Wokingham

Starting this coming Thursday (January 31), The Brambles Children’s Centre, Wokingham will be holding free stay and play sessions every Tuesday and Thursday, with toys from the Lend and Play Toy Library and Scrap Store.

Mums, dads, grandparents and carers are welcome to attend the free sessions at the centre in Budges Gardens in Wokingham, providing them with an opportunity to play with their children in a stimulating environment. There will be a range of toys to try including construction and educational toys, musical instruments, mirrors, hand puppets, and soft toys.

Belinda Barrett, Wokingham children’s centre co-ordinator, said: “Parents and carers are welcome to attend this free session, this is the first of many sessions that we hope to offer local families. It will also be a chance for local families to learn more about what is on offer at The Brambles Children’s Centre. Why not come along and join in the fun?”

Everything that can be played with at the session can also be borrowed to enjoy at home by becoming a member of the local Lend and Play Toy Library and Scrapstore. More details are available by calling (0118) 9377 6429 or by downloading an application form from the council’s website at: www.wokingham.gov.uk/toy-library.

Wokingham Borough Council

Work to ensure that two decaying oak trees do not become a threat to residents, motorists and pedestrians in Evendons Lane, Wokingham, will start this week.

Specialists will be removing two oak trees from the busy Wokingham residential area because they have become so badly diseased with the Collybia fusipes fungus, that they now pose a threat to the safety and wellbeing of people living nearby.

Following a routine tree inspection by Wokingham Borough Council, tree officers found the trees, outside number 69 and 75, had substantial decay to their roots and base areas caused by the decay fungi, Spindle Toughshank (Collybia Fusipes).

This type of fungus decays the wood of affected oak trees, leaving them liable to collapse during
high winds, therefore it is essential to remove the trees for health and safety reasons.

Work on the trees will start today (Tuesday January 29) and is expected to last four days. Temporary traffic measures will be put in place from 9.30am to 4pm so that the trees can be removed safely.

Wokingham Borough Council is aiming to replace the trees later this year during tree planting season, which starts in November, so that the character of the tree-lined street is not affected by the removal of the diseased oaks.

Cllr Simon Weeks, executive member for environment, said: “It’s always a shame to remove trees but in this case there is no alternative. Evendons Lane is a busy residential area and the two oaks are very badly decayed. However, as part of our tree management programme and in order to ensure that the street remains tree-lined we will be looking at planting new oaks once the planting season starts again in November.”

Wokingham Borough Council

More Christmas trees than ever before were recycled at Wokingham Borough Council’s free collection points earlier this month.

Throughout January Wokingham residents have been recycling their unwanted Christmas tress through the borough council’s green waste collection scheme, but on Saturday January 19, residents were able to take them along to recycling points at Wyevale Garden Centre in Hare Hatch, Wargrave and Swallowfield Village Hall in Swallowfield Street, Swallowfield

More than 10 tonnes of Christmas tree green waste was recycled on the day across the two sites – beating last year’s high of 7.5 tonnes.

The Wokingham borough council’s executive member for environment, Cllr Simon Weeks, was on hand at the Swallowfield recycling point to see the green work in action. He was joined by the council’s waste and recycling manager Peter Baveystock and Celia Adams, clerk of Swallowfield Parish Council, as well as staff from SITA, the council’s recycling contractor.

Cllr Weeks, said: “I’m really pleased so many residents from throughout Wokingham Borough recycled their trees on Saturday and have been recycling their green festive waste through the green waste collection scheme.

“It’s good news that even more waste was collected last Saturday than in previous years and I hope that throughout the year residents continue to recycle as much of their waste as possible. If we can compost and recycle green waste this reduces landfill charges and taxes, which in turn helps minimise costs for the council and its residents.”

The council is planning to extend its green waste collection scheme to include even more houses this year. The scheme already covers 52,000 homes and it is hoped this will be increased by another 1,000 by spring 2008. A new household waste and recycling centre, on the former Smallmead civic amenity site, opened this month and is also able to recycle a range of Wokingham residents’ rubbish, including green waste.

Wokingham Borough Council

There’s no excuse to forget those worthy new year resolutions as the Wokingham Learning Disability Partnership Board is hosting a special Healthy Lifestyle Day open to everyone next month at the Acorn Community Centre on Thursday February 7, from 10am to 3pm.

