Wayne Smith, the executive member for planning, said the consultation thus far was available on the council’s website and he was happy to set up a meeting with those residents who wanted to know more.

Cllr Frewin said in response that he had been invited to a briefing from the University with regards to the Hall Farm site “because I’ve been made aware of a previous briefing that had also taken place with non-elected representatives of the local Conservative association”. In this meeting, he said that the traffic modelling cost he was told was “a sixfigure” sum.

“You’re telling me that’s £50,000. A six-figure cost is a lot more than £50,000,” he said.

Responding, Cllr Smith said he would follow this up with on the university side.

Tickets sold out for mayor’s ball In his opening remarks, Wokingham borough mayor Cllr Keith Baker said that he had sold out of tickets for his fundraising ball in May. This meant that 200 people will be enjoying a night out, raising funds for his charity of the year.

However, he was looking for prizes to be auctioned on the night for his charity, Chance To Dance Stars CIC. “If you’ve got friends who have a restaurant or whatever, who wish to donate a dinner or two, I’d like to hear from you,” he said.

He also said: “Thank you to everyone who has either donated, or will be providing auction prizes or bought tickets.”

SPEECH: Danny Errawalla explains to the council why he thinks the plan for a one-way system in Woodley would be problematic Picture: Laura Blumenthal

Residents petition over one-way system plan A PETITION was presented to the council from Woodley residents unhappy with a proposal to make Woodlands Avenue one way.

Danny Errawalla said that 1,528 had signed the petition against plans for a cycle lane on the busy route.

“Turning into one way system would cause not only significant traffic congestion, with large vehicles turning into narrow streets, but also severe disruption to residents and other road users,” he said.

“Traffic would be diverted through unsuitable small residential roads, which would increase pollution and delays.

“Businesses and Woodley town centre

the Maiden Erlegh school, are being explored and evaluated”.

Antony Crouch had concerns over the park space being requisitioned for a 3G pitch, and Cllr Batth said that this was a proposed site from the Berks and Bucks FA. He told Debra Taylor that there was high demand for 3G pitches across the borough, while the proposed Laurel Park one would be “rubber crumb”, rather than sand dressed or tarmac.

Laura Taylor also raised the number of 3G pitches in close

of the community’s desire to preserve this beloved green space and is submitted again,” the spokesperson said.

“The petition urges the council to fully back the local green space designation by removing the appropriate policies or clauses from the local plan documents that call for the area to be safeguarded for strategic transport network improvements,” they said.

“This riverside space is a jewel in the crown and is treasured by local residents. It has taken nature hundreds, if not thousands of years to produce the splendour we witness today. That should not be thrown away lightly for a transport scheme of dubious value … once the riverside is gone, it is gone.”

Council votes to give bus service a six-month lifeline SIX MONTHS of support for bus services in Riseley and Swallowfield has been pledged by Wokingham Borough Council, to restore a suspended route.

Covid has seen more people

Concerns over 3G pitch plans RESIDENTS raised a number of concerns over the 3G pitch proposed for Laurel Park in Earley.

Rebecca Frazier received an assurance from Cllr Parry Batth, the executive member for environment and leisure, that there would be a public consultation on the proposal before any planning permission was sought.

Hazel Bell wanted to know what alternative sites had been considered. Cllr Batth said: “other potential options beyond Laurel Park, such as

would struggle if customers chose to shop in other areas due to this oneway proposal, as it would make it more inconvenient to enter the main carpark near Waitrose.” n A SECOND petition was presented by members of Save Our Ancient Riverside (SOAR) over land by the historic Kennetmouth.

More than 2,200 people signed the petition against any future development plans for the area.

The campaigners had previously contested plans to build a single track bus lane bridge over the gateway to the Kennet and Avon Canal, where it meets the River Thames.

“The petition is a powerful document

to the proposed site.

“Why are WBC intent on digging up the only green space at Laurel Park, installing a 3G pitch which will increase congestion and emissions and when the majority of residents don’t want nor need it?” she asked.

Cllr Batth said: “Teams at present travel further across the Borough, and also out of it,. With the two local partner clubs the majority of the children and adults are local, this will hopefully reducing emissions and congestion.”

work from home and, despite companies opening up again with covid-safe measures, commuters have not been returning to the office in their pre-pandemic numbers.

As a result, Reading Buses took the decision to axe its Tiger 7 route in January.

At the time, it cited longterm roadworks between Hartley Wintney and Fleet, as well as passenger numbers, and a lack of drivers.

“For this reason, we have chosen some of the most lightly used routes to make reductions on to enable us to free up our driving colleagues to help keep the rest of the network running reliably,” the company said.

While Three Mile Cross and Spencers Wood residents could catch the Leopard 8/9 routes, it left Riseley and Swallowfield villagers without a service.

At a meeting of

Wokingham’s ruling executive, held on Thursday, February 17, council leader John Halsall said that one of the ”early and visible casualties” of the pandemic has been the bus network.

“It appears that passengers are not returning n sufficient quantities to make the current network viable to support, (so) we are having to increase the subsidy,” he said. “We can only do this in the medium term in its current form.”

The funding will come from S106 funds – contributions made by developers who build homes in the borough, and will cover just half-a-year, to allow time to see if passenger numbers can increase again.

Introducing it, Cllr Pauline Jorgensen said: “There has been a slump in bus usage during covid … it is not predicted to recover before 2023 or beyond.

“We’re experiencing very low passenger numbers of some of our buses. The problem we’ve got is there’s no certainty on government funding post April.

“This money is to bridge the gap.”

She warned if passengers don’t use the services when the funding has run out “we’ve got limited room for manoeuvre”.

“It’s a short-term thing, not infinitely extendable,” she continued, adding that it gave the council a breathing space.

Cllr Stuart Munro, who represents Swallowfield, said he knew some people had had to resign from their job as a result of the suspension of the Tiger route, and wanted to know when it could be implemented.

“Once this is approved,” Cllr Jorgensen said.

The Executive voted in favour of the motion.

NEWS | 35

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COUNCILNEWS

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WorcesterObserver

Budget approved following crunch debate over plans

HUGE amounts of money and projects in Wokingham and the surrounding area have been given the go ahead at a crucial meeting.

At a full council meeting yesterday (Thursday, February 1), Wokingham Borough councillors were asked to approve hundreds of millions of pounds of spending and cost policies for residents.

This included the council’s £265 million three year capital strategy, £428 million in borrowing for 2022/23 in its treasury management strategy and confirming that the council has enough funding for its medium term financial plan.

Conservative councillors sang the praises of the measures, whereas opposition members questioned elements of it.

Councillor John Halsall, the leader of the council (Conservative, Remenham,

Wargrave and Ruscombe) said: “the tragedy in life is not in failure but in complacency.

“I have sought to reinvigorate everything we do, and we have..

Notwithstanding the pressures of covid, we are financially stable.

“This didn’t happen by accident, but by the achievement of officers and members throughout the 20 years of Conservative administration.”

Later in the meeting, councillor Parry Batth hailed investments past, present and future in leisure facilities, including the completed £14.5 million project to upgrade Bulmershe Leisure Centre in Woodley, the £2.4 million of investment in Dinton Pastures, including its new activity centre, and the ongoing £23 million Carnival Hub project in Wokingham.

But questions were raised by the opposition

Election consultation will take place following vote A consultation on Wokingham Borough Council moving to a fouryear election cycle has been hit by an accusation that it contains an ‘inaccuracy’.

Last week, borough councillors voted on beginning the consultation on switching from an annual election cycle, with one fallow year in four, to all-out elections once every four years.

Supporting the move, councillor John Halsall, the leader of Wokingham Borough Council, argued the change could save £1 million a year due to the ‘hidden costs of disruption’ associated with having elections each year.

However, opposition councillors criticised the wording of the consultation, claiming it is biased and contains ‘misleading’ information.

Cllr Stephen Conway (Liberal Democrats, Twyford) introduced a motion that would have removed an ‘unintended error’ in the draft consultation document, which states that a stated benefit of having all-out elections would be that they are ‘fairer and more equitable’ as voters in three member wards get to vote three times every four years, whereas voters in wards which have only one councillor only get to vote once in that period.

The stated benefit was rubbished by the opposition, who argued that this ‘inequity’ will not exist.

If the council were to keep its system of thirds, the ward boundaries of the borough would have to be redrawn with every ward having three elected councillors.

The motion’s seconder, Cllr Rachel Burgess (Labour, Norreys) explained: “There is a reference to voters currently having a different number of opportunities to vote.

“This needs to be removed from the consultation responses because it is completely irrelevant.

“There’s no scenario going forward where there will be this inequity in the number of chances to vote.

“Either we will be going to all-out elections, where we will all vote every four years, or we’ll elect in thirds, and if that is the case, we will move to three member wards throughout.”

She called a suggestion that the ‘voting inequity’ would be maintained as “misleading.”

Cllr Clive Jones, the leader of the opposition (Liberal Democrats, Hawkedon) argued keeping the annual election cycle gives voters a chance to regularly give their view on the performance of the council, and that four yearly elections could help the Conservatives stay in power – as voters would have to wait longer to vote incumbents out of office.

However, Cllr Halsall (Conservative, Remenham, Wargrave and Ruscombe) pointed out that the Liberal Democrats have been able to succeed in all-out elections as well, namely in Bath & North East Somerset.

He added that the consultation had been written by an impartial monitoring officer.

Cllr Conway’s motion to change the wording of the consultation was voted down, with 25 Conservatives voting against and all 20 opposition councillors voting for it.

Following that, councillors voted 28 to 18 to begin a consultation into Wokingham’s electoral cycle.

Any change to the election system would require a two-thirds majority at a full council meeting to be implemented.

over the sums for some of the council’s projects.

Councillor Sarah Kerr (Liberal Democrats, Evendons) queried how funding for the council’s solar farm in Barkham will be managed.

She questioned the discrepancy between the council’s Medium Term Financial Plan last year set out £18 million of funding for solar farms split over three years, and the £20 million of funding it reserved for Barkham solar farm alone in September last year.

Cllr Kerr said: “How on Earth is a member of the public supposed to understand what this council is doing with its finances?”

Fellow Liberal Democrat Prue Bray, representative for Winnersh, expressed concern about the cost implications of the delay to the opening of the Oak Tree

Academy in Winnersh, a 150 place special educational needs (SEND) school.

The school was meant to open this September, but the project has been delayed due to contractors demanding an extra £500,000 to build the school.

Councillors debated the budget policies for one and a half hours.

The councillors were asked to approve the council’s budget policies in the following four areas: The Housing Revenue Account (HRA) Budget for 2022/23.

The Capital Programme and Strategy 2022/23.

The Treasury Management Strategy 202225 The Medium Term Financial Plan 2022-25, including the Revenue Budget Submission 2022/23 Ultimately, all four budget proposals were approved.

Meeting sets council tax rate for year ahead The amount of council tax you will be paying if you live in Wokingham Borough has been set this year.

For the 2022/23 financial year, council tax will be going up by 2.99 per cent.

This money will be spent on council services such as adult and children’s social care, leisure facilities, waste disposal, transport and other services.

The 2.99 per cent increase is the maximum amount the council can raise tax by without having a referendum.

And the total amount of council tax you pay is likely to be higher, as amounts can vary depending on where you live.

There are three categories of organisations that collect council tax, called ‘precepting bodies’.

These are the upper tier authority (the borough council), parish and town councils, and the police and the fire service.

Because each town and parish council charges different rates for services, it makes the total amount of council tax payable different for each area.

For example, Earley Town Council chose to freeze the amount of council tax it charges, whereas council tax in Swallowfield is going up by 24.57 per cent.

Wokingham Town Council has chosen to increase the tax it raises by 2.50 per cent.

Both Thames Valley Police and Royal Berkshire Fire and

Rescue Service are charging a flat rate across all six of Berkshire’s areas.

The increase in council tax was agreed as part of the council’s budget proposals at a full council meeting on Thursday, February 17.

Explaining the merits of the budget at the meeting, councillor John Kaiser (Conservative, Barkham), the executive member for finance said: “We debate a budget to build solar farms, plant trees, reduce waste and increase recycling.

“A budget that continues to help residents reduce their carbon footprints and their energy bills via the Help to Heat scheme that has already benefited over 1,300 households across our borough.

“This is a budget that opens libraries while other councils are closing them. It invests into infrastructure like schools, greenways, cycle paths, active transport, reducing congestion, improving air quality, protecting green spaces and building play parks, community hubs and leisure centres.”

However, opposition councillors raised concerns about the sums reserved for the council’s solar farm projects and the rocketing costs of providing education.

The new council tax levels will be effective from Tuesday, April 1, the start of the 2022/23 financial year

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36 | NEWS

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INTHECLASSROOM

News from your schools, pre-schools and nurseries. Email news@wokingham.today

Waingels welcomes the Year of the Tiger

LUNCHTIME: How Waingels celebrated the Chinese New Year Picture: Waingels College

By Arysha Year 12 Waingels Student EARLIER this month, Waingels welcomed Chinese New Year, also known as Lunar New Year or Spring Festival, which this year fell on February 1.

It marks the first new moon on the traditional lunisolar and solar Chinese calendar and is celebrated all over China and across many countries in East and South-East Asia.

Chinese New Year is celebrated by many people around the world due to its significance in marking the end of winter and the beginning of spring… including at Waingels.

Each new year is associated with one of the 12 Chinese Zodiacs; 2022 invites the year of the Water Tiger. Elucidating, the Tiger manifests a year of prosperity due to its glowing signs of inspiring strength, purifying evils to radiate good, and sparking courage.

To celebrate the new year at Waingels, our school was swathed with lanterns of crimson, resembling the lotus-

coloured incense sticks of Quang Phú Cu in Vietnam.

In light of the new year, the Student Council and Equality Student Voice group launched a door decorating competition, evoking a sense of pride for the diversity that our community so impressively encapsulates.

Our students creatively used red ribbons and hand-made lanterns covered in Chinese lettering, but ultimately it was a tough decision and we decided to award 20 tutor groups fortune cookies and certificates for their excellent participationwell done to everyone.

Moreover, a specially devised traditional Chinese menu was also served in the canteen including spring rolls, egg fried rice and noodle dishes to name a few. Our peers had a fantastic time immersing themselves in the traditions of the new year.

From red shoe laces to scarves, red socks to hair scrunchies, it was wonderful to see students and staff brightening up their uniforms by wearing a ‘splash of red’ on Friday 4th February to

commemorate the week.

Eian in Year 7, had blissfully recalled how walking into school awakened bittersweet memories of ‘going to school in Hong Kong, it felt like I was back home’.

Vincy, Year 12 felt that it was ‘progressive to celebrate and include tradition that (is) from (my) ethnic origin.’ She shared that traditionally, the celebrations would call for ‘having dinner as a family and handing envelopes to each other. Cleaning the house and showering the day before is important so you don’t wash away the good luck for the new year.’

Happy New Year everyone.

In addition to thanking all students and staff that took part in the door decorating competition, Miss English would like to say a special thank you to all of the students who helped decorate the school, including the Site Team, members of the Head Team, the School Council, the Equality Group, the Crafty Club, and many others.

DRESS UP: The winners at the school Picture: Tamara Brown

Winnersh pupils rock out for NSPCC PUPILS at a Winnersh primary school rocked out for charity earlier this month.

Wheatfield Primary raised money for the NSPCC with a Times Tables Rock Star Challenge on Friday, February 4.

Years 3 to 6 use Times Tables Rock stars for their maths homework — a programme of

Hawkedon marks children’s mental health week EARLIER this month pupils at a Lower Earley primary school marked children’s mental health week.

Hawkedon Primary School planned a week of initiatives from Monday, February 7, to help children think about challenges they may face.

It was a campaign run by Place2Be, a children’s mental health charity that provides counselling, mental health support and training in schools.

Morning activities and assemblies had children talking about growth and discussing famous people who have overcome mental health challenges including

Beethoven, Mariah Carey and Stevie Wonder.

On the Friday, all 630 pupils at Hawkedon dressed to express, and chose an accessory of their choice to wear to school as a way to share their feelings, thoughts an ideas.

One pupil wore their unicorn ears to represent an animal that makes them smile.

Teacher Miss Downes, wore a sunflower bucket hat as it was a present from her dad that makes her happy and her dad has the matching shirt.

And teacher Miss Field, donned a glittery face and wore sparkles to bring joy

to those around her.

Other accessories included rainbow boots and knee-high socks, head boppers, hair dye and favourite jumpers.

Organiser of Hawkedon’s mental health week, Mrs Bibby said: “As a school, we understand the importance of children’s mental health and wellbeing.

“Children going through a difficult time or are struggling with how they are feeling can be upsetting. Our aim this week was to provide children with experiences and opportunities that can help reduce anxiety, as well as exploring our emotional growth and finding

WOKINGHAM.TODAY Thursday, February 24, 2022

ways to help each other grow.

“The children and staff had a wonderful week and we celebrated with our Dress to Express Day on the Friday.”

daily times tables practice.

As part of this, children are set challenges with other pupils, classes and schools. And each week, the winners of the league are celebrated.

Head of school, Tamara Brown, said that on the day, all of the children and staff dressed up as Rock Stars and took part in the

UK competition.

“We came 514 out of 2,475 schools, which we thought was super, as we are only a one form entry school,” she said. “Most of all we just had a lot of fun and even our younger children came dressed up too.”

The pupils raised £100 for the NSPCC.

37

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PUBLIC NOTICES ROAD TRAFFIC REGULATION ACT 1984 WOKINGHAM BOROUGH COUNCIL (CONISTON CLOSE, WOODLEY) (TEMPORARY PROHIBITION OF DRIVING) ORDER 2021

ROAD TRAFFIC REGULATION ACT 1984 WOKINGHAM BOROUGH COUNCIL (WILTSHIRE ROAD, WOKINGHAM) (TEMPORARY PROHIBITION OF DRIVING) ORDER 2021

NOTICE IS HEREBY given that on the 17th February 2022 Wokingham Borough Council as Traffic Authority made an Order under Section 14 (1) (a) of the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 the effect of which is to prohibit any vehicle from proceeding along:

NOTICE IS HEREBY given that on the 17th February 2022 Wokingham Borough Council as Traffic Authority made an Order under Section 14 (1) (a) of the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 the effect of which is to prohibit any vehicle from proceeding along:

Coniston Close, Woodley from its junction with Loddon Bridge Road.

Wiltshire Road, Wokingham from its junction with A329 Rectory Road.

Works requiring this restriction will take place on 4th March 2022.

The reason for these prohibitions is to allow Thames Water contractors to undertake sewer cover replacement work in safety.

The alternative route for all vehicles affected by this restriction shall be via A329 Wiltshire Road, A329 London Road, Binfield Road, Keephatch Road and Warren House Road.

Access for residents and businesses within the boundaries of these restrictions will be maintained but may be restricted at times.

Works requiring this restriction will take place between 1st March and 4th March 2022.

The restriction imposed by the Order shall only apply during those periods when traffic signs complying with the Traffic Signs Regulations and General Directions 2016 are lawfully displayed.

The reason for these prohibitions is to allow South East Water contractors to undertake trial hole excavation to establish a route for a new drinking water main in safety.

The restrictions contained in the Order shall come into operation on the 4th March 2022 and shall continue in force for a period not exceeding 18 months or until the works have been completed, whichever is the earlier.

Access for residents and businesses within the boundaries of these restrictions will be maintained at all times.

Dated: 24th February 2022 Trevor Saunders Assistant Director – Delivery and Infrastructure Wokingham Borough Council Civic Offices Shute End Wokingham Berkshire RG40 1WL

ROAD TRAFFIC REGULATION ACT 1984 WOKINGHAM BOROUGH COUNCIL (WILTSHIRE ROAD, WOKINGHAM) (TEMPORARY PROHIBITION OF DRIVING) ORDER 2021 NOTICE IS HEREBY given that on the 17th February 2022 Wokingham Borough Council as Traffic Authority made an Order under Section 14 (1) (a) of the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 the effect of which is to prohibit any vehicle from proceeding along: Wiltshire Road, Wokingham from its junction with A329 Rectory Road.

The alternative route for all vehicles affected by this restriction shall be via A329 Wiltshire Road, A329 London Road, Binfield Road, Keephatch Road and Warren House Road.

Works requiring this restriction will take place between 1st March and 4th March 2022.

The restriction imposed by the Order shall only apply during those periods when traffic signs complying with the Traffic Signs Regulations and General Directions 2016 are lawfully displayed.

The reason for these prohibitions is to allow South East Water contractors to undertake trial hole excavation to establish a route for a new drinking water main in safety.

The restrictions contained in the Order shall come into operation on the 1st March 2022 and shall continue in force for a period not exceeding 18 months or until the works have been completed, whichever is the earlier.

Access for residents and businesses within the boundaries of these restrictions will be maintained at all times.

The restriction imposed by the Order shall only apply during those periods when traffic signs complying with the Traffic Signs Regulations and General Directions 2016 are lawfully displayed.

Dated: 24th February 2022 Trevor Saunders Assistant Director – Delivery and Infrastructure Wokingham Borough Council Civic Offices Shute End Wokingham Berkshire RG40 1WL

The restrictions contained in the Order shall come into operation on the 1st March 2022 and shall continue in force for a period not exceeding 18 months or until the works have been completed, whichever is the earlier.

Dated: 24th February 2022

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LEISURETODAY LEISURE TODAY

24.02.22

Your guide to what’s on across Reading and Wokingham

It’s Showtime at last ...

Anton and Erin ready to dance into The Hexagon They are among the most popular of the Strictly Come Dancing dancers, and now they’re heading to The Hexagon.

JULES BLOYLE finds out more

I

T’S been a long time coming, but the nation’s favourite ballroom couple are back on the dancefloor with a brand new tour.

Anton Du Beke and Erin Boag have been beloved household names since they first appeared on the very first episode of Strictly Come Dancing way back in 2004 and are still as popular as ever, both on-screen and in the live setting, where they have produced incredible touring productions.

Along with the rest of the world of live entertainment, the pair had to postpone their 2021 tour due to coronavirus restrictions but are now delighted to be back with the incredible Showtime.

With stunning costumes, fabulous live vocals, a high-energy West End dance ensemble and a sensational 23-piece orchestra, it’s a glittering celebration that pays tribute to some of the world’s greatest icons of entertainment, inspired by an array of classic performers including Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers, Frank Sinatra, Judy Garland, Charlie Chaplin, Shirley Bassey, Tom Jones, Liza Minelli, Elton John and many more.

Anton explains: “The bottom line is you’re putting on a show that’s really entertaining, one where people will

walk out saying: ‘What a great nigh!’, so you don’t want to reinvent the wheel with obscure music or make it a contemporary dance thing, because that’s not what it says on the tin, it says Showtime.

“It’s a song and dance show that’s purely about entertainment. So the music has to be familiar with some pieces that people won’t massively recognise, or won’t have heard for a long time, but will love all the same, as they are iconic pieces.

“The choreography has to be spectacular and entertaining, too. Even the dresses are iconic.

“So what’s being played, and what you’re seeing, everything has to come together.

“We want people just to be able to sit down comfortably and be taken away.”

Erin says that the dancing couple are ‘pretty hands-on’ when it comes to the choreography of the show.

“We discuss the music and what’s going to happen, but we have a director now who comes in, makes suggestions and puts the pieces together,” she says, adding: “If we wanted to, we could do a lot less and just turn up, do the pieces and go, but we like to have a lot of involvement.

“I go in and do all the costumes with

them and all get together to do the music with everybody.”

Anton says the music is a group affair, chosen with the help of MD Richard Balcombe, and choreographer and director Nikki Woollaston.

“We are very involved in the five ballroom numbers, but the rest of the show is down to Nikki,” he says.

“She puts together all the ensemble pieces, the flow and the run of it, because you can’t do that when you’re in it.

“We tried that first year and learnt pretty quickly that you need to be out front to do that.

“Anybody that thinks they can do it from onstage, well they’re either better than me at it, or better than us at it, or they’ve got three eyes.”

As well as the ballroom, the show covers different dancing styles. It’s something that Erin says is difficult, but made easier with the help from dancers in the team who have a theatre background.

“It takes a lot longer to put the pieces together for us,” she says.

“Thankfully they’re very patient with us, as they know exactly where we’re coming from. You still enjoy it though, even if I find the whole rehearsal pretty challenging.”

And the show is interactive.

Audience members can ask questions to Anton and Erin, something that they appreciate.

“It’s a great moment,” Erin says.

“People laugh because it’s their own questions and they always want to know simple things like, ‘What happens

to the dresses after Strictly?’ or, ‘What kind of underpants you wear?’, or, ‘What cheese do you eat?’

“There’s lots of those silly questions, but they cause a reaction. We used to get a lot of marriage proposals, too.”

Erin and Anton were both an essential part of Strictly Come Dancing from the very start. “We had heard it was in the pipeline, but it had always just been (amateur ballroom contest) Come Dancing before that, which sort of worried us,” Erin recalls.

“That had been off the air for 15 years, and was very dated. Ballroom dancing had moved on massively since then and we were worried they were going to take the mickey out of it.

“We were at the peak of our professional career and were told that the BBC were doing something with it and to put in our CVs. “Little did we know that they’d actually been to the closed British championships in Blackpool and filmed us all. So, we had to decide if we wanted to be a part of it, but Anton said, ‘I’d rather be a part of it to know what’s going on than not at all’.”

Anton continues: “We’re all prone to not being involved in something and then complaining about it. I felt that it was better for us to be involved, even if we thought it was going to be a car crash, as we thought that we could potentially, with our experience, help steer it away from that happening.

“So we felt it would be better for us to be in.”

Erin says: “They didn’t know what it was going to be called, or that Bruce

Forsyth was going to be hosting at that time.

“They were just choosing eight dancers and made it clear they weren’t looking for couples.”

Anton adds: “Only eight professionals out of the whole industry.

Eight professionals. And we - dancing as a couple - were two out of the eight.

So you know, that’s pretty amazing.”

It was a huge hit straight away and was immediately commissioned for a second series, turning them into celebrities.

“I felt it right from Series One, certainly from the fans,” Anton says.

“There were such huge viewing figures by the end of that first run, that immediately there was a huge uptake in the interest of the show and, as a byproduct, you get well-known, as it’s all part of it. It was lovely though and I enjoyed it from the off. I’ve loved it, in fact.”

Erin says: “It was a wonderful programme to be a part of and obviously for Anton it still is.

“It becomes a part of you. There was a point in our career - and I think it was after the second show - where we had to make a decision of what to do?

“We either want to go this route and still compete, and do this or go, but neither of us have any doubt we made the right decision.”

Anton and Erin’s Showtime is at The Hexagon on Friday, March 4. Tickets cost from £38.50. n For more details, call the box office on 0118 960 6060, or log on to whatsonreading.com

14 | LEISURE

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WOKINGHAM.TODAY Thursday, February 24, 2022

Hello campers THE FINAL performances of a dinner theatre show with a difference take place this weekend.

Hi-Di-Hi ends its run at the Henley Operatic and Dramatic society studio with two showings on Saturday, February 26.

Chalet cleaner Peggy Ollerenshaw is desperate to become a Maplins holiday camp entertainer and will go to any lengths to swap her housecoat for a yellow coat.

Meanwhile, chief yellowcoat Gladys battles it out with rival Sylvia to win the affections of the campers and vie for the attention of new entertainment’s manager, Jeffrey Fairbrother.

And camp host Ted Bovis is trying to raise money for his wife’s maintenance to avoid jail.

The show is accompanied by a delicious three-course dinner befitting the 1959 holiday camp, served by Stephen Luscombe of the award-winning Golden Ball in Lower Assendon.

Doors for the matinee open at 1pm and for the evening show, 6pm.

Tickets include dinner and cost £32.

The studio is at 19 New Street, Henley-on-Thames. n For more details, or to book, call the box office on: 01491 525050 or log on to: kentontheatre.co.uk

Fun with Twirlywoos

THE TWIRLYWOOS will bring an hour of colourful fun and laughter for young children to Bracknell this weekend.

Expect mischief, music and plenty of surprises as they set sail in their big red boat from South Hill Park’s Wilde Theatre on Sunday, February 27.

Join Great BigHoo, Toodloo, Chickedy, Chick and their friends as they go on a great big adventure to discover the wonderful world around us.

The loveable CBeebies characters are brought to life on stage with inventive puppetry in this enchanting introduction to theatre for all ages.

Performances are at 2pm and 4.30pm.

Tickets priced from £13.50. n For more details, or to book, log on to: southhillpark.org.uk or call: 01344 484123.

Prize winning pianist

A PRIZE winning Italian pianist visits Maidenhead next week.

Elia Cecino will perform at Norden Farm’s Courtyard Theatre on Thursday,

they take you on a journey of laughs, storytelling and song in show for all the family.

Basil promises fun, entertainment and mayhem which children will love.

The Family Fun Show will take over the Courtyard Theatre at 2.30pm for approximately 50 minutes.

Tickets are priced at £12 adults, £10 under 16 years. A family and friends ticket costs £40. n For more details, or to book, log on to: norden.farm or call the box office on: 01628 788997.

And for grown-ups...

HARRY Potter gets given an improvised makeover at the Newbury Corn Exchange next weekend.

Spontaneous Potter sees the young wizard and his friends embark on new adventures, with live musical accompaniment.

Previous titles performed include Harry Potter and the Chamber of March 3.

He was the first winner of the Mottram international piano competition held last December in Manchester. This is his first UK performance since his success.

The programme will include Mozart’s Fantasia in D minor, K.397, Beethoven’s Sonata in G major, Op.31 No.1 and Debussy’s Estampes. It culminates with some of Liszt’s most poetic works, inspired by his visit to Italy.

Elia has performed in concert halls across Europe and has played as a soloist with orchestras including Royal Liverpool Philharmonic; Düsseldorf Symphony Orchestra; and Vivaldi Orchestra of Morbegno.

Tickets cost £16, concessions £14.50.

The recital starts at 8pm. n For more details, or to book, call the box office on: 01628 788997 or visit: norden.farm

Dust comes to life

NORDEN Farm will be in a parallel universe on Thursday, March 3.

A National Theatre Live encore screening of The Book of Dust - La Belle Sauvage will take place in the Courtyard

Commerce, Harry Potter and the Neville Wears Prada, Harry Potter and the Rise of the Planet of the Snapes and Harry Potter and the Struggle for a Decent Mortgage in This Economy.

The show is not endorsed or affiliated with Warner Bros., JK Rowling or her publishers.

Theatre at 2pm .

The play is based on the book by Philip Pullman, adapted by Bryony Lavery and directed by Nicholas Hytner. It was recorded live at the Bridge Theatre, London.

Set 12 years before the epic His Dark Materials trilogy, this adaptation revisits Philip Pullman’s fantastical world.

Two young people and their dæmons, with everything at stake, find themselves at the centre of a terrifying manhunt.

In their care is a tiny child called Lyra Belacqua, and in that child lies the fate of the future. And as the waters rise around them, powerful adversaries conspire for mastery of Dust - salvation to some, the source of infinite corruption to others.

There is a second screening on Tuesday, March 8, at 7.30pm.

Tickets cost £15. n For more details, or to book, log on to: norden.farm or call the box office on: 01628 788997.

Getting bricky with it LEGO fans can look forward to the Reading Brick Show at Rivermead Leisure Centre next weekend.

Taking place on Saturday, March 5

The show is suitable for an audience aged 16 years and up.

The magic will happen at 8pm on Saturday, March 5.

Tickets priced from £17.50. n For more details, or to book, call the box office on: 0845 5218218 or log on to: cornexchangenew.com and Sunday, March 6, the show aims to spark imagination, promote creativity and inspire everyone who walks through the doors.

Plenty of interactive games and building opportunities will be on offer, including a downhill race track, a Lego art gallery, Lego robot battles and a Lego Technic monster truck driving challenge.

There will also be a wide selection of marketplace stalls, selling products including T-shirts and printed minifigures.

And the event’s mascot, Larry the Lego Lion, will also be there.

The event takes place between 10am and 5pm on both days.

Advance tickets are £9.50 per person, or £27.50 for a family ticket. Children under three get in for free. n For more details, visit: readingbrickshow.com

Basil’s here for children...

FRESH from appearances on CBBC’s Crackerjack, Britain’s most loveable fox starts his Spring tour of the UK at Norden Farm on Saturday, March 5.

Join Basil Brush and Mr Martin as

AT THE THEATRE

As ever, coronavirus means that shows could be cancelled, postponed or rearranged at short notice. Check with theatres to avoid disappointment.

Bracknell – South Hill Park

www.southhillpark.org.uk 01344 484123 Corner Shop Sweets-Sat. Thurs.

Conservatoire International Concert Series: Students From the Purcell School. Fri-Sat. Same Time Next Year. Fri. The Comedy Cellar. Fri. Twirlywoos Live. Sun. Ed Byrne: If I’m Honest. Wed. Conservatoire International Concert Series: Anna Denisova. Fri 4. Howerd’s End. Fri 4-Sat 5. The Comedy Sellar. Fri 4. Tina Live: A Tribute To Tina Turner. Sat 5.

FILMS: The Matrix Resurrections.

Thurs. Tick, Tick Boom. Fri-Sun. Memoria. Mon-Tues.

Camberley – Theatre

www.camberleytheatre.biz 01276 707600 Psychic Sally. Fri. Stuff and Nonsense. Sat. The Power Ballad Show. Sat. Dom Joly’s Holiday Snaps. Thurs 3.

Impromptu Shakespeare. Fri 4.

NVSDD: Showcase. Sat 5.

Wilburys Experience. Fri. The Ultimate 80s Party Night. Fri. Fanny’s Bingo Brunch. Sat. I’m Sorry I Haven’t A Clue.

Sat. Henning Wehn. Thurs 3.

Tony Hadley. Fri 4. Battle of the bands VII. Sat 5. One Foot In The Gravy. Sat 5. Rave On Starring The Bluejays. Sun 6.

Henley – Kenton

www.yvonne-arnaud.co.uk 01483 440000 A Diva and a Piano: Lesley Garrett.

Thurs. Crimes, Camera, Action.

Fri-Sat. Howerd’s End. Sat. The Night Sky Show. Sun. Six. TuesMarch 12.

www.kentontheatre.co.uk 01491 525050 So You Think You Know About Dinosaurs with Dr Ben Garrod.

Thurs. Seann Walsh, Back From The Dead. Fri. Comedy Club 4 Kids. Sat. Hi De Hi. Until Sat. Jazz at the Kenton: Max Wright Trio with Steve Waterman. Wed. The Comedy Network. Fri 4.