Wokingham People with learning difficulties are encouraged to bring their family, carers, support workers, and friends to join in the fun at the centre off Fernlea Drive, Woosehill, as well as anyone else who fancies learning some new healthy tips.

The day will include plenty of health related practical sessions such as gardening, an indoor gym, T’ai Chi, healthy games, a reflexology taster, music and movement. All these are free to attend and people can drop in anytime.

Plus there will be lots of information on how to keep healthy, ideas on what to do and where to go, a health pledge wall and a fun ‘health quiz’ with a prize. And the Rainbow Café will be selling light and healthy refreshments.

More from Sara John in the Wokingham Community Team for People with Learning Disabilities on (0118) 974 6832.

Wokingham Borough Council

A major improvement scheme to tackle congestion around junction 11 of the M4 is due to be discussed by Wokingham Borough Council’s executive committee on Thursday January 31, heralding a further step forward for the Reading Borough Council led project.

The Wokingham council’s decision-making executive will be looking at a report on the project next week. If the report is approved it will ensure work is able to start as soon as possible, if funding for the multi-million pound improvement scheme is released to Reading Borough Council by the Department for Transport (DfT) and a contractor is appointed.

In January 2007 the DfT granted conditional approval for an improvement scheme at the busy motorway junction and the adjoining A33 Mereoak intersection in Shinfield.

The DfT’s funding is set at a maximum £62.61million. Reading Borough Council, which has been working with Wokingham Borough Council on the project, is to make an application for full funding in February 2008, with a final decision to be made by government ministers in March 2008.

At its meeting next week Wokingham Borough Council’s executive will be considering the report which includes:

· Wokingham Borough Council’s roles and responsibilities throughout the construction work
· Approving a communications strategy on the project with key stakeholders including residents, commuters and businesses
· Endorsing Reading Borough Council’s authority to grant a contract for the improvement works at its cabinet meeting in March subject to DfT ministers’ full approval
· Allowing certain orders to go ahead, including permanent and temporary speed reductions on roads, so that work can be carried out as safely as possible and will complement the new layout.

The improvement scheme has been a long-running project that both Wokingham and Reading Borough Councils have been committed to, in a bid to tackle the congestion that blights motorists on a daily basis at both the M4 Junction 11 roundabout and adjoining A33, which runs through Shinfield.

The proposed Junction 11 improvement scheme includes the construction of a new junction around the existing one and the conversion of the existing motorway bridges to priority routes for public transport, cycles and pedestrians.

The Mereoak section includes replacing the existing roundabout with a signalised t-junction and a new signalised t- junction approximately 600 metres to the south. This will provide a safer, controlled access for drivers joining or leaving the A33 for Three Mile Cross or Grazeley.

Cllr Keith Baker, executive member for Wokingham highways and transport, said: “This improvement scheme is huge and is very important in ensuring that congestion clogging up some of the borough’s key commuter routes is tackled.

“If the scheme receives full approval from the Department for Transport it will signal a huge step forward for this project, which is why we want to be prepared now, so that work can start as soon as possible.

“The planned improvement scheme, which will take two years to complete, will make the M4 Junction 11 and surrounding A33 much safer for everyone using it, as well as increasing public transport routes and pedestrian walkways, while cutting congestion.”

Wokingham Borough Council

Two Wokingham Borough schools have showcased their information and technology (IT) skills at the national BETT show recently held in London.

Gorse Ride Junior School in Finchampstead, Wokingham and Radstock Primary School in Lower Earley played a part at the BETT show at London Olympia. BETT is the world's leading educational ICT event, attracting over 600 educational suppliers and 27,000 visitors.

Gorse Ride Junior School, Wokingham took 18 pupils from year five and six to help out on the ‘Learner Voice’ stand. The Learner Voice stand provided an opportunity for visitors to hear the views of pupils on education in the future, and on the technology they use, including texting, photoblogging and podcasting, and online voting to name just a few.

Visitors to the Learner Voice stand were able to hear the opinions of 120 pupils from Gorse Ride Junior School on a range of learning and school issues. The pupils talked to visitors about what they have been learning at Gorse Ride, and challenged them to guess the most popular responses to a range of questions that they had devised from their classmates. The challenge was to think like a ten-year-old!