High Wycombe – Wycombe Swan

Maidenhead – Norden Farm

Guildford – Yvonne Arnaud

www.wycombeswan.co.uk 01494 512000 Hellfire Comedy Club. Thurs. Roy Orbison and the Travelling

www.nordenfarm.org 01628 788997 The Hug. Thurs. Half Term Concertini with String Fever.

Fri. Alfie Moore - Fair Cop

Unleashed. Fri. Josephine Davies Quartet. Fri. Morgan and West Unbelievable Science. Sat. John Coghlan’s Quo. Sat. Belfast (12a). TuesWed. National Theatre Live: The Book of Dust. Thurs 3.

Ajay Srivastav: Karama at the Crossroads. Thurs 3. Elia Cecino piano. Thurs 3. The Strange Case of Jekyll and Hyde. Fri 4. Clive Anderson, Me, Macbeth and I - SOLD OUT. Fri 4. Norden Farm Market. Sat 5. Basil Brush’s Family Fun Show. Sat 5.

Gilmore and Roberts. Sat 5.

Basil Brush Unleashed. Sat 5.

Newbury – The Corn Exchange

www.cornexchangenew.com 0845 5218 218 Sing-a-long-a-Grease. Thurs.

Death On The Nile (12a). Thurs.

The Smartest Giant in Town.

Fri-Sun. Joe Lycett work in progress. Wed. Joel Dommett: Unapologetic, if that’s OK. Thurs 3. Spontaneous Potter

Kids. Sat 5. Spontaneous Potter. Sat. London Rhymes.

Sun 6.

Newbury – Watermill www.watermill.org.uk 01635 46044 Spike. Until Sat 5. An Audience with Ian Hislop and Nick Newman. Tues.

Reading – South Street www.whatsonreading.com 0118 960 6060 Bex Burch and Leafcutter John.

Thurs. Limehouse Lizzy. Fri. Paul Foot: Swan Power. Sat. Leveret. Fri 4. Aurie Styla: green Tour. Sat 5.

Reading – Hexagon

www.whatsonreading.com 0118 960 6060 The Illegal Eagles. Thurs 24. Royal Philharmonic Orchestra Noisy Kids. Sat. Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and Pablo Gonalez.

Sat. Anton and Erin: Showtime.

Fri 4. Dara O Briain: So, Where Were We? Sat 5.

SHOWBIZ legend, national treasure, fox.

Basil Brush will be Unleashed on Norden Farm on the evening of Saturday, March 5.

This one’s for children of the 2000s, 1970s, and everything in between as Basil goes prime time.

Join him as he takes to the road following his much-talked about and sold out run at last year’s Edinburgh Festival in a show for the adults.

Fresh from appearances on Channel 4’s The Last Leg Channel and ITV2’s Celebrity Juice, join Basil as he gives his comedic take on everything from Love Island to Westminster, in his trademark anarchic style.

Tickets cost £16. The show starts at 8pm. n For more details, or to book, log on to: norden.farm or call the box office on: 01628 788997.

All the seasons in one

AN ACCLAIMED dance company will perform their latest work at South Hill Park next month.

James Wilton Dance will present The Four Seasons on Tuesday, March 8.

The work features the company’s signature blend of capoeira, acrobatics, martial arts and classical dance, set to Max Richter’s recomposed version of Vivaldi’s seminal work.

Abstract choreography relates each season of the musical composition to the four stages of the universe.

The company promise stunning stage and costume designs, and a kaleidoscopic visual feast for the audience.

The performance begins at 7.45pm.

Tickets are priced at £16.50 for adults and £11.50 under 18 years. n For more details, or to book, log on to: southhillpark.org.uk or call: 01344 484123.

Reading – Concert Hall www.whatsonreading.com 0118 960 6060 NEXT SHOW: Lunchtime organ recital. Mar 7.

Reading – Progress www.progresstheatre.co.uk 0118 384 2195 A Tribute to Bill Evans. Fri 4.

Reading – Reading Rep Theatre

www.readingrep.com 0118 370 2620 NEXT SHOW: National Theatre Connections. Mar 16-18.

tea. Thurs. Genesis Connected.

Sun. Tour, talk and afternoon tea. Thurs 3. Juke Box and Bobbysox. Sun 6.

Windsor – Royal

www.theatreroyalwindsor.co.uk 01753 853888 Dreamboats and Petticoats: Bringing on Back The Good Times. Until Sat 5. Come What May. Sun 6.

Wokingham – Theatre

www.wokinghamtheatre.org.uk 0118 978 5363 Sweeney Todd Shock ‘n’ Roll Show.

Until Sat. Comedy Night. Fri 4.

Shinfield – Shinfield Players

Wokingham – Whitty

www.shinfieldplayers.org.uk 0118 975 8880 Last Tango In Whitby. Mar 2-5.

www.thewhittytheatre.org 0118 974 3247 Wokingham Film Society: I Never Cry (15). Thurs 24. Ubu. Thurs 3.

Sonning – The Mill

Woodley – Theatre

www.millatsonning.com 0118 969 8000 The House on Cold Hill. Until Mar 26. Tour, talk and afternoon

www.woodleytheatre.org 07488337838 NEXT SHOW: Jazz with the Martin Hart Trio. Sat May 28.

Thursday, February 24, 2022 WOKINGHAM.TODAY

LEISURE | 15

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March into South Hill Park for a feast of arts

Chris is a speak easy...

T

HE year is marching on, and a Bracknell-based arts centre has unveiled its highlights for the third month of the year.

South Hill Park is promising a mixture of theatre, live music, dance, comedy and family fun across March.

This month’s Conservatoire International Concert Series starts with Anna Denisova on Friday, March 4. She will bring a programme that includes Prokofiev’s 2nd Sonata and pieces from the piano suite derived from the composer’s ballet Cinderella.

Elisabeth Pion follows on Friday, March 18, with a programme including Mozart and Liszt’s arrangements of Schubert songs.

Finally, Antoine Preat performs on Friday, March 25, with a programme of music from the 18th to 20th centuries.

Frankie Howerd was one of Britain’s most loved comedians for half-a-century.

But he had a secret. And the secret’s name was Dennis.

Packed with laughter, but unafraid of truth, Howerd’s End portrays two humans’ journey through closeness, love, grief, and all the other things that make life worth living. It has performances on Friday, March 4, and Saturday, March 5.

Tina Live on Saturday, March 5, is a show that charts the life and career of one of the world’s iconic performers, Tina Turner. Powerful vocals, live band, backing singers and fabulous professional dancers makes this show, Simply The Best night out of the year.

James Wilton Dance presents The Four Seasons on Tuesday, March 8.

This abstract, yet honestly human choreography relates each of the four seasons of the musical composition to the four stages of the universe, creating a kaleidoscopic visual feast for audiences.

Elizabeth I: Queen at 25, political phoenix and famously unmarried – but who was the woman beneath the crown?

Using only Elizabeth’s words, Rebecca Vaughan explores the queen’s struggle to reconcile the desires of womanhood with the duties of sovereignty in I, Elizabeth on Thursday, March 10.

Trombonist Mark Bassey will perform this month’s Bracknell Jazz concert on Friday, March 11.

Touring for over 10 years and seen by more than 6 million people, live and on TV, Purple Zeppelin are four talented and

MUSIC: The Gilles will bring their unique set to Wilde Sundays versatile musicians. The group fuse the music of Deep Purple and Led Zeppelin on Saturday, March 12.

This month’s Wilde Sundays is taking place on Sunday, March 13 and features The Gillies, Paul Alexander Low and Kev Minney. The afternoon will include folk music, virtuoso guitar skills, and more.

Christine threads her remarkable journey in the world of French Song with the life and works of Edith Piaf on Tuesday, March 15. Christine Bovill’s PIAF is both a personal narrative and a powerful musical homage to one of France’s most endearing icons.

Curtain Up on Friday, March 18, and Saturday, March 19, is a gala concert extravaganza of all the best bits from the West End and Broadway, featuring favourites from Phantom, Les Mis and Wicked, as well as Hamilton, Six, Everybody’s Talking About Jamie.

Based on the brand new picture book

by Steven Lee, I Spy with My Little Eye on Sunday, March 20, is a family musical that celebrates everything great about being a kid – and everything great about having one.

Coming live to the theatre for the first time in over 60 years is The Navy Lark, with a cast of three bringing to life three

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Contact us today and book a FREE market appraisal on 0118 941 5607 or book online at www.villageproperties.co.uk

classic episodes from the much-loved radio series. On Tuesday, March 22.

It’s going to be Ev’rybody Down! for an evening of nostalgic belly laughs.

Keith James, a life-long devotee of emotional performance, approaches powerful and moving songs from the past with fresh courage and passion, provoking both reflection and reconciliation. Join Keith James in his Concert for a Changing World on Wednesday, March 23.

Buddy Holly and The Cricketers play all Buddy’s big hits plus some super summer stunners from artists including The Beach Boys, Eddie Cochran and many more. The Summer Hollyday Special is performed on Thursday, March 24.

South Hill Park’s annual dance festival is back to celebrate its 22nd anniversary with Youth & Community Dance Galas on Saturday, March 26 and the following day.

Groups from Berkshire, Surrey, Hampshire, London, and surrounding areas, take part in these hugely popular galas – showcasing the passion that dancers aged six, to those in their 80s, have for different styles of dance. n For more details, call the box office on 01344 484123, or log on to: www. southhillpark.org.uk

M

ANY will know that he knows the story in Balamory, but not everyone knows that Chris McCausland is also a comedian.

He is coming to South Street Arts Centre in April with his new show Speaky Blinder. He says it’s about life and family, with loads of other nonsense thrown in for good measure.

Does life ever become overwhelming? Do you bemoan the stresses and strains of parenthood, a busy career, the rat race or everyday existence? Well, imagine having all that but being blind too. Chris McCausland is that man.

But luckily for Chris, and for the fans who attend his shows, Chris has also been gifted with a superb sense of humour and an unbeatable wit.

This allows him not only to see the funny side in the life he leads, with all its difficulties, but also allows him to express this comedy on the stage. This stand-up show is a must-see.

Chris recently made his debut appearance on none other than the Royal Variety Performance, which aired in December.

He has also recently made appearances on celebrity editions of favourites such as Mastermind, The Chase, Antiques Road Trip and Blankety Blank.

In fact, he says that he has so many shows due out over the coming months, that you’ll probably all be sick of him by the time the tour starts.

Originally from Liverpool, Chris has spent almost two decades travelling the country performing stand-up comedy, and has long been firmly established at the very top of the UK’s live comedy circuit.

He says that he can’t wait to get out on the road for what will be his first national tour, with in excess of one hundred dates.

Chris is blind due to a degenerative eye disorder called Retinitis Pigmentosa (RP), which caused him to lose his sight gradually throughout the first 20 or so years of his life.

He is performing two shows at South Street, on Saturday, April 2. The first is at 5pm, the second at 8pm, and this latter one has sold out. n For more details, log on to www. whatsonreading.com, or call the box office on 0118 960 6060.

Mates Rates Comedy Club is bringing Live Stand-Up Comedy to Reading W h e t h e r i t i s TV n a m e s o r n u rt u ri n g n ew ta l e n t a t t h e g ra s s ro o t s , i f yo u l ove s ta n d -u p co m e d y, M a te s Ra te s Co m e d y h a s a s h ow fo r yo u !

Fo r m o re i n fo r m a ti o n c h e c k o u t t h e l i n ks be l ow a n d s ca n t h e Q R co d e to bo o k yo u r ti c ke t s .

Fo l l ow u s o n: f: / M a te s Ra te sC o m e d y c: @ M a te s ra te s co m e d y www. m a te s ra te s co m e d y. co . u k

16 | LEISURE

Matilda Jr play in a week planned A THEATRE company is preparing to open bookings for its summer school for children aged six to 16.

RABBLE Theatre is to run a week-long workshop for Matilda Jr, the musical based on the famous Roald Dahl book.

Rehearsals take place at The Abbey School, with a performance at the end of the week at the Mingella Theatre at the University of Reading.

The event takes place from August 1-5. n For more details, log on to: rabbletheatre.com/matildajunior-summer-musical-theatreworkshop/

Piano recital date A PIANO recital will take place in a Streatley church next month.

Glynee Stackhouse and Felicity Burrell will be performing duets on Sunday, March 13, from 4pm.

The programme includes The Arrival of the Queen of Sheba by Handel, Sonata for Piano Duet in D Major Opus 6 by Beethoven, Adagio in F Major by Weber, Three Easy Dances

by Seiber, Sonata for Piano Duet in G Major by Mozart and Marche Militaire in D Major by Schubert.

Tickets cost £6, or £5 for concessions, and it takes place in St Mary’s Church, in Church Lane. n For more details, or to book, email: stmarysconcerts@hotmail. co.uk

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WOKINGHAM.TODAY Thursday, February 24, 2022

Bards wanted to help save bars …

A

POETRY contest has been launched by people campaigning to turn Reading Gaol into an arts centre.

The contest will be judged by Stephen Moss, the former literary editor of The Guardian.

Organisers from Save Reading Gaol want to encourage ballads based on the site which boasts among its inmates Oscar Wilde.

The free-to-enter contest is open to all ages, and the winners will see their verses performed by a professional actor.

Mr Moss says it is a huge privilege to be part of the contest.

“It both remembers the humanity of Oscar Wilde’s great poem and aims to publicise the important cause of turning Reading Gaol into an arts and heritage centre,” he adds.

“This mighty building has stood at the centre of Reading for 170 years as a warning and often as a symbol of despair.

“Now, if those who would turn it into a cultural hub for the community are successful, it can be an inspiration and a source of hope.”

The organisers suggest that poems could relate to the history or potential future of the Gaol, to Oscar Wilde’s incarceration there, to the Save Reading Gaol campaign or Banksy’s Create Escape artwork. Anything related

READING DATE: The Hawkmen will be at The Facebar very soon

The Hawkmen and Tom Webber ready to enter Club Velocity

VERSE SEARCH: A contest has been launched for poems to help save Reading Gaol to Reading Gaol is acceptable Linda Saul, one of the team behind the contest, says: “There are a lot of people who have strong feelings about Reading Gaol, and we are hoping some of them will be inspired to put pen to paper and create something unique.

“Poems don’t have to be in ballad form, but they do need

to be a bit shorter than Oscar Wilde’s The Ballad of Reading Gaol.”

The closing date for entries is Thursday, March 31, and certificates will be awarded for highly commended entries and the winners. n For more details, log on to: www.savereadinggaol.uk/poetrycompetition

TWO bands are coming to Reading next month for a Club Velocity gig.

Headlining the night at The Face Bar are The Hawkmen.

The band draw from an array of influences including rhythm ’n’ blues, soul, and rock ’n’ roll which they bring together in a classic, rootsy, hybrid blend.

The band emerged as a full, live act in 2017 following the early successes of Soul 45 and Craig Charles favourite, Don’t Judge A Book By Its Cover (Record Kicks).

They’ve also produced a Northern Soul remix of Emma Beatson’s debut single Do It, which was selected by Craig Charles for the second volume of his Freestyle Records compilation series, The Hawkmen’s Keep On Working EP (Mocambo) yielded

another 45 and was widely played on BBC Radio 2 and Radio 6 Music.

In 2017, Love Is Blind was released and featured on the Craig Charles Funk and Soul Club Vol.5 compilation and received more Radio 6 Music airplay. It’s fair to say that that Craig Charles is a fan.

Joining them is 21-year-old singer songwriter Tom Webber from Didcot.

Although he’s only got a handful of gigs to his name, he’s already getting the music scene excited.

The gig takes place from 8pm on Thursday, March 3. Tickets cost £11. n For more details, search www.wegottickets.com for The Hawkmen.

Popular club night to return A POPULAR club night is making a one-off return for charity, and people are being asked to save the date.

Fools Gold was a regular old school indie night at the After Dark.

Back in 2017, there was a

charity event to raise funds for the Messy Club, a group for children with additional needs.

Another event was planned for June last year, but cancelled due to covid.

Now, it has been rearranged for Saturday, October 15, at The

Face Bar in Chatham Street.

Further details including the beneficiaries will be released in due course, but organisers are releasing the date now to allow people to place it in their diaries. n For more details, log on to www.foolsgold.co.uk

Pupils learn the art of panto from Red Leciester’s first citizen. Oh yes they do THERE was a surprise visit in store as some of the inhabitants of Red Leicester visited Wokingham.

Dame Kareem Cracker and the Mayoress of Red Leicester from the Corpus Christi Parish Pantomime paid a visit to St Teresa’s Catholic Academy to teach them about panto.

All the traditions were shown off, including a whole lot of booing and hissing, as well as the classic ‘He’s behind you!’ to show off the fun of pantomime.

This year’s Corpus Christi parish pantomime marks the 17th performance from the group and tells the tale of the Pied Piper, all in aid of Wokingham Foodbank.

Will the Pied Piper be able to save the town of Red Leicester? Or will the rats that are plaguing the town keep hold of the mayoress’ daughter?

The show will be on Saturday, March 5, at 3pm and 7pm, and Sunday, March 6 at 3pm.

Performances take place at Caudwell Hall, Holme Grange School. n For more details, and tickets, log on to: piedpiperpanto.eventbrite.co.uk

LEISURE | 25

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Thursday, February 24, 2022 WOKINGHAM.TODAY

LIVEMUSIC

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RaW Sounds Today

NEW BEGINNING: Steve Anderson’s Coda is top of this week’s playlist. Make sure you tune in to hear it Picture: Andrew Merritt

Chris Hillman

bit.ly/ rawsoundstoday

T

HIS week, we start with an ending. No, we’re not gone daft, the top entry in our brilliant playlist is called Coda.

It’s from The Room’s guitarist Steve Anderson. He’s just released a solo album and Coda is one of the tracks from it.

What better way to whet your appetite for the whole thing?

The RaW Sounds playlist is a terrific way to explore a wide range of brilliant artists, discover some new music and keep dancing – make sure you bookmark the Spotify page.

To hear this week’s set, simply head to https://bit. ly/rawsoundstoday and pump up the volume.

Steve Anderson – Coda Steve plays guitar for one of Wokingham Festival’s favourite bands, The Room, and he has just released his solo album, Journeyman’s Progress – Part One from which this track is taken.

It’s a wonderful album of instrumentals showcasing Steve’s skills as a guitarist and musician, with Steve playing most of the instruments on the album.

On this piece, Coda, Steve is joined by his fellow The Room bandmate Chris York on drums – https:// journeymansprogress.co.uk/

GIG GUIDE

Thursday, February 24

BRACKNELL – The Acoustic Couch, The Ring RG12 1JG. Gogo Juice.

Details: www.theacousticcouch. co.uk READING – The Boundary, St Mary’s Butts RG1 2LS. Thursday night karaoke. Details: 0118 951 9001.

READING – The Butler, Chatham Street RG1 7DS. Jazz Singers Night. Details: 0118 959 5500.

READING – The Facebar, Ambrose Place RG1 7JE. Girls in Synthesis. Details: 0118 956 8188.

READING - The Hexagon, Queens Walk. The Ilegal Eagles. Details: 0118 960 6060.

READING – The Purple Turtle, Gun Street RG1 2JR. Amapiano Afrohouse Afrobeat. Details: 0118 959 7196.

READING – Sub89, Friar Street RG1 1EP. Black Sabbitch, the allfemale Black Sabbath. Details: 0118 959 5395.

READING - South Street arts centre. Bex Burch and Leafcutter John. Details: 0118 960 6060.

READING – The Weather Station, Eldon Terrace RG1 4DX. Anything goes open mic night.

Details: 0118 958 6048.

WOODLEY – La’De Kitchen, Crockhamwell Road RG5 3JP. Buzuki Serkan and Cem Iyibardakci. Details: 0118 969 2047.

Friday, February 25

BRACKNELL – The Acoustic Couch, The Ring RG12 1JG. Mardy Bums: Arctic Monkey tribute band. Details: www. theacousticcouch.co.uk BRACKNELL – The Keller, Coppid Beech Hotel, John Nike Way RG12 8TF. I Got Soul presents: Neon. Details: 01344 303333.

played a special show at Everyman in Kings Cross on Feb 16th – https://johnmitchellhq.com

Mordecai Smyth – Fear of Flying Here’s some wonderful psychedelic pop sounds released on Wokingham’s Mega Dodo Records.

Mordecai has a new album due in May and has just released this single, Fear of Flying from it – https:// www.facebook.com/stickytapeandrust

The Wave Machine – Don’t Pretend Angus Trott aka The Wave Machine appeared in our best of 2021 list with Ocean’s Brew and now here’s his new single. It’s another uplifting positive song that makes you smile – https://www.facebook. com/thewavemachine

The Paradox Twin – Perfect Circles Gong – My Sawtooth Wake (Live) Gong are a legendary musical collective whose diverse musical world includes elements of psychedelia, jazz, space rock and more.

The latest incarnation of the band carries the flame that began when the original lineup was formed in 1969 and they will be bringing their psychedelic sounds to Reading’s Sub 89 on Thursday, March 3, when they visit the town as part of a huge UK tour.

My Sawtooth Wake gives you a taste of what to expect as it’s from the new live album, ‘Pulsing Signals’ – https://www.gongband.com/

Split the Dealer – Hard To Take He was in our Top 10 of the year list in both 2020 and 2021 and here’s his new single.

CROWTHORNE – The Prince, High Street RG45 7AZ. The Lee Aaron Band. Details: 01344 772241.

READING – The Butler, Chatham Street RG1 7DS. Open mic night. Details: 0118 959 5500.

READING – The Facebar, Ambrose Place RG1 7JE. The Rinse Out! Details: 0118 956 8188.

READING - The Pitcher and Piano, Friar Street. Stars in their Minds Karaoke and disco.

READING – The Purple Turtle, Gun Street RG1 2JR. Jamma presents Jazz Mino. Details: 0118 959 7196.

READING - The Spread Eagle, Norfolk Road, RG30 2EG. The Midnight Rebel Band. Details: 0118 957 4507.

READING – Sub89, Friar Street RG1 1EP. AC/DC UK. Details: 0118 959 5395.

READING - South Street arts centre. Limehouse Lizzy. Details: 0118 960 6060.

RISELEY – The Bull at Riseley, Basingstoke Road RG7 1QL. Undercovers. Details: 0118 343 0565.

TILEHURST – The Victoria, Norcot Road RG30 6BP. Dusk Til Dawn.

Details: 0118 941 5064.

WOKINGHAM - The White Horse, Easthampstead Road RG40 3AF. Open mic night. Details: 0118 979 7402.

Saturday, February 26

BINFIELD – The Binfield Club, Terrace Road RG42 4HP. DisCover. Details: 01344 420690.

BRACKNELL – The Acoustic Couch, The Ring RG12 1JG. Special Kinda Madness. Details: www. theacousticcouch.co.uk BRACKNELL – The Keller, Coppid Beech Hotel, John Nike Way RG12 8TF. Ultimate R’n’B

Tribute: A Flavour of the Old Skool. Details: 01344 303333.

BRACKNELL – The Silver Birch, Liscombe RG12 7DE. The Large Portion. Details: 01344 457318.

CHARVIL – The Heron On The Ford, Lands End Lane, RG10 0UE. Side Project. Details: 0118 934 0700.

CROWTHORNE – The Crowthorne Inn, High Street RG45 7AD. Live music. Details: 01344 530615.

EARLEY – Earley Home Guard Social Club, Pitts Lane RG6 1BT. Late Night Boogie. Details: 0118 926 5936.

READING – The Butler, Chatham Street RG1 7DS. Universal Records. Details: 0118 959 5500.

READING – The Castle Tap, Castle Street RG1 7RJ. The Country Moans and Friends. Details: 0118 958 0473.

READING – The Purple Turtle, Gun Street RG1 2JR. Housebase.

Details: 0118 959 7196.

READING – Rising Sun Arts Centre, Silver Street RG1 2ST. Rhesus Releasus: No Feathers Single Launch. Details: www. risingsunartscentre.org READING – The Retreat, St John’s Street RG1 4EH. Cafe Zazous Details: 0118 376 9159.

READING – Salisbury Conservative Club, Kings Road RG1 4HX. Blonde Ambition. Details: 0118 926 5804.

TILEHURST – Westwood Club, Cotswold Sports Centre, Downs Way RG31 6SL. Rigsby.

Details: 0118 942 9865.

WHITLEY – Whitley Social Club, Northumberland Avenue RH2 7QA. The Turn. Details: 0118 374 0052.

WINNERSH – The Royal British Legion Club, Woodward Close RG41 5LP. Wokingham Music Club presents Eric Bell. Details:

Split has a full band show at Reading’s Sub 89 on May 13th and on Feb 25th he has an acoustic set at the Purple Turtle – https://www.facebook.com/ splitthedealer

Paul Draper – Omega Man (ft. Steven Wilson)

Paul is a former front person with 90s band Mansun and he has just released an excellent new solo album, Cult Leader Tactics. He will be live at Reading’s Sub 89 on Sunday, February 28 – https:// pauldraperofficial.com/

Lonely Robot – Under Stars Lonely Robot was created by John Mitchell who works from his Reading-based recording studio, Outhouse as songwriter, musician and producer. He

www.wokinghammusicclub. co.uk WOODLEY – Bull and Chequers, Woodley Green RG5 4QP. Lack of Faith. Details: 0118 969 9756.

WOKINGHAM – Hope and Anchor, Station Road RG40 2AD. The Gas Trick Band. Details: 0118 977 0918.

WOODLEY – The Good Companions, Loddon Bridge Road RG5 4AG. Paddington.

Details: 0118 969 3325.

WOODLEY – Bull and Chequers, Woodley Green RG5 4QP. Lack of Faith. Details: 0118 969 9756.

Sunday, February 27

EARLEY – The Roebuck, Auckland Road RG6 1NY. Afternoon Karaoke. 2pm.. Details: 0118 966 7153.

READING – Community Hall, Watlington House, Watlington Street RG1 4RJ. Readifolk presents: Moonrakers. Details: www.readifolk.org.uk READING – The Purple Turtle, Gun Street RG1 2JR. Reggae Sundays. Details: 0118 959 7196.

READING – The Retreat, St John’s Street RG1 4EH. Jazz with Stuart Henderson, Simon Price and guests. Details: 0118 376 9159.

READING – Queens Head, Christchurch Road RG2 7AZ. Northern Soul Social Sunday.

2pm-5pm. Details: 0118 931 0232.

SONNING – The Mill at Sonning, Sonning Eye RG4 6TY. Genesis Connected. Details: 0118 969 8000.

WOKINGHAM – Hope and Anchor, Station Road RG40 2AD. Bottlekids. Details: 0118 977 0918.

Monday, February 28

NETTLEBED – Village Club, High Street RG9 5DD. Nettlebed Folk Club presents: McGoldrick, McCusker and Doyle. Details: www.nettlebedfolkclub.co.uk READING – Sub89, Friar Street RG1 1EP. Paul Draper. Details: 0118 959 5395.

Tuesday, March 1

BRACKNELL – The Acoustic Couch, The Ring RG12 1JG. New music Tuesday. Details: www. theacousticcouch.co.uk PLAYHATCH – The Flowing Spring, Henley Road RG4 9RB. Quirky Corner Unplugged. Details: 0118 969 98978.

SHERFIELD-ON-LODDON – The Four Horseshoes, Reading Road. Equinox Quintet with Andy Walls. Details: 01256 882296.

STOKE ROW – Crooked Billet RG9 5PU. Glenn Tilbrook from Squeeze. Details: 01491 681048.

Thursday, March 3

BRACKNELL – The Acoustic Couch, The Ring RG12 1JG. Bracknell Blues Club. Details: www. theacousticcouch.co.uk READING - The Corn Stores, Forbury Road RG1 1SB. Gini.

Details: 0118 324 6768.

READING – Sub89, Friar Street RG1 1EP. An Evening With GONG. Details: 0118 959 5395.

Friday, March 4

BRACKNELL – The Acoustic Couch, The Ring RG12 1JG. Divid The Truth with The Whiskey Knights.

Details: www.theacousticcouch. co.uk BRACKNELL – The Keller, Coppid Beech Hotel, John Nike Way RG12 8TF. Wow 80s Tribute.

Details: 01344 303333.

HOLDING A GIG, QUIZ OR GAMES NIGHT? SEND DETAILS TO EVENTS@WOKINGHAM.TODAY

This band from Reading appeared in best of year lists around the world and this is from their acclaimed Silence from Signals album. They will be travelling to Fusion 3.5 Festival in Stourport on March 4 – https://www.theparadoxtwin.com/

Harriet – I’m Not in Love Harriet has a truly wonderful voice and she showed when she visited Wokingham Music Club at Whitty Theatre on February 18. Here’s her beautiful version of 10cc’s classic – https://www. harrietsmusic.com/

The Honey Pot – Somewhere Between Here and Anywhere

The Honey Pot, who released their latest album, The Secret, on Wokingham’s Billywitch Records, performed at the legendary Half Moon Putney on January 30 – https://www.facebook.com/ thehoneypotband

READING – The Castle Tap, Castle Street RG1 7RJ. Larkham and Hall. Details: 0118 958 0473.

READING – The Purple Turtle, Gun Street RG1 2JR. Jamma presents Third Lung. Details: 0118 959 7196.

READING – Progress Theatre, The Mount RG1 5HL. Jazz at Progress presents a tribute to Bill Evans by John Horler.

Details: www.jazzinreading.com READING – Sub89, Friar Street RG1 1EP. Ultimate Coldplay.

Mungo’s Hifi Soundsystem.

Details: 0118 959 5395.

READING - South Street arts centre. Leveret. Details: 0118 960 6060.

Saturday, March 5

BRACKNELL – The Acoustic Couch, The Ring RG12 1JG. Simply Weller. Details: www. theacousticcouch.co.uk BRACKNELL – The Keller, Coppid Beech Hotel, John Nike Way RG12 8TF. 70s Tribute: The the ultimate night at the disco. Details: 01344 303333.

BRACKNELL – The Silver Birch, Liscombe RG12 7DE. Full Flavour. Details: 01344 457318.

BRACKNELL – South Hill Park, Ringmead RG12 7PA. Tina Live: Tina Turner tribute. Details: 01344 484123.

CROWTHORNE – The Crowthorne Inn, High Street RG45 7AD. Live music. Details: 01344 530615.

READING – The Face Bar, Ambrose Place RG1 7JE. The Echo: March of the Mods.. Details: 0118 956 8188.

READING – Grosvenor Casino Reading, Rose Kiln Lane RG2 0SN. Johnny Too Bad. Details: 0118 402 7800.

READING – The Purple Turtle, Gun

Street RG1 2JR. Remones It’s Alive Tour. Details: 0118 959 7196.

READING – The Purple Turtle, Gun Street RG1 2JR. SoundJam. Details: 0118 959 7196.

READING – Queens Head, Christchurch Road RG2 7AZ. Jazz night with Lea Lyle and Trio.. Details: 0118 931 0232.

READING – The Retreat, St John’s Street RG1 4EH. The Shufflepack. Details: 0118 376 9159.

READING – Salisbury Conservative Club, Kings Road RG1 4HX. Wardour Street. Details: 0118 926 5804.

READING – The Weather Station, Eldon Terrace RG1 4DX. Treehouse, Maxwell and more..

Details: 0118 958 6048.

WINKFIELD ROW – Carnation Hall RG42 7PA. The Supertonics Big Band. Details: www. thesupertonics.co.uk

Sunday, March 6

EARLEY – The Roebuck, Auckland Road RG6 1NY. Afternoon Karaoke. 2pm.. Details: 0118 966 7153.

READING – Community Hall, Watlington House, Watlington Street RG1 4RJ. Readifolk presents: Theme night Weather or Not. Details: www. readifolk.org.uk READING – The Purple Turtle, Gun Street RG1 2JR. Reggae Sundays. Details: 0118 959 7196.

READING – Queens Head, Christchurch Road RG2 7AZ. Northern Soul Social Sunday.

2pm-5pm. Details: 0118 931 0232.

SONNING – The Mill at Sonning, Sonning Eye RG4 6TY. Juke Box and Bobbysox. Details: 0118 969 8000.

No. 5402

Your weekly puzzle challenge

26

To advertise, email advertising@wokingham.today

WOKINGHAM.TODAY Thursday, February 24, 2022

TO ADVERTISE ON THIS PAGE, CALL CLAIRE ON: 0118 327 2662

Quiz Challenge

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3. In 2009, Garrett Camp and Travis Kalanick founded which worldwide ride-sharing company?

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4. What is the nationality of the 2021 Wimbledon women’s champion Ashleigh Barty?

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5. A gnomon might be found on which type of garden ornament?

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NONAGRAM

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ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ 1

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Each number in our Cross Code grid represents a different letter of the alphabet. You have three letters in the control grid to start you off. Enter them in the appropriate squares in the main grid, then use your knowledge of words to work out which letters should go in the missing squares.

As you get the letters, fill in other squares with the same number in the main grid and control grid. Check off the alphabetical list of letters as you identify them.

MAGIC SQUARE

ASTROLOGER’S FLAME

A H

E V L

How many words of four letters or more can you make from this Nonagram? Each word must use the central letter, and each letter may be used only once. At least one word using all nine letters can be found.

Guidelines: 33 Good; 39 Very Good; 46 Excellent.

Any word found in the Concise Oxford Dictionary (Tenth Edition) is eligible with the following exceptions: proper nouns; plural nouns, pronouns and possessives; third person singular verbs; hyphenated words; contractions and abbreviations; vulgar slang words; variant spellings of the same word (where another variant is also eligible).

Using all 16 letters of the phrase above, form four words each of four letters which will fit in the grid to form a magic square in which the words can be read both horizontally and vertically.

Spell out a 15-letter word or phrase by moving from one chamber to another within the pyramid. You may only enter each of the chambers once and may only proceed I through openings in the walls. The K first letter may appear in any chamber.

E T

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ACROSS 1. It’s the limit! The beer’s run out (6,3) 6. Caught sailor using taxi (3) 8. Decide to go for a dip (4,3,6) 9. All of a sudden nuisances will suffer in part from boredom (5) 10. In case of emergency initially cards can be used to remove swelling (7) 11. Repair damaged weapon (6) 13. Give unsurpassed cry of anguish (6) 16. Only a fraction of what a full-time worker can earn (4,3) 18. Pert bird starts to yap (5) 20. Continue a poem from where the fairy tale starts (4,4,1,4) 22. Rex at home with his relatives (3) 23. State of reverie found next to that of Nod perhaps (9)

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Here are two miniature fivesquare crosswords using the same grid – but the letters have been mixed up.

You have to work out which letters belong to which crossword.