Wokingham Gorse Ride Junior School has an active school council and an eco committee, run by pupils in year six with members from each class in the school. The BETT show was an exciting opportunity for visitors to ‘listen to the learner voice’, in other words, to hear learners’ own views on education. Pupils chose the questions that were important to them and created their own interactive whiteboard presentations to find out what their peers felt about issues including, what helps them to learn, homework behaviour, lunches and even whether children should be able to vote in parliamentary elections.

Deputy headteacher Lara Savory said: “The pupils were thrilled to be invited to BETT. They spoke with confidence, used the technology well and presented as if they’d been trained for television! It was a shame we couldn’t take everyone who wanted to take part – there was so much interest in the show at the school. We are very proud of those who went. Everyone was amazed the pupils were still at primary school.”

Wokingham Borough Council

Wayward pooches who give their owners the slip are more likely to be traced thanks to pioneering pet text system running across the Wokingham Borough.

Wokingham Borough Council has set up a scheme, called Dog and Bone, to alert all dog walkers in a certain area when a canine companion has gone missing nearby, so they can be on their guard if they spot the pooch.

It is believed to be the first pet text scheme in the country and works by a text message being sent to everyone in the Wokingham borough, who has registered their details with the council, when a dog is reported missing.

The Wokingham council is urging all dog walkers to come forward and register their name, mobile phone number and the general area they live so that the scheme can start working immediately.

As dog walkers as more likely to be out and about where a missing dog could be hiding, the pet text scheme could see escaped dogs being returned safely to their owners much more quickly. Currently the council relies on its animal warden to spot check the borough for missing dogs and on passers-by spotting stray animals and contacting the council.

This revolutionary idea will be a pro-active way of making sure dog walkers were alerted to the fact a pet had gone missing.

As well as tracing pets the Dog and Bone scheme has been set up to reduce the risk of stray animals causing road traffic accidents and frightening nearby residents. Stray pets can also increase the amount of fouling in an area, so reuniting them with their owner as quickly as possible will help to reduce this risk.

Mandy Dorman, the Wokingham council’s animal warden who came up with Dog and Bone pet text idea, said: “ This is a way of making sure that pet dogs, and other animals, who go missing are traced much more easily. If we send a text to make other dog walkers in the area aware that a pet has gone missing, they are more likely to keep alert and spot the animal so it can be returned safely.
“It’s a simple system but for it to work we need as many dog walkers and dog owners to come forward and register their details. All we need is a name, mobile phone number and the area they live in. All details will be kept confidential and texts will only be sent when a pet has gone missing in the borough.”

Wokingham Cllr Barrie Patman, executive member for community safety, said: “ This scheme is a new way of tracking pets that have unfortunately escaped or been stolen from their owners. We need as many people to sign up as possible because this could have real benefits to the animals, their owners and the whole community.”

Anyone who wants to register their details for the Dog and Bone scheme should call Mandy Dorman, the council’s animal warden, on (0118) 974 6356 or email environmentalhealth@wokingham.gov.uk

Wokingham Borough Council

Don’t agree to have work done by uninvited callers to your home is the clear message Wokingham Borough Council is sending to all its residents, after more than 50 people complained or enquired about cold callers last year.

The Wokingham council’s trading standards team is cracking down on rogue traders targeting people in their own home this year by promoting the message that doorstep sellers should be ignored.

In 2007 the council’s trading standards team received, on average, one complaint or enquiry each week about rogue doorstep traders.

A whole range of complaints were investigated by trading standards including:

· A resident being charged £6,500 for a job originally quoted as £850
· Workmen starting a job without consent
· Doorstep traders charging more than agreed and then forcing the consumer to a cash point to withdraw the extra money.
· Workmen carrying out poor workmanship and then not being contactable
· Taking payment in advance and not sending anyone to do the work.

With the intervention of Wokingham trading standards, and in some cases Thames Valley Police, it was possible to prevent some of the consumers from being conned out of vast sums of cash. However in some cases it was too late to trace the conman and the consumer was left out of pocket.

Wokingham Borough Council

Following the tragic death of a baby in Somerset, who died from being scalded by water from a hot water tank which had a faulty thermometer, Wokingham Borough Council is urging tenants, private landlords and homeowners to watch out for tell-tale warning signs with their water system to help prevent any further tragedies.

The Wokingham guidance, based on Health and Safety Executive alerts, has warned that particular consideration should be given to hot water systems over 10-years-old and systems where homeowners and landlords may have other reason to suspect the adequacy of the initial installation or any subsequent work.

The warning signs people in any home should look out for include:

· Excessively hot water coming out of the hot water taps
· Excessive noise or ‘bubbling’ from the hot water cylinder
· Hot water coming out of certain cold water taps (some storage cisterns also feed cold water taps in the bathroom)
· Steam/moisture in the roof space

Anyone concerned about their immersion heater or cold water storage cistern should call in a professional plumber or heating practitioner.

Cllr Barrie Patman, executive member for Wokingham community safety, said: “Councils treat their role of protecting tenants and local residents exceptionally seriously and will do everything within their power to prevent any further tragic losses of life through faulty thermostats.

“Local people with systems more than 10 years old should be aware of how to spot whether their thermostat is faulty and the warning signs that could arise and who to contact to get it fixed as quickly as possible.”

Wokingham Borough Council

Do you have piles of unwanted books at home? Would you like to enjoy a cup of coffee with friends before you buy? If the answer is yes, then why not come along to Wokingham Borough Council’s Mayor Cllr Annette Drake’s charity bring and buy book sale in aid of Building for the Future.

It is tradition that the Wokingham Mayor supports a charity during their term in office. Building for the Future is an umbrella group of five charities that already work with disabled children and their families locally: Peapods, Friends of Ryeish Green Bungalow, Mencap, Wokingham Autism Spectrum Partnership and Friends of Bridges. The charity’s vision is to provide a state-of-the-art building to cater for children’s individual needs as well as for community groups and they are aiming to raise £2.5million.

Wokingham Cllr Annette Drake said: “I do hope many local residents will be able to lend support to my bring and buy book sale – all monies raised will go to a well deserving charity. Why not spend the morning leafing through books and enjoying a cup of coffee?”

Book donations would also be gratefully received and can be dropped off at the civic offices , Shute End in Wokingham. Alternatively you can arrange collection by calling Anne Marie Bonwick or Ruth Collins on 0118 974 6004 or 974 6007.

Wokingham Borough Council

St James’ Finchampstead Handbell Ringers will this week (January 26) receive official thanks for taking their music to the local community from Wokingham borough council Mayor Cllr Annette Drake.

After each main Wokingham council meeting, the Mayor usually presents flowers, or an alternative gift, to a person, group or organisation that has given good service to the community. To mark the council meeting this month (January), a gift will be presented to St James’ Finchampstead Handbell Ringers at a presentation on Saturday evening.

Formed in September 2005, St James’ Finchampstead Handbell Ringers currently has 14 members aged between 50 and 87 years old. The handbell ringers first visited a local care home back in December 2005 and the group were amazed at the impact their music had on the older people. The team have continued to make visits to older people at Christmas time.

And on Saturday they will be launch their ‘Take it from Here 2008’ campaign which aims for the group to visit at least one care home, day centre, or sheltered housing each month.
Research has shown that music therapy maintains or improves the wellbeing of those who have learning disabilities, have had strokes, mental illness or some form of dementia, as well as frail older people. The benefits include increased participation, social interaction and alertness; reduced agitated behaviour; reduced depressive symptoms and improved speech.

Wokingham Cllr Annette Drake, Mayor, said: “St James’ Finchampstead Handbell Ringers make a difference to the lives of older people across the borough. The group encourages older people to have a go, join in and ring the bells. They have an aim to become a national organisation and I wish them lots of success in this quest. I am delighted to honour their work with an award this month."

Founder and team leader of the group Meg Hostler said: “We are delighted to receive this award from the Mayor. Our greatest asset is our members. We each share a single passion, the love of music expressed through handbells, and each one of us is totally committed to this project.”

Wokingham Borough Council

Putting customers first is the over-arching aim of Wokingham Borough Council’s far-reaching Customer First programme which aims to improve customer satisfaction through a major overhaul of how the council’s hundreds of services are accessed by residents and other service users.

Leading the Wokingham project is executive member of corporate services Cllr Rob Stanton who said: “Customer First will fundamentally change the way the council works. A key element of this programme of change is to create a customer service centre that would improve overall customer satisfaction by giving customers choice in the way and the times that they are able to access our services.