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ACROSS 1. Friendly (8) 5. Oxford river (4) 9. Put on trial (7) 10. Scour (5) 11. Fake (5) 13. Medieval headgear (6) 15. Guide (5) 17. Simple (4) 19. Anger (3) 20. Floating ice (4) 21. Wing parts (5) 23. Twisting force (6)

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This puzzle page is supplied by Sirius Media Services Ltd.

© Sirius Media Services Ltd

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Perform the first calculation in each line first and ignore the mathematical law which says you should always perform division and multiplication before addition and subtraction.

To try our new puzzle, Zygolex, go to www.zygolex.com

DOWN 1. Boring part (3) 2. Thanks Kenneth when captured (5) 3. Weave net perhaps, then complain vocally (7) 4. In the past you somehow lied about an optical cover (6) 5. Rummage and find luncheon voucher in the river (5) 6. Touch an electrical point (7) 7. Baker organises a route for escape (9) 9. Throw rake over the fortification (9) 12. Flighty creature moving in place (7) 14. Movie’s ending has extraordinary climax that could make one cry (7) 15. I find this painful in India (6) 17. Batter the enclosure (5) 19. Tea or what to put it in (5) 21. Destroy the object aimed at (3)

QUICK CROSSWORD 1

30 9 2 3 7 4 8 1 5 6

1 6 7 9 3 5 4 8 2

4 8 5 6 2 1 7 3 9

3 7 9 4 1 6 5 2 8

2 1 8 3 5 7 9 6 4

6 5 4 2 8 9 3 1 7

WORD PYRAMID: Run like the devil.

EQUALISER: Clockwise from top left – divide; add; multiply; subtract.

Total: 3.

SOLUTIONS

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Place the four signs (add, subtract, multiply, divide) one in each circle so that the total of each across and down line is the same.

5 4 1 8 7 2 6 9 3

2 5

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EQUALISER 14 1 12 6 1 2 2 8 5 1 4 1

Hard

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Each row and each column must contain the numbers 1 to 9, and so must each 3 x 3 box.

5 6 9 3 2 1 2 5 7 3 7 2 3 6 1

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FIVE ALIVE

8 3 6 1 9 4 2 7 5

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WORD PYRAMID

SUDOKU Easy

CRYPTIC CROSSWORD

6. Dressage is a discipline in which Olympic sport?

7. Benedict Cumberbatch plays ranch owner Phil Burbank in which 2021 Western film directed by Jane Campion?

8. Which European country shares borders with France, Germany and Belgium?

9. What is meant by the word littoral in relation to a sea or lake?

10. What B is a traditional eastern European headscarf and the title of a Kate Bush song?

2. What ‘modern’ ailment is known by the initials RSI?

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1. Scyphozoa is the Latin name for which marine creature?

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PZ1P5402

CROSS CODE 20

5402

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24. Hoard (inf.) (5) 28. Ribbed cloth (5) 29. Affable (7) 30. Board game (4) 31. Respectful (8) DOWN 1. Marine mammal (4) 2. Freight (5) 3. Ill-will (6) 4. Respiratory organ (4) 6. Misgiving (7) 7. Immerse completely (8)

8. On the move (5) 12. Steps over fence (5) 13. Sobs (5) 14. Practising abstinence (8) 16. Epoch (3) 18. Close-set (7) 21. Completely (5) 22. Conflict (6) 25. Marten fur (5) 26. Rabbit-like animal (4) 27. Written material (4)

FIVE ALIVE: QUIZ CHALLENGE: 1 Jellyfish; 2 Repetitive strain injury; 3 Uber; 4 Australian; 5 Sundial; 6 Equestrian; 7 The Power of the Dog; 8 Luxembourg; 9 Relating to the shoreline; 10 Babooshka.

(1) Across – Sloth; Eaten; Kicks.

Down – Sleek; Optic; Hangs.

CRYPTIC CROSSWORD: CROSS CODE 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Across – 1 Bitter end; 6 Cab; 8 Take the plunge; 9 Ennui; 10 (2) Across – Barge; Amour; Taser.

E G I J Y K P Q V A L O U Icepack; 11 Rapier; 13 Bestow; 16 Half pay; 18 Cocky; 20 Once Down – Boast; Riots; Error.

14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 upon a time; 22 Kin; 23 Dreamland.

W M Z C N B R S T X D F H Down – 1 Bit; 2 Taken; 3 Entwine; 4 Eyelid; 5 Delve; 6 Contact; 7 NONAGRAM: acer; ache; achier; acre; arch; archil; Breakaway; 9 Earthwork; 12 Pelican; 14 Exclaim; 15 Mysore; 17 archive; auric; auricle; calve; care; carl; MAGIC SQUARE: EASY SUDOKU HARD SUDOKU Pound; 19 China; 21 End. foal; ogre; arms; carve; carvel; caul; cave; caver; cavil; lest. ceil; chai; chair; char; charlie; chela; chervil; chile; chiral; chiru; churl; clave; clavier; clear; clue; crave; cruel; cure; curie; curl; curve; each; eclair; ecru; erica; ileac; lace; lacier; laic; larch; leach; lech; luce; lucre; lurch; race; reach; relic; rice; rich; ruche; ulcer; uracil; varec; VEHICULAR; vicar; vice.

QUICK CROSSWORD: Across – 1 Sociable; 5 Isis; 9 Arraign; 10 Scrub; 11 Bogus; 13 Wimple; 15 Steer; 17 Easy; 19 Ire; 20 Berg; 21 Flaps; 23 Torque; 24 Stash; 28 Twill; 29 Amiable; 30 Ludo; 31 Reverent.

Down – 1 Seal; 2 Cargo; 3 Animus; 4 Lung; 6 Scruple; 7 Submerge; 8 Astir; 12 Stile; 13 Weeps; 14 Teetotal; 16 Era; 18 Serried; 21 Fully; 22 Strife; 25 Sable; 26 Hare; 27 Text.

WHAT’SON Thursday, February 24

ONLINE. Berkshire Family History Society presents The History of Yeomanry House, a talk by Katie Amos. 2pm-3.15pm. £5, £4 members. Details: berksfhs.org EARLEY – Trinity Church, Chalfont Close RG6 5HZ. Re:Fresh with Friendship Table. 2pm-4pm. Details: linkvisiting.org READING – The Biscuit Factory, Queens Walk RG1 7QE. Stand and Deliver comedy club. Over 18s only. £8. 7pm Details: readingbiscuitfactory.co.uk READING – Museum, Blagrave Street RG1 1QH. The Big Football Hunt, £1. Bertie The Badger’s Football Nickname Trail and craft pack. £2.50.

Details: 0118 937 3400.

SPENCERS WOOD – Spencers Wood Pavilion, Clares Green Road RG7 1DY. Social Seniors Tea and Coffee with Friendship Table. 10am-noon. Details: linkvisiting.org WOKINGHAM – Bradbury Centre, Wokingham Methodist Church, Rose Street RG40 1XS. Cafe Mosiac lunch club with Friendship table.

Noon-1.30pm. Details: linkvisiting.org WOODLEY – The Oakwood Centre, Headley Road.

Woodley and Earley Arts group meeting: Jonathan Newey demonstrates Buildings large and Loose in watercolour. Jonathan is an award winning artist with over 25 years of experience in both drawing and painting. 7pm-9.30pm. £6 for non-members.

Details: https://weag.art

Friday, February 25

EARLEY – St Nicolas Church, Sutcliffe Avenue RG6 7JN. Re:Fresh cafe with Friendship Table. 10amnoon. Details: linkvisiting. org WOKINGHAM – Salvation Army, Sturge Road RG40 2HD. Cafe Refresh Friendship table.

10am-1.30pm. Details: linkvisiting.org WOKINGHAM – Norreys Church, Norreys Avenue

RG40 1UU. T&C at SHARE Wokingham Friendship table. 12.30pm-2.30pm.

Details: linkvisiting.org WOKINGHAM – St Paul’s Church Parish Rooms, Reading Road RG41 1EH. Coffee and Chat: a warm welcome, a listening ear and refreshments. 2pm4pm. Details: 0118 979 2122 or church.office@ spauls.co.uk.

WOKINGHAM WITHOUT – Pinewood Theatre, Pinewood Leisure Centre.

EBOS presents annual quiz night. Details: www. ticketsource.co.uk/ebos WOOSEHILL – Acorn Community Centre, Fernlea Drive RG41 3DR. Acorn Cafe with Friendship table. 10.30am-noon.

Details: linkvisiting.org

Saturday, February 26

ONLINE. Thames Valley Ancient Egypt Society presents a Zoom lecture: The International Style in the 18th Dynasty, a talk

by Dr Beth Ann Judas. £4.

3.45pm. Details: www. tvaes.org.uk CAVERSHAM – St Andrew’s Church, Albert Road RG4 7PL. Concerts in Caversham: The Caversham Ensemble string quartet in concert: Ellie Fagg, Tom Norris, Michelle Bruill and Naomi Watts. 7.30pm. Tickets £20, over 60s £18, and £15 for 16-25s. Under 16s free.

Details: 0118 948 3220 or concertsincaversham.co.uk CROWTHORNE – Crowthorne Royal British Legion, Wellington Road RG45 7LJ. Quiz night.

Details: 01344 772161.

EARLEY – St Nicolas Church, Sutcliffe Avenue RG6 7JN. Seeing the World Differently: a celebration of Emma Major’s paintings and books. 6pm. Details: 0118 966 9080.

LOWER EARLEY – Trinity Church, Chalfont Way RG6 5HZ. Reading Male Voice Choir in concert with Only Ukes. In aid of Parkinsons (Reading). £10.

7.30pm. Details: www. rmvc.net WOKINGHAM WITHOUT – Pinewood Bar and Cafe, Pinewood Leisure Centre,

LEISURE | 27

To advertise, call 0118 327 2662

Thursday, February 24, 2022 WOKINGHAM.TODAY

Holding a community event? Send your listings to events@wokinghampaper.co.uk Old Wokingham Road RG40 3AQ. Friendship table available. 9am-4pm.

Details: linkvisiting.org WOOSEHILL – Woosehill Church, Chestnut Avenue RG41 3RS. Sip and Share with friendship table. 11am-noon, every second Saturday. Details: linkvisiting.org WOODLEY – Crockhamwell Road precinct. Woodley Town Centre presents Saturday market.

9am-3pm. Details: 07861 654674 or www. woodleytowncentre.co.uk

Sunday, February 27

BRACKNELL – The Lexicon.

Bracknell Vegan Market.

11am-4pm. Details: www. sparkleveganevents.com PANGBOURNE – Village Hall RG8 7AN. Pangbourne Twinning Association French Film Night: Irreplaceable (12), directed

by Thomas Lilti. £6, 6.45pm. Details: 0118 984 4401.

READING – Rivermead Leisure Centre, Richfield Avenue RG1 8EQ. Reading Vinyl Record Collectors Fair. 9am-3pm. £4.

WOODLEY – Crockhamwell Road precinct. Woodley Town Centre presents car boot sale. 8am-1pm. Cars £10, vans £15. Details: 07861 654674 or www. woodleytowncentre.co.uk

Monday, February 28

ARBORFIELD – Royal British Legion, Eversley Road RG2 9PR. Friendship table.

9.30am-11.30am. Details: linkvisiting.org EARLEY – Maiden Place Community Centre.

Earley Enviornmental Group meeting: Urban Bee Keeping with Matt McTernan.

7.30pm. Details: www. earleyenvironmentalgroup. co.uk WOKINGHAM – Salvation Army, Sturge Road RG40 2HD. Cafe Refresh Friendship table.

10am-1.30pm. Details: linkvisiting.org WOKINGHAM – Norreys Church, Norreys Avenue RG40 1UU. T&C at SHARE Wokingham Friendship

Art by Jonathan Newey, who is demonstrating buildings large and loose at Woodley and Earley Arts Group’s meeting on Thursday evening table. 12.30pm-2.30pm.

Details: linkvisiting.org WOODLEY – Woodley Baptist Church, Hurricane Way RG5 4UX. Four Seasons cafe Friendship Table. 1.30pm-3.30pm.

Details: linkvisiting.org WOODLEY – Woodley Baptist Church, Hurricane Way RG5 4UX. Four Seasons Art and Crafts.

Try something new, relax, enjoy tea and biscuits. £3 per craft, materials supplied. 1.30pm-3.30pm.

Details: 0118 969 9956.

Tuesday, March 1

EARLEY – Earley CResCent Resource Centre, Warbler Drive RG6 4HB. Friendship table. 2pm-3pm. Details: linkvisiting.org.

FINCHAMPSTEAD – FBC Centre Cafe, Gorse Ride North RG40 4ES. Friendship table. 10amnoon. Details: linkvisiting. org READING – Greyfriars Church, Friar Street. RG1 1EH. Crafty corner for adults. 1.30pm-3pm. All abilities and craft interests welcome. Details: 0118 951 6700.

SHERFIELD-ON-LODDON – The Four Horseshoes, Reading Road. Equinox Quintet with Andy Walls.

Details: 01256 882296.

WOKINGHAM – Bradbury Centre, Wokingham Methodist Church, Rose Street RG40 1XS.

CLASP Wokingham cafe with Friendship table.

10am-noon. Every third and fourth Tuesday of the month. Details: linkvisiting. org WOKINGHAM WITHOUT – Pinewood Bar and Cafe, Pinewood Leisure Centre, Old Wokingham Road RG40 3AQ. Friendship table available. 9am-4pm.

Details: linkvisiting.org

Wednesday, March 2

DUNSDEN – Dunsden Green Village Hall RG4 9QG. Dunsden Green Country Dancing Club: country dancing with a caller. 8pm10pm. £4, first evening free. Details: 07714 226723.

EARLEY – Brookside Church, Brookside Close RG6 7HG. Open Door cafe with Friendship Table. 2pm4pm. Details: linkvisiting. org EARLEY – Earley Crescent Resource Centre, Warbler Drive RG6 4HB. Confidence building course. 9.30am-12.30pm.

Booking essential. Free.

Introduction to English for improvers: six-week course. Free. 12.30pm2.30pm. Details: 0118 921 0555.

WOKINGHAM – Bradbury Centre, Wokingham Methodist Church, Rose Street RG40 1XS. Cafe Mosiac with Friendship table. 11am-noon. Details:

linkvisiting.org WOKINGHAM – Salvation Army, Sturge Road RG40 2HD. Cafe Refresh Friendship table.

10am-1.30pm. Details: linkvisiting.org WOODLEY – Christ Church, Crockhamwell Road, RG5 3LA. Wesley Guild with Terry Rowell. 2pm. Details: www.christ-churchwoodley.org.uk WOODLEY – Crockhamwell Road precinct. Woodley Town Centre presents Artisan market. 9am-2pm.

Details: 07861 654674 or www.woodleytowncentre. co.uk WOODLEY – Woodley Baptist Church, Hurricane Way RG5 4UX. Coffee morning. 10am-noon.

Details: 0118 969 9956.

Thursday, March 3

EARLEY – Earley Crescent Resource Centre, Warbler Drive RG6 4HB. Emergency First Aid at Work course. 9.30am-4pm.

Booking essential. Details: 0118 921 0555.

EARLEY – Trinity Church, Chalfont Close RG6 5HZ. Re:Fresh with Friendship Table. 2pm-4pm. Details: linkvisiting.org SPENCERS WOOD – Spencers Wood Pavilion, Clares Green Road RG7 1DY. Social Seniors Tea and Coffee with Friendship Table. 10am-noon. Details: linkvisiting.org

What’s What’s on on event event submission submission form form Holding a community event? Running a fun day? Organising a concert? Planning a friendship group? Get it listed in our what’s on guide by sending information to us. Use this form or email events@wokingham.today. Please note this service is for community groups,

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charities and not-for-profit activities. We cannot guarantee inclusion.

Address

Date of event: Venue of event: What will happen:

Address

Postcode Email Postcode

Time of event: Contact number for readers:

Send Emailyour forms to: What’s On, Wokingham.Today, Crown House, 231 Kings Road, Reading RG1 4LS

WOKINGHAM – Bradbury Centre, Wokingham Methodist Church, Rose Street RG40 1XS. Cafe Mosiac lunch club with Friendship table.

Noon-1.30pm. Details: linkvisiting.org WOKINGHAM – Wokingham Baptist Church, Milton Road RG40 1DE. Wokingham Literary Society meeting: Growing Up: An evening of themed prose and poetry with Elizabeth Treadgold. 7.30pm. £2 non-members. Details: wokinghamliterarysociety. org.uk WOKINGHAM – The Cornerstone, All Saints Church, Norreys Avenue, Wokingham RG40 1UE. Wokingham and East Berkshire Camera Club meeting. Audio Visual Evening. 7.30pm. Details: www.webcc.org.uk.

Friday, March 4

EARLEY – Earley Crescent Resource Centre, Warbler Drive RG6 4HB. Get to know your iPhone: fiveweek course for people with an Apple iPhone 6 and upwards. Booking essential. Next Steps In Computing. 1pm-3pm.

Five-week course, booking essential. Details: 0118 921 0555.

READING – Abbey Baptist Church, Abbey Square RG1 3BE. World Day of Prayer service. 10.30am.

Details: 0118 957 2197.

READING – Park URC, Palmer Park Avenue. World Day of Prayer service. 2pm.

READING – Progress Theatre, The Mount RG1 5HL. Jazz at Progress presents a tribute to Bill Evans by John Horler. 7.30pm. £18, £16 concessions, plus booking fee. Details: www. jazzinreading.com EARLEY – St Nicolas Church, Sutcliffe Avenue RG6 7JN. Re:Fresh cafe with Friendship Table. 10amnoon. Details: linkvisiting. org WOKINGHAM – Salvation Army, Sturge Road RG40 2HD. Cafe Refresh Friendship table.

10am-1.30pm. Details: linkvisiting.org WOKINGHAM – Norreys Church, Norreys Avenue RG40 1UU. T&C at SHARE Wokingham Friendship table. 12.30pm-2.30pm.

Details: linkvisiting.org WOKINGHAM – The Whitty Theatre, Luckley House School, Luckley Road RG40 3EU. An Evening With Bishop Steven, the Bishop of Oxford. 7pm.

Details: 0118 979 2122.

Saturday, March 5

CROWTHORNE – Crowthorne Royal British Legion, Wellington Road RG45 7LJ. Skittles night.

Details: 01344 772161.

HURST – Dinton Pastures main car park, Davis Street RG10 0TH. Wokingham and Bracknell RSPB meeting: A Date With Nature. Walk round Dinton

and Lavell’s Lake for all ages. Visits to bird hides included, suitable for all ages. 9am-12.30pm. £2 donation. Details: rspbwandb@gmail.com READING – Rivermead Leisure Centre, Richfield Avenue RG1 8EQ. Reading Brick Show. 10am-5pm. £10. Details: www. readingbrickshow.com WOKINGHAM – Caudwell Hall Theatre, Holme Grange School, Heathlands Road RG40 3AL. The Corpus Christi annual charity pantomime: The Pied Piper.

3pm, 7pm. £5. Details: piedpiperpanto.eventbrite. co.uk WOKINGHAM WITHOUT – Pinewood Bar and Cafe, Pinewood Leisure Centre, Old Wokingham Road RG40 3AQ. Friendship table available. 9am-4pm.

Details: linkvisiting.org WOOSEHILL – Woosehill Church, Chestnut Avenue RG41 3RS. Sip and Share with friendship table. 11am-noon, every second Saturday. Details: linkvisiting.org WOODLEY – Crockhamwell Road precinct. Woodley Town Centre presents Saturday market.

9am-3pm. Details: 07861 654674 or www. woodleytowncentre.co.uk

Sunday, March 6

READING – Rising Sun Arts Centre, Silver Street RG1 2ST. Dreading Poetry Slam.

7.30pm. Free entry. Details: www.risingsunartscentre. org READING – Rivermead Leisure Centre, Richfield Avenue RG1 8EQ. Reading Brick Show. 10am-5pm. £10. Details: www. readingbrickshow.com WOKINGHAM – Caudwell Hall Theatre, Holme Grange School, Heathlands Road RG40 3AL. The Corpus Christi annual charity pantomime: The Pied Piper. 3pm. £5.

Details: piedpiperpanto. eventbrite.co.uk

Monday, March 7

WOODLEY – Christ Church, Crockhamwell Road, RG5 3LA. Network Fellowship bingo. 2pm. Details: www. christ-church-woodley. org.uk WOODLEY – Woodley Baptist Church, Hurricane Way RG5 4UX. Four Seasons Art and Crafts.

Try something new, relax, enjoy tea and biscuits. £3 per craft, materials supplied. 1.30pm-3.30pm.

Details: 0118 969 9956.

Tuesday, March 8

WOODLEY – Coronation Hall, Headley Road RG5 4JB. WISE Over-50s Forum: A speaker from the Coop Estate Planning: Tax, Care and Toy Boys.

2pm-4pm. £3. Details: Woodleywise@gmail.com or: 0118 969 6206.

28 | LIFE

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Mixed Veg Curry with Lentil Sprouts and Garlic and Chilli Topper

World Book Day: 14 EASY costume hacks

I

IN THE KITCHEN

T’S the week before World Book Day and your child hasn’t got a thing to wear. But you don’t have to stay up all night finessing a costume of immense complexity. Former primary school teacher Becky Cranham of education resource experts PlanBee has a host of brilliant hacks for some of the most popular characters in children’s literature

Good 4u

Bruce Bogtrotter (Matilda by Roald Dahl) HEALTHY snacks and salad toppers’ brand, Good4U want you to #GetMoreGood this 2022, and has devised a series of recipes to help achieve that.

This week, it has produced a vegetarian curry that makes the most of fresh ingredients and its Garlic and Chilli Salad Topper to give your mealtimes a bit of bite.

The recipe takes around half-an-hour to make, and will taste fantastic.

Cooking Time: 30 minutes Serves: 4

Ingredients n 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil n 2 Red onions, peeled and chopped

n 2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped n 2cm of fresh ginger, finely grated n 3 freshly ground black tablespoons of medium curry powder n 2 sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped n 2 carrots, peeled and chopped n 1 x 400g tin of chopped tomatoes n 1 x 400g tin of coconut milk n 1 courgette, chopped n 100g green beans, halved n ½ cauliflower broken into florets n 1 red pepper, chopped n 1 pack of Good4U Sprouted Lentil Sprout Mix To serve: n Good4U Garlic and Chilli Salad Topper n Basmati rice & naan bread

Dress in a school uniform (or as close as possible) and grab a big chocolate cake from the shops. Smear chocolate all over your child’s shirt (and face). Voila!

Matilda (Matilda by Roald Dahl) Pop a red ribbon in your child’s hair and bundle a stack of books together with string or a belt.

Easy peasy.

Charlie Bucket (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl)

All you need is a great big golden ticket to hang around your youngster’s neck. Grab a big piece of yellow paper and write out their very own invitation to visit Willy Wonka.

The Boy in the Dress (David Walliams) Method 1. Heat the oil in a large saucepan and fry the onion, garlic, and ginger for 2 minutes.

2. Tumble in the sweet potato and carrot and fry for another 3

Grab a dress and a football and your son is good to go. minutes.

3. Add the curry powder and cook for another couple of minutes followed by the tinned tomatoes and coconut milk.

4. Add in the rest of

the vegetables, bring to the boil then reduce to a simmer.

5. Season well with salt and pepper and cook for 10-12 minutes until the vegetables are cooked but still

crunchy.

6. Just before serving, stir in ½ pack of the Lentil Sprout Mix and heat through.

7. Serve with boiled basmati rice, naan bread and generous scattering of

The podiatry clinic keeping Wokingham on its feet

ONE YEAR ON: The team at The Vale Clinic in Wokingham have been celebrating the first anniversary of the business Picture: The Vale Clinic

T

HIS month, Wokingham business The Vale Clinic celebrated its first anniversary. It opened its doors at its town centre home in Elms Walk a year ago.

The clinic celebrated with an open event, featuring cupcakes and a chance to chat with the staff.

Patients old and new popped by to catch up with the team and to help them celebrate the momentous first year in business.

The purpose built clinic was opened in 2021 by clinical director, podiatrist Ronke Tinker.

“It’s been a fantastic first year for the clinic,” Ronke says. “Businesses and the people of Wokingham have welcomed us and it’s been a real privilege to know that we have been providing high quality lower limb care to the area.”

The clinic has been so busy that it has seen a rapid expansion in their staffing since opening.

The Vale Clinic has hired an additional two podiatrists and a foot health practitioner to assist with the growing demand.

“Podiatry is a specialist branch of healthcare dealing with a multitude of issues in the foot and lower limb,” Ronke explains.

“We see a wide range of issues in the clinic, from assistance with

Sophie (The BFG by Roald Dahl) Put on a nightie or a pair of pyjamas and make a quick dream jar using a jam jar, glitter and some fairy lights.

Where’s Wally? (Martin Handford) If you have a stripy top, a bobble hat and a pair of glasses, your child can spend all day standing around with no one being able to find them.

What’s not to like?

The Cat in the Hat (Dr Seuss) Dress your child in black and make a tall red and white hat from paper or card. If you’re feeling extra enthusiastic, a cat nose and whiskers painted on with eyeliner will complete the look.

Beegu (Alexis Deacon) If you happen to be the kind of person who has yellow leggings and T-shirts lying around, then Beegu might be a good option. Just dress your youngster in yellow and make some long, floppy yellow ears from card.

Mr Bump or Little Miss Whoops (Roger Hargreaves)

This one’s for the tots: dress them in blue, wrap them in bandages and stick on some plasters. Loo roll will suffice if you don’t happen to have meters of bandages in the bathroom cupboard.

The Paper Dolls (Julia Donaldson) Borrow a school uniform (or as close to as you can get) and make a paper chain of dolls for your child to wear around their neck.

Harry Potter (J.K. Rowling)

foot care maintenance with both our HCPC registered podiatrists and our foot health practitioner, to our podiatrist’s advanced diagnostic skills being used to deal with vascular issues and problems arising from conditions such as diabetes and arthritis.

“The podiatrists regularly carry out minor surgery to alleviate issues caused by conditions such as ingrown toenails too.”

No foot problem is too big or too

small for the team at The Vale Clinic.

“Whether you are worried about the appearance of your feet, a fungal infection or verruca that just won’t shift, or you have underlying health conditions that affect your feet, their range of services has something that can help,” Ronke says.

2022 sees the treatments at The Vale Clinic expanded.

“Based on feedback from our patients, we are delighted to launch

an expanded range of therapeutic and aesthetic treatments.

“Our warm wax foot therapy and medical pedicures, will rejuvenate neglected feet, while our reflexology service will help restore calm and balance.”

If you have a concern about your feet then the expert team at The Vale Clinic say they can help. n For more details, call: 0118 304 9389 or visit: www.thevaleclinic.com

You don’t always need full-on wizard regalia to dress us as Harry Potter. He spent most of his childhood dressed as a muggle. Just find a pair of thick-rimmed glasses and draw a scar on your child’s head.

Flying Fergus (Chris Hoy) This is perfect for keen cyclists: pop on a a helmet and any other cycling kit you can find, and you’re ready to go.

Saucepan Man (The Magic Faraway Tree

by Enid Blyton)

Stick a colander on your child’s head and attach a bunch of pots and pans to their body. They might not be able to sit down but they’ll look terrific.

ALL THE ACTION, EVERY WEEK WOKINGHAM EDITION

RAMS DIG DEEP IN DIFFICULT VICTORY

TEAM BRIT BOBBY HEADS TO PORTUGAL

WOKINGHAM racing driver Bobby Trundley has spent a week of making ‘lifetime firsts’ after heading out to Portimao in Portugal with Team BRIT.

Team BRIT’s goal of making motorsport history at the iconic race is moving closer as it unveiled its car for 2022 – a brand new McLaren 570S GT4 in October last year.

Bobby has been selected to drive the McLaren alongside teammate Aaron Morgan from Basingstoke, and last week, the pair flew out to the Algarve International Circuit in Portimao, Portugal.

Not only was this the first time Bobby got behind the wheel of the brand new McLaren, it was also his first-ever time on an aeroplane, and only the second time in his life that he has left the UK. Bobby and Aaron spent three days testing the car on the iconic Portimao track, supported by Team BRIT’s specialist crew of engineers, all working to ensure the car is in the best shape with the optimum set up for round 1 of the British GT Championship which will be held at Oulton Park on Saturday, April 16 and Monday, April 18. n Full story on wokingham.today

BRACKNELL BAG BONUS POINT WIN

24.02.22

ROCKETS SEE OFF ESSEX

‘WIN AND BELIEF GROWS’

By ANDY PRESTON apreston@wokingham.today

READING gave interim manager Paul Ince the perfect start by gaining their first home win since October.

Goals from Lucas Joao and John Swift ensured they moved eight points clear of the Championship relegation zone prior to Derby County’s fixture in hand.

“I never envisioned seeing myself back in the dugout,” said Ince.

“It’s been a few years since I’ve

ER PERFECT START FOR GAFF

managed but I’m 54, not 84. I know how to manage. My CV is as good as any person’s.

“It’s a tough challenge but it’s a challenge I’m used to.

“If we keep picking up results and showing the mental toughness that we showed tonight then we’ve got a great chance of staying up.”

Ince was quick to admit that the team are still

in a relegation battle, but believes they have what it takes to maintain their Championship status.

He continued: “When you look at last year, seventh in the table, Paunovic did a fantastic job but somewhere down the line, something’s gone wrong.

“These are good players but the problem is we’re always going to score goals, but we’ve got a -22 goal difference.

“We are going to be under pressure but the fact that we

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won’t concede as many goals and that gives us a great chance of staying up.

“When you win games, the belief grows.

“The fans are so important because we’re not going to win every game. It’s going to go to the wire.

“We’re building confidence with two wins on the bounce.

“I watch football religiously. They (Reading) called me to help them, so that’s what I’ll do.”

n Match report inside

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Rams search for an attack with a kick

Tom Vooght leads out Rams

RUGBY UNION

VOOGHT LEADS OUT RAMS RAMS CLIMB INTO TOP FOUR IN MILESTONE MATCH Rams celebrate their victory over Taunton Titans Pictures: Paul Clark

Rams got the better of their opponents

RUGBY UNION

RAMS Director of Rugby Seb Reynolds heaped praise on former Mini turned first-teamer Tom Vooght after he made his 150th appearance for the side on Saturday.

Things did not go entirely to plan for Vooght as he was forced off at half-time due to a facial injury.

And Reynolds admitted it was somewhat unfortunate for Vooght’s afternoon to have been ended early, he said: “For his 150th game he got himself a split chin.

“But the guy is unreal and one of the best open-side flankers I’ve had the pleasure of watching play.

“He’s a clubman through and through and has been here since he was sixd.

“He always gives 100% every

time he takes to the field and I can’t speak highly enough of him – he’s a brilliant, brilliant rugby player.”

Vooght has touched down 51 times for the first team and was also lauded by Rams’ CEO, Gary Reynolds.

He said: “Tom has been a real warrior for this club and he was right to get in the Dream Team back in 2019/20.

“He’s a tremendous individual and a great example for anyone – very, very passionate, tough, covers the ground well, a constant nuisance to the opposition, but a great role model for any kids to have a look if you want to play open-side at a high level of rugby.”

Rams enjoyed success at home Pictures: Paul Clark

AFTER BEATING BISHOPS

By RICHARD ASHTON sport@wokingham.today

Rams 17 Bishop’s Stortford 5 RAMS climbed to fourth in the National One table with a hard-fought 17-5 home win against Bishop’s Stortford.

The visitors came into the contest on the back of a four-match unbeaten run, but it was Rams who made the early running and they deservedly took the lead when London Irish loanee Tarek Haffar – the National One Player of the Week following his display at Rosslyn Park – smashed his way over from close range after a surging rolling maul had been brought down just short of the line.

Stortford rallied and showed their attacking intent when getting over the Rams

Rams celebrate at full-time

line, only for the ball to be held up, but the home side continued to have the better of the setpiece with their line-out functioning smoothly and the scrum gradually getting on top.

Moreover, the maul continued to be a highly efficient weapon and eventually led to the second try of the afternoon.

Again it was not quite able to get over the line, but another short-range effort, this time from returning centre Kieran Leicester, pushed the hosts into a 10-0 lead at half-time.

Stortford came roaring out of the blocks, however, streaming forward before efficiently spreading the ball wide for wing Josh Stannard to cross on the right-hand side.

Things got worse for Rams

when hooker Max Hayman was sin-binned for making contact with a player in the air, but the hosts’ experience shone through as they ran down the clock during those 10 minutes with a succession of scrums in the Stortford 22.

Yet Stortford, well marshalled by their impressive fly-half Alfie Orchard, remained well and truly in the contest despite spending much of the game on the back foot.

Rams’ dominance of both possession and territory eventually bore fruit, though, and after several phases battering away at the visitors’ line, they finally grabbed their third score of the afternoon when Ollie Taylor dived over on the left from close range.

A magnificent touchline conversion from Drew

Rams touch down with a try

Humberstone pushed his side 12 points in front, and Rams continued to play in their opponents’ half as they searched for the bonus-point.

They came close on a number of occasions – most notably when substitute Jak Rossiter was held up just short of the line – but the Hertfordshire side continued to show tremendous resolve in keeping their opponents at bay.

Indeed Stortford at times also showed their danger with some swift handling, but in reality it was a solid and well-deserved Rams display which gave them a sixth win in seven games since the turn of the year.

Leading from the front were the outstanding Jamie Guttridge and skipper Robbie Stapley, whose ball carrying and leadership were notable throughout.

SPORT | 19

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REACTION

REYNOLDS DELIGHTED AFTER HOME WIN

By STAFF WRITER sport@wokingham.today

SEB Reynolds was delighted with his Rams side after they made it six National One wins from seven games with a 17-5 home victory against Bishop’s Stortford.

The success has nudged his side up to fourth in the table.

The Rams’ director of rugby said: “It was really good. After last week’s win at Rosslyn Park we had the challenge of backing that up against a side who have been superb in their last four games.

“They’ve been playing some superb attacking rugby, but we just didn’t let them do that and our boys were outstanding.

“We were excellent right from the start – we won the ball at the kick-off and were hungry to dive on anything.

“We put them under pressure throughout the first half and then saw it home against a side who are dangerous for 80 minutes.”

Happy man: Rams’ director of rugby Seb Reynolds He continued: “They’re a tenacious side and I really respect them for it – they’re not a comfortable team to play against.

“They can attack and score tries from anywhere, they’re good at winding the opposition up, but they only scored five points, so that was really good for us.

“We kept our heads despite some decisions and

we ground them down.

“We always felt we had the ascendancy in the game and we were patient, which was really impressive.”

During a season of fluctuating form which saw Rams start the campaign with six wins from seven, lose four of their next five and then rebound with another six from seven, Reynolds once

again admitted results are secondary in the grand scheme of things.

He said: “If we lose a game and then win the next week, it’s no big issue – we’re looking for constant development.

“We’ve got things we’re working on throughout the season and at the moment we’ve got a bit of continuity which is proving to be useful.

“We’ve got this very nice mix of young players coming in and some other very experienced players.”

Among the senior players who helped shape the victory were man-of-the-match Jamie Guttridge and skipper Robbie Stapley.

“Jamie’s having a really strong season and he was physical, carried well and was good in the line-out,” Reynolds said. “Robbie led from the front and he’s an exceptional captain, they both played very well and outside that there’s a nice axis forming with Ollie Cole and Rowan Grundy.”

BASKETBALL

ROCKETS RACE PAST REBELS PLAYING host to a lively Essex Rebels side on Sunday night, the Rockets came from 17 points adrift to win an epic shootout in front of the Rivermead faithful.

In one of the Rockets’ most entertaining games of the season, the Rivermead crowd was treated to a fantastic comeback victory and a Tyler Cartaino clinic as he went 13/15 from the field and scored a game-high 32 points.

His rim pressure and pace on the break gave the Rockets a lifeline during the first quarter and provided an offensive outlet throughout the game as other players found their grooves.

Danny Carter warmed into his role as the starting centre well and produced offense in the paint and at the line, scoring seven free throws on his way to 16 points when the Rockets were in danger of falling further behind.

The Rockets operated well inside throughout and were less dependent on the three than in recent fixtures. Essex put up a great fight, buoyed by the shifty play of Jake Eynon and the inside presence of Hodges.

Danny Carter at the basket This victory puts the Rockets at 10-9 for the season and continues the upward trajectory of the team over recent weeks as they strive to climb the standings.

With the comeback completed, the Rockets will look for another victory as they take on the Thames Valley Cavaliers both home and away in a double-header weekend.

National League One Rugby returns to Old Bath Road on Saturday 26th February 2022 K.O. 3.00pm 1st XV v Darlington Mowden Park A range of great food and drink is available for you to savour. Great Beer, Great Food and Great Rugby!

E tickets can be pre-purchased via our Ticket Office at: Entry is £15 for over 18s for non-season ticket holders, FREE for under 18s.

FREE Park and Ride available for this fixture.

Rams Rugby, Old Bath Road, Sonning, Berkshire RG4 6TQ © RAMSRUGBY 2022

160mmx8 columns (265mm) DMP Home 26th February - Wokingham and Reading Paper 23-24.02.22.indd 1

21/02/2022 09:40:46

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RUGBY UNION

BRACKNELL HOLD OFF SECOND-HALF FIGHT TO TAKE FIVE POINTS ON THE ROAD

RUGBY UNION

IN-FORM SAINTS SEE OFF ABBEY IN CLINICAL SECOND-HALF DISPLAY

Bracknell RFC break forward on the attack Pictures: pgrphotography

By Gary Miles sport@wokingham.today

Frome 19 Bracknell 24 BRACKNELL held off a secondhalf fightback from Frome in tricky conditions to take an away victory.

Frome were attacking and after several rucks, a run down the wing out of defence by May was illegally stopped, the penalty did not make touch due to the conditions.

The wind affected much of the play for the opening minutes, swirling round the side of the clubhouse.

Much of the play had been in Bracknell’s half but after about 10 minutes, Bracknell hit a purple patch.

The first score came after a Frome scrum was won but a kick ended in the hands of an offside player.

The penalty and following line out on Frome’s 22, had a Crossfield kick from a maul to the backs, a maul then a Bracknell break through the Frome lines, ended with Bayliss scoring an unconverted try in the corner.

Bracknell scored again a few minutes later, the restart gathered by Johnson, who passed to May who made a fine run to enable an off load to Milligan, scoring a converted try under the posts to make it 12-0.

Liam Wood secured the ball to run in impressively through the home sides defence, with the try unconverted the score was now 0-17.

Bracknell took the try bonus point on 25 minutes. With Johnson featuring again, Will

Above: Kath Sheppard prepares to receive lineout ball; Below: Annabel Hawkins and Mia McCreesh line up a tackle Pictures: @rugbygranddad

By STAFF WRITER sport@wokingham.today

Field made a run down the left wing, an offload had the backs get the ball to Burch who scored a wind assisted converted try to go 24-0 ahead.

The second half was a turnaround from the first, with Frome dominating much of the play, George Milligan had to go off injured on about 20 minutes after a rare Bracknell attack in this half.

The first Frome score came after good work by their backs, attacking their favoured end, the very muddy part of the pitch, they had a scrum on our five-metre line, Frome were awarded a penalty try.

Probably due to the pitch, there were many stoppages for injuries, the clock was running down quicker than the match was progressing due to this.

Frome won another penalty, with the line out won, a maul, a ruck, a Frome back broke through the defensive line to score 12-24.

The final score of the game came from Frome, it was deserved from the amount of possession they had in the half. Penalty kicked to line out, after a ruck the backs retained

the ball to score, with the conversion good the score was now 17-24.

With the travelling support starting to get nervous, an injury to Frome’s 56-year-old forward stopped play for a few minutes.

When play resumed there was not much time left and was played out with Frome attacking, Bracknell’s defence held firm and much the same as the first half a Frome knockon had the final whistle blown, to the relief of the Bracknell supporters.

But Bracknell could be delighted at the blow of the final whistle given the heavy going and the way the home side used their knowledge of their home pitch to claim an imortant win on the road to take five points.

The top of the table now piants a very tight picture with a thrilling race for the title.

Bracknell are in third on 86 points, while Oxford Harlequins are one point ahead on 87 points and Banbury lead the way on 88 points.

Bracknell’s next league test comes on Saturday, March 5 when they host Grove.

Abbey Women 0 Old Albanian Saints 43

IN awful weather conditions, Abbey Women delivered a strong first half performance to hold the on-form visitors to a 0-14 lead at half time, but it was OA Saints who capitalised on the strong wind in the second half to grind out an impressive victory.

Two red cards for the visitors, one a player and one a coach, marred an otherwise clinical performance and one in which Abbey Women can take heart from their first half display. Using the wind to their advantage, as well as OA Saints’ early ill-discipline, Mia McCreesh kicked well to gain early territory for her side.

A surging run from her centre partner Alice DentonRice ensured most of the first half was played in OA Saints’ half, yet their defence remained impassable.

Repeated attempts by Abbey to cross their line were thwarted, and the difficult conditions led to a multitude of handling errors.

However, Abbey remained keen, with important turnovers

from Katherine Sheppard and Annette Bevan keeping the momentum with Abbey.

Eventually, OA Saints’ patience paid off and quick hands from a lineout saw pacey centre Caroline Collie slice through a gap in the defence, and the visitors were rewarded from their first foray into Abbey’s half. Just before half time, indiscipline on Abbey’s part allowed OA Saints to kick into the corner, from which a series of strong carries saw their forward pack claim a try just before the half time whistle.

Abbey were buoyed by their first half performance, yet their

inability to convert pressure, possession and territory into points was punished in the second half by OA Saints, who scored five more unanswered tries with the strong wind now at their backs.

Credit to the home side, their dogged resilience shone through their mud-plastered kit, with strong tackles from Tori Kiff and the returning Meaghan Fowler, while Annabel Hawkins and Keni Lenton brought excellent impact from the bench.

And although OA Saints were eventually reduced to fourteen players, after a rogue punch was thrown in contact, they held Abbey out.

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FOOTBALL ROUND-UP

BERKS COUNTY PUT CHALVEY TO THE SWORD

By ANDY PRESTON sport@wokingham.today

Combined Counties Division One

BERKS COUNTY earned an excellent away win by smashing seven past Chalvey Sports.

The Swords raced into a three-goal lead with strikes from a double from Hayden either side of Lee’s goal.

Chalvey got one back by scoring from the penalty spot, but County restored their three-goal advantage heading into the break when Money found the net.

Berks picked up where they left off in a clinical display that saw Lee bag his brace to make it 5-1.

Hayden claimed his hattrick with a sixth goal for the Swords.

Chalvey reduced the deficit to make it 6-2, but Berks had the last say when they added their seventh to cap off a magnificent performance

The visitors tried to fight back to take something from the match but Edgware ensured the points would be theirs with a second goal in the 84th minute

when Jordan rounded off the scoring with a freekick.

Combined Counties Premier North

WOKINGHAM & EMMBROOK moved a point closer to survival after they drew away at Windsor.

The home side broke the deadlock in the 33rd minute when they went in front after turning in from a corner.

The Sumas fought back well and clawed back a deserved leveller just eight minutes after the restart when Toby Raggett got on the end of Collier’s cross to open his account for Wokingham.

Toby Raggett did brilliantly to beat a Windsor defender and picked out Jordace HolderSpooner who poked the ball in.

Windsor had the opportunity to square the game once again in the 68th minute, but

Thames Valley Premier League

Wokingham goalkeeper Sean Woodward came up with a heroic stop to preserve his team’s advantage.

With just seven minutes to go, Windsor levelled up the match to ensure the points were shared.

Edgware Town inflicted defeat on READING CITY to increase their gap on the Cityzens in the table.

There was a blow for City just before half-time when Davies was shown a red card.

City defended resiliently with a man down, but were eventually breached when Edgware went in front through Waite.

WOODLEY UNITED ROYALS fought back to earn an impressive away point at Westwood Wanderers.

Finding themselves 2-0 down at the break, the Kestrels provided a secondhalf fight to earn a draw with goals from Edward Thomas, Reece Probert, and a stoppage-time leveller from Simon Frost in a 3-3 stalemate.

Southern Region Women’s Division 1 South

EVERSLEY & CALIFORNIA fired five past New Milton Town in a stunning away display.

The vital win put the

Boars three points clear of bottom club Milton United after their third win of the season.

Thames Valley Women’s Division 3S

S4K BERKS COUNTY continued their surge at the top with a last-minute winner away at Taplow United.

S4K took the lead when Megan Cox latched onto a rebound after the goalkeeper’s save and put her team ahead.

Michelle Melia connected sweetly with a volley that flew into the top corner to put the Fawkes two goals to the good.

Taplow fought back and squared the game up with two goals in the secondhalf.

But Cox ensured the Fawkes collected all three points with her second strike fo the game to snatch a dramatic win in the dying embers of the game.

FOOTBALL

WOODWARD PENALTY STOP HELPS SUMAS EARN POINT Windsor 2 Sumas 2

WOKINGHAM & EMMBROOK picked up a point on the road with a draw against Windsor.

The rain abated for the game and both sides started briskly with an early free kick taken by Charley Tuttle led to a double header which reached the keeper, Sam Butcher, with an easy save.

When the counter attack reached Sumas’ area, Sean Woodward made a near impossible save from Windsor’s attempt to score early.

Wokingham & Emmbrook FC Picture: Andrew Batt Tuttle’s free kick found a head but the ball went over the Windsor crossbar.

Returning, Windsor brought a fine save by Woodward from a corner.

Windsor went forward

and earned a corner kick from which Woodward made a collection at turf level. In the 33rd minute, Danny Horsecroft then gave the hosts the lead when he got his head to a corner.

Approaching, still at the brisk pace as at the start, and created an opportunity to equalise from a corner kick then they took another from the other side.

In the 53rd minute, Raggett ran rings round Windsor players and sent a cross which Dan Collier was able to head down into the net to equalise.

Sumas’ substitution 55th minute saw Alan Bossman replace James Clark. HolderSpooner took a free kick for Sumas and Windsor followed that with a free kick but the shot taken from the cross went high over the crossbar.

Windsor went in the

68th minute and a tackle gave them a penalty.

Woodward, at full stretch, saved the surface level shot from the spot.

Windsor took a free kick and soon Lindell Stewart had the ball in the net to level up the scores in the 83rd minute. Tuttle took a free kick but it sailed over the bar and Bossman shot and missed on the dot of full-time.

Windsor tagged a last minute attack but a forward was offside.

The teams shared a point apiece and not much difference in the table.

dramatic tie that saw Tia Primmer score an 83rd minute winner in an entertaining 3-2 contest.

The meeting between the teams in the WSL earlier in the season ended with the points shared after a 2-2 draw.

West Ham raced into a two-goal lead when Lisa Evans and Grace Fisk netted in the first-half.

The Royals came fighting back to salvage a point after Abbey-Leigh Stringer’s own

goal gave them hope with 20 minutes left to play.

Deep into stoppage time, Emma Harries popped up with a vital leveller to give Kelly Chambers’ team a point to take back to Berkshire.

The Irons and the Royals met in the FA Cup back in 2019 in the semi-finals when the East London side booked their place in the final with a nail biting penalty shootout win after a 1-1 draw.

WOMEN’S FA CUP PREVIEW

ROYALS TO HOST HAMMERS IN FA CUP CLASH READING FC Women are hoping to continue their journey in this season’s FA Cup when they host West Ham United on Sunday.

The Royals had been in magnificent form with five straight wins in the Women’s Super League prior to their final game before the international break.

They suffered a heavy 4-1 loss at Brighton & Hove Albion in a disappointing display.

However, they sit in sixth in the table after their previous purple patch which lifted them up the table.

West Ham are just one place and two points behind the Royals in the standings having played one more match.

The Hammers have been in mixed form in the league with two wins and two defeats from their last four.

They put three past Everton without reply and

picked up a 2-1 away win at Aston Villa but were beaten 2-0 by Chelsea and lost 3-0 at Leicester City prior to the break.

In the fourth-round of the cup, Olli Harder’s team got past Sheffield United in an away tie.

Melisa Filis and Dagny Brynjarsdottir scored and a brace from Claudia Walker helped them dispatch of the Blades in a 4-1 victory.

Meanwhile, the Royals got past Brighton in a

From the middle

Dick SawdonSmith

Cards are only communication

T

HERE are times when sports presenters on television, show their lack of knowledge about refereeing and the Laws of the Game.

This was clear in certain comments about an incident in the recent Wolves v Arsenal match and the referee’s reaction to it.

It was to be truthful an unusual set of actions.

First the ball went out of play for a throw-in to Wolves.

However, as the Wolverhampton player was throwing the ball, Arsenal player Gabriel Martinell, pushed him quite vigorously causing him to fall over. Clearly unsporting behaviour, which warranted a caution and a yellow card.

His push however didn’t prevent the ball reaching another Wolves player who ran with it at his feet, towards the Arsenal goal.

The referee, Michael Oliver, decided to play the advantage and allowed play to continue.

Martinell chased after the Wolves player and on catching him up, charged him in the back, knocking him to the ground. If nothing else it was a reckless challenge.

Oliver then cautioned him for the first offence, at the throw-in and then a second yellow card for the charge in the back. This of course meant a red card and Martinell was sent off.

The TV presenter suggested that as the referee hadn’t shown the yellow card after the first offence it should be ignored.

The laws give referees the power to show red and yellow cards, but it says they are only communications. I’m sure most people know how they came about.

In a 1966 World Cup match at Wembley, the German referee couldn’t make an Argentine player understand he was being sent off.

Ken Aston, a Football League referee on duty, eventually escorted him off.

Stopping at the traffic lights on his way home, gave Ken Aston the idea how to communicate the decisions.

They are therefore not entirely obligatory.

In fact the law says that if the referee plays an advantage after an offence, which should have been cautioned, the caution must be issued at the next stoppage in play.

Also the fact that there was said to be only five seconds between the two offences is also covered as the Law says, ‘ two separate cautionable offences committed in close proximity should result in two cautions’.

However, there is a get out clause depending on what the first offence was. If it was for stopping a promising attack, but by playing the advantage the referee had allowed the promising attack to continue, he would not issue a caution for the original offence.

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JOAO AND SWIFT COMBINE TO SKY BET CHAMPIONSHIP

How they rated

READING 2 BIRMINGHAM CITY 1 KARL HEIN

Made some excellent saves including one from Hernandez and another from Lyle Taylor. A freak goal prevented a clean sheet.

ANDY YIADOM

Solid defensively with a vital clearance towards the end and make a brilliant driving run into the box to win a penalty.

MICHAEL MORRISON

Lead from the back by keeping his fellow defenders in check. Showed his vast experience throughout.

TOM MCINTYRE

A confident display. Really unfortunate to have scored an own goal when the ball bounced off him and went in.

TOM HOLMES

A few shaky moments in the first-half that allowed Lyle Taylor a few chances but thankfully he didn’t punish Reading.

ANDY RINOMHOTA

He’s made a big impact since coming back into the side. Energy and control in the middle of the park.

DANNY DRINKWATER

Much improved performances in the last two matches after a long poor spell of form. Assured display alongside Rinomhota in the centre.

JOHN SWIFT

A really confident penalty that he dispatched perfectly. Etheridge wouldn’t have reached it even if he had dived the right way.

TOM INCE

Worked exceptionally hard and made an important interception in his own box in the second-half. Missed a big chance before the break.

JUNIOR HOILETT

Had some very bright moments in the first-half including a 40-yard run that drew a free-kick just outside the box.

LUCAS JOAO

Notched his fifth Championship goal of the season. Took his goal brilliantly with excellent footwork and a tidy finish outside the box.

Subs Yakou Meite 5, Dele-Bashiru n/a

8 8 7 7 7 8 7 7 7 7 7

By ANDY PRESTON apreston@wokingham.today READING FC made a winning start under interim boss Paul Ince with goals from Lucas Joao and John Swift to give them victory over Birmingham City.

Joao picked out the bottom corner to open the scoring in the 67th minute and Swift added a second not long after from the penalty spot.

The Blues set up a nail-biting finish when they scored in the 83rd minute, but the Royals held on to claim three points.

The result sees Reading win their first match at home since October as they made it back-to-back wins in the Championship.

The Royals are now eight points above the drop zone having played one game more than Derby County and two more than Peterborough United.

Unlike events off the pitch at the Berkshire club in the last few weeks, it was a quiet opening to the match at the Select Car Leasing Stadium.

The first chance of note came the way of the visitors when Lyle Taylor looked to exploit a gap in the middle of the defence and was played through by Jordan James, he opted to take his shot early but Karl Hein got down low to make a comfortable save.

An imposing run from Junior Hoilett gave Reading hope when he sprung forward, travelled 40 yards and was then fouled, which gave the home team a free-kick in a promising position.

Top scorer John Swift eyed up

Lucas Joao controls the ball

Paul Ince in the dugout for his first match

Tom Ince is fouled

Match stats Reading: Hein, Yiadom, Morrison (c),(c), McIntyre, Holmes, Rinomhota, Laurent, Swift, Ince, Hoilett, Joao Subs: Southwood, Abrefa, Bashiru, Barker, Leavy, Meite

John Swift glides past his marker Dele-

Birmingham City: Etheridge, Graham, Colin, Pedersen, Bela, Woods, Gardner, James, Bacuna, Taylor, Hernandez Subs: Jutkiewicz, Trueman, Sunjic, Bellingham, Masampu, Oakley, Campbell Goals: Lucas Joao 67’, Swift 73’ (pen), McIntyre 82’ (og)

the shot at goal but got too much power and height on his effort that flew over.

Lee Bowyer’s side threatened when Jeremie Bela fizzed a dangerous ball across the face of goal that just evaded Taylor’s stretched right boot.

Reading created their best chance of the half moments later when Tom Ince had the chance to mark his father’s first game in charge with the opening goal when he arrived to meet Hoilett’s

The Royals earned their first hom excellent cross, but his first time connection went over the top.

The half came to a close with neither side breaking the deadlock with more openings for the away team.

The Blues started the stronger of the two teams after the restart and worked a chance in the 53rd minute when James drilled a low shot at goal that was smartly stopped by Hein.

Taylor then went close for the visitors moments after when he

SKY BET CHAMPIONSHIP

JOAO’S DOUBLE BREAKS LOSING RUN AS MANAGER DEPARTS Preston 2 Reading 3

READING FC finally ended their miserable run of form with their first win in the Championship since November in Veljko Paunovic’s final game in charge.

In a decision that was taken prior to the game, Paunovic earned three points in his last match before leaving by mutual consent.

A flying start to the match saw Lucas Joao find the net twice.

John Swift put the Royals three up after half-time, and despite a fightback from Preston with two goals, Reading held on to take the points.

Heading into the game, Reading’s dreadful run of form had left them winless in their last 12 games in all competitions.

Reading started quickly and had the lead inside two minutes when a scramble in the box following john Swift’s cross fell to the feet of Joao who tucked the ball in from 12 yards.

Seventeen minutes later, Joao had the ball in the back of the Preston net again with a classy finish.

After receiving Swift’s pass, Joao strode towards goal, breezed past a defender and then planted a shot into the top left-hand corner beyond the reach of Preston goalkeeper Daniel Iversen.

Just 10 minutes into the second-half, Reading had a third goal as Swift capped off his excellent display by getting on the scoresheet.

He linked up effectively again with Joao when he found a pocket of space in the Preston box and curled a delightful finish past the keeper to claim his 10th Championship goal of the campaign.

The hosts came roaring back after a terrible first hour to make Reading’s task of holding onto the points much trickier.

Daniel Jonhson broke behind the Royals back line and found the net via a deflection off Morrison to give the Lilywhites a

glimmer of hope just moments after Swift had put Paunovic’s side three goals to the good.

Preston reduced the deficit with just over 15 minutes remaining with a scrappy goal that saw Aston Villa loanee Cameron Archer apply the finishing touch from close range to get past Karl Hein.

Scott Sinclair had a late chance to punish the Royals and complete an impressive comeback only to fire his shot over the target. That proved to be enough to see out the match as the Royals ended their abhorrent run of form.

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O GIVE INCE WINNING START Andy Yiadom is fouled in the box

From the Tilehurst End Olly Allen

The end of the line for Pauno

R Junior Hoilett dribbles forward Joao scores

Reading win a penalty Lucas Joao breaks the deadlock

me win since October Pictures: Steve Smyth tried to pick out the far corner with but missed by just a few inches.

Kristian Pedersen could count himself fortunate to have avoided a second yellow card when he prevented Lucas Joao from breaking through.

There was action in both boxes from Tom Ince who tracked back to make a vital interception in his own box before his team broke forward in a move that ended with his deflected shot being caught by Etheridge.

The deadlock was broken in the 67th minute when Joao picked up the ball outside the area, worked

Tom McIntyre strides forward

Danny Drinkwater picks a pass

some space for a shot and clipped a pinpoint effort past Etheridge and inside the post which nestled into the bottom right corner.

It took just five more minutes for Reading to double their lead when they were awarded a penalty.

Andy Yiadom was tripped in the box after making a penetrating run down the right.

Swift took the spot-kick and confidently dispatched it into the right corner to net his 11th Championship goal of the season.

Hernandez used his quick feet to find space in the box but again was thwarted by a strong save from Hein.

Birmingham set up a nervy final 10 minutes to the match when they clawed back a goal in the 82nd minute.

Hein turned the ball on to the post but the rebound took an unfortunate deflection off McIntyre to find its way into the net.

The tension began to build around the SCL when Taylor went through and chipped the ball over Hein, but his shot which was travelling wide of the post was hacked away by Yiadom.

Reading held on to make it consecutive league victories to ease their relegation fears.

PREVIEW

RELEGATION BATTLE CONTINUES AWAY AT BLACKPOOL READING FC continue their fight against Championship relegation when they travel away to Blackpool on Saturday.

The Tangerines are 15th in the Championship table after a disappointing run of form that has seen them collect just one win from their last five league matches.

Last time out, they had to settle for a point away at Cardiff City after Joel Bagan cancelled out Marvin Ekpiteta’s opener.

Neil Critchley’s team were beaten in dramatic circumstances in their last match at Bloomfield Road against

promotion hopefuls Bournemouth.

Blackpool were a goal in front for the majority of the game after Josh Bowler’s goal but they surrendered the points after conceding two late goals to the visitors.

Jamal Lowe levelled in the 86th minute before a last-gasp winner from Siriki Dembele to steal all three points.

Blackpool are on 42 points from 32 games prior to their midweek match against Queens Park Rangers.

Blackpool have struggled for

goals and have scored 35, which is four less than Reading despite their 16-point gap difference in the table.

They have however let in just 38 goals compared to Reading’s leaky defensive record of 62 from 32 matches.

On their visit to the Select Car Leasing Stadium in October, Blackpool returned with the points following a stunning comeback.

The Royals went two goals ahead with early goals from Scott Dann and Tom Dele-Bashiru as they went into half-time with a lead.

However, Blackpool enjoyed a clinical second-half display which saw them deservedly take the points after goals from Owen Dale and a brace from Jerry Yates to complete the comeback.

Reading did have a strong record prior to their defeat to Blackpool earlier in the season with five games unbeaten against Saturday’s opponents.

Yates is level on goals with Shayne Lavery with seven in the goalscoring charts for Critchley’s men.

EADING never do things the ordinary way. Despite calls for Veljko Paunovic to be sacked throughout the month of January, the Serb survived a run of eight consecutive defeats.

There was no club statement after the FA Cup exit at the hands of Kidderminster Harriers. No corner flag after the record 7-0 home defeat to Fulham.

No, confirmation of Paunovic’s departure was made after a brilliant 3-2 away win at Preston North End, the team’s first victory in 13 matches since the end of November.

The decision had been made before the game, but the bizarre timing just about summed up the chaotic nature of the club.

Everyone can agree that it was the right decision to relieve Paunovic of his duties and that it has been a long time coming.

The team’s form under him looked unsalvageable for some time, they were conceding goals at a rate of knots and, by some reports, the players had lost faith in him.

There was only one direction that Reading were heading under Paunovic and that was League One. His relationship with supporters had reached the point of no return and the longer he remained in the job, the more fractious, toxic and angry the fanbase became.

It means that his departure came as a huge relief for everyone involved. Fans remain rightly up in arms about other behindthe-scenes issues that blight the club, but Paunovic’s exit is a step in the right direction.

For the manager himself, you only need to watch his final interview after winning at Preston to see how he feels like a weight has been lifted. He had a friend from Spain in the stands to provide support, as his wife had become concerned for his mental health.

Time should be healer for Paunovic. I hope that once we are a year or two from here, then the work he did will be fully appreciated.

If you are going to criticise the way his time at the club end, you should also praise how magnificently it began. Twenty two points from a possible 24 to open the 2020-21 season was the joint-best start to a Championship season and was even more remarkable as Paunovic had only taken his first in-person training session the week before the first game.

Reading dropped off and lost their place in the top six but a seventh place finish was beyond anyone’s expectations.

Paunovic was dealt a tougher hand than any of his predecessors – working through a pandemic, playing almost his entire first season in front of no supporters, dealing with constant restrictions in the transfer market and being handed a six-point deduction for things that happened before he even arrived at the club.

Ultimately he was too out of his depth to deal with all of these issues at the same time, but then what manager wouldn’t be?

It was never plain sailing (or rowing), but he was hard-working, proud and ultimately as frustrated as the rest of us.

Go well, Pauno.

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HOCKEY ROUND-UP

READING LADIES SMASH SEVEN IN WIN South Berks celebrate after scoring a goal Pictures: Steve Smyth

By ANDY PRESTON apreston@wokingham.today

Women’s National Division 1 South READING smashed five past Canterbury in an impressive away day to claim three points.

The 5-1 success keeps Reading within touching distance of league leaders Sevenoaks, who have a twopoint lead at the top,

SOUTH BERKSHIRE 2s earned the points with a home win over Oxford University 3s.

They converted four past their opponents without reply to collect three points.

South Central Women’s Thames 1

South Berks Mens 6s v Amersham & Chalfont 7s Hogg doubled the score to ensure the victory.

South Berks are now just three points behind fourth-placed SONNING 5s with a game in hand.

Men’s National Division 1 South

SOUTH BERKSHIRE 4s climbed up to fifth with a win and clean sheet over Amersham & Chalfont 6s.

Maxine Nienaber put South Berks ahead after 20 minutes, and 10 minutes after Sophie Taylor-

READING lost out in a 4-2 home loss to Team Bath Buccs.

South Central Men’s Premier 1 READING 2s were on the end of a heavy defeat away at Oxford

READING FC UNDER 23’S

BACK IN THE HUNT: EX-PLAYER RETURNS TO COACHING SET-UP

Hunt joined up with the squad at Bearwood Park to take training on Sunday morning as he embarked on his first day as the new ‘Senior Professional Development Coach’.

Academy manager Michael Gilkes said: “Noel was a great player for this club, possessing all the attributes we want to instill in our young players within the Academy.

“He is an exemplary role model for our aspiring youngsters, a coach of the highest calibre and, put simply, a fantastic character to welcome back to our club.”

Hunt became a fans favourite during his five-year spell as a player with Reading.

FOOTBALL Sky Bet Championship Preston 2-3 Reading Isthmian South Central Westfield P-P Binfield Combined Counties Premier North Edgware Town 2-0 Reading City Windsor 2-2 Sumas

He netted 33 league goals in 145 games for the Berkshire club and became renowned for his superb work ethic up top.

He also played a vital role in Brian McDermott’s Championship-winning side in 2011/12 that won promotion back to the Premier League. He played 41 times in that campaign, scoring eight times.

The 39-year-old former Republic of Ireland international started his coaching career in 2018 when he was appointed at assistant manager at Swindon Town.

He took caretaker charge at the Robins in December 2020 after Richie Wellens left the club.

Hunt then joined up with Wellens again in May 2021 as part of his coaching team at Doncaster Rovers.

South Berks Ladies 2s v Oxford South Berks Ladies 2s defend University Ladies 3s against Oxford Thames 4 University.

They shipped five goals without SOUTH BERKSHIRE 6s reply in a disappointing defeat. maintained their outstanding form to stay at the top of the division South Central Men’s They got the better of Amersham Division 4 & Chalfont 7s with a 3-1 win.

That made it 13 wins from 15 SONNING 3s picked up three games to give them a nine-point points on the road with a win at lead at the top.

Berkhamstead & Hemel Hempstead 2s.

Sonning are in sixth on 21 points Friendly after their 4-1 away success.

SOUTH BERKSHIRE SUPERVETS hit five past Southampton South Central Men’s Cockburns in a friendly contest.

TABLE TENNIS

SONNING SPORTS B STEP TOWARDS PROMOTION SONNING Sports B took another step towards promotion from division 4 after winning the Sonning Sports derby against their C team 8-2.

Himanshu Pasbola was the star by putting in a player of the match performance and gaining a three straight maximum. Cris Reynolds also won all three.

SONNING COMMON & PEPPARD F shared the spoils with OUR LADY OF PEACE F with Gerry Bacon winning three in straight sets Mike Casserley grabbing a draw for the Commoners with a 14-16 11-9 11-3 11-5 win against James Smith.

In the quarter finals of the Team Handicap Cup SONNING COMMON & PEPPARD B won 5-4 at TIDMARSH B in an exciting match.

Tidmarsh led 3-1, only for Sonning Common to level at 4-4 with good wins from Nigel Maltby (-4) against Mike Aistrop 21-17 18-21 21-17 and Brian Meheux (Scr) over the same player 21-15 12-21 21-16.

Nigel then clinched the win in a long defensive tussle with Chris Webb (+7) 21-14 21-14.

SONNING COMMON B go on to face SONNING COMMON D in the semifinals.

The other quarter final played this week was between MILESTONE A and SONNING COMMON & PEPPARD F. Milestone had a strong 6–3 win with Zoltan Kelemen winning all three of his games.

This now takes Milestone A through to the semi-final where they will meet SPRINGFIELD.

Combined Counties Division One Cove v Eversley & California London Samurai Rovers v Woodley United Thames Valley Premier League Finchampstead v Richings Park Maidenhead Town v Burghfield Reading City U23’s v Wraysbury Wargrave v Reading YMCA Thames Valley Division One Eldon Celtic v SB Phoenix FC Imaan Lions v Slough Heating Laurencians Hurst v Holyport Reserves

Thames Valley Premier League Westwood Wanderers 3-3 Woodley United Royals

Thames Valley Division Two Hurst Reserves v AFC Winkfield Richings Park Reserves v Berks County Swords SB Phoenix Reserves v Twyford & Ruscombe

Thames Valley Division Two Hurst Reserves 0-0 Twyford & Ruscombe

Thames Valley Division Three Burghfield Reserves v Hambleden Reserves

Thames Valley Division Three Taplow United Reserves 2-3 Reading YMCA Rapids

Thames Valley Division Four Harchester Hawks v Farnham Royal Mavericks Henley Town Development v Finchampstead United RUGBY UNION National League One Rams v Darlington Mowden Park HOCKEY Women’s National Division 1 South Cambridge City v Reading

RUGBY UNION National League One Rams 17-5 Bishop’s Stortford

South Central Women’s Thames 3

FORMER Reading FC striker Noel Hunt has returned to the club to take up a managerial role with the under 23’s team.

Saturday, February 19

Combined Counties Division One Chalvey Sports 2-7 Berks County Woodley United P-P Hillingdon Borough

South Central Women’s Division 3

SONNING 3s recorded a clean sheet and a win in their home clash against Wycombe 3s.

Sonning netted twice and kept a shutout at the other end to add three points to their tally.

The win takes them up to third place where they are nine points behind leaders SOUTH BERKSHIRE 3s with a game in hand.

RESULTS

South West 1 East Frome 19-24 Bracknell HOCKEY Women’s National Division 1 South Canterbury 1-5 Reading

Sunday, February 20

FOOTBALL Southern Region Women’s Division 1 South New Milton Town 1-5 Eversley & California Thames Valley Women’s Division 3S Taplow United 2-3 S4K Berks County HOCKEY Men’s National Division 1 South Reading 2-4 Team Bath Buccs

Tuesday, February 22

FOOTBALL Sky Bet Championship Reading 2-1 Birmingham City Isthmian South Central Binfield 1-1 Guernsey

FIXTURES

Saturday, February 26

FOOTBALL Sky Bet Championship Blackpool v Reading Isthmian South Central Binfield v Sutton Common Rovers Combined Counties Premier North Reading City v Hanworth Villa Sumas v CB Hounslow United

South Central Men’s Division 1 Sonning v Wallingford South Central Women’s Premier 1 Sonning v Winchester South Central Men’s Premier 2 South Berkshire v Reading 2s South Central Women’s Division 1 South Berkshire v Oxford University 2s

Sunday, February 27

FOOTBALL FA Women’s Cup fifth round Reading v West Ham Cup Badshot Lea v Caversham United Mortimer v Caversham AFC Tilehurst Panthers v Wargrave Woking v Eversley & California Thames Valley Women’s Division 3S Newbury Development v Eversley & California Reserves S4K Berks County v Goring United Wargrave Development v Taplow United HOCKEY Men’s National Division 1 South Reading v Havant