“We are a customer service organisation and bringing front line customer service staff together and improving their skills and knowledge on the whole spectrum of council services will provide a more consistent quality service.”

Operation of the Wokingham Customer Service Centre (CSC) would be based on first time resolution of customers’ requests, including multiple queries, using high quality customer relationship and knowledge management systems. This would make the council more efficient by freeing-up skilled staff in the ‘back-office’ from routine calls to get on with their jobs and to improve overall effectiveness and efficiency of service delivery.

National research indicates that around 70 to 80 per cent of calls to councils are of a routine nature and can be dealt with at the first point of contact rather than the current practice of re-routing calls to another member of staff. Each member of the service centre staff would have access to an extensive knowledge base with solutions for many frequently asked questions (FAQs). This will help get to the nub of the customer’s query as soon as possible so that the correct solution can be offered. CSC staff would also be able to answer a wide variety of questions, eliminating the need for the customer to make multiple enquiries and to deal with several staff.

Currently, up to 20 per cent of people calling Wokingham council are unable to get through as the line is either engaged or the staff member is away from their desk. The CSC would solve this problem and clear guidelines for response times would be published.
“It would also ensure consistency of not only the speed of response but also the quality of that response. And it would make the council more efficient and will, therefore, contribute towards the priority of sound finances and low council tax increases,” said Cllr Stanton.

Self-service through the website and locally accessible services such as public kiosks in libraries and other public buildings across the Wokingham borough is a key theme of the Customer First Programme with extended service hours using the online solutions. “We are also proposing, later in the programme, the use of DigiTV, which would allow residents to access our services through their television sets. All in all we would be delivering a service to our customers that is more convenient and fits in with their lifestyles,” said Cllr Stanton.

“And I very much hope Customer First gets the green light when it is considered by the council’s decision-making executive when it meets on January 31,” said Cllr Stanton.

Helping to spearhead this important and innovative change programme, the council’s chief executive Susan Law said: “Customer First is not just about a contact centre but will set the scene for the whole way Wokingham Borough Council is going to work in the future. Customer First means shaping and configuring all our processes, structures and procedures to place the customer at the centre of everything we do – not our organisational convenience. Customer First means empowered staff who can make common sense decisions to sort the matter out for the customer and will provide a first class service to the residents of the borough.”

Wokingham Borough Council

A scheme to reduce motoring misery by strengthening Wokingham council’s powers to coordinate roadworks, is due to be discussed by Wokingham Borough Council’s decision-making executive on Thursday January 31.

The executive will decide whether to apply to the secretary of state for permission to run one of the first permit schemes in the country for all future roadworks in the Wokingham Borough, at its meeting next week.

If the executive gives the go-ahead and the proposal is approved by the Department for Transport, any company or organisation wishing to carry out work on the highways would need to get the council’s permission before starting any work. It would be one of the only roadwork permit schemes to be operational in the UK.

Currently companies needing to carry out work on the borough’s roads are only required to tell the council it will be doing work, which can make it difficult for the council to manage the road network effectively.

The permit system would give the council the ability to make companies work together and carry out their work on the roads at the same time. The council could also set the terms and conditions, time and nature of the work to ensure roads are managed as effectively as possible and disruption to road users is kept to a minimum.

If the executive agrees to apply to the Department for Transport for approval in April 2008 a consultation would be undertaken with utility companies and other interested parties.

If it is approved, the scheme could be in place and running across the Wokingham Borough by October 2008.

Cllr Keith Baker, executive member for Wokingham highways and transport, said: “The permit scheme would allow Wokingham Borough Council to take control of what roadworks happen and when, so that motorists aren’t disrupted time and again on the same stretch of road.

“It would give us the opportunity to coordinate all roadworks so that a road isn’t dug up by one company one week and then dug up by a different company just weeks later. If this scheme goes through it could have major benefits for all road users around the borough by reducing unnecessary congestion and disturbance.”

Wokingham Borough Council

Sat 2 Aren’t Birds Brilliant RSPB Walk

Morning stroll around Dinton Pastures, meet main car park at 9am. £1

 

Sat 9 Keephatch Work Party

Practical conservation, meet at pond, Willowherb Close, Keephatch, 10am-1pm

           

Sun 10 Heathlake Work Party

Ranger-led practical task on this Site of Special Scientific Interest, meet main car park off  Nine Mile Ride, 10am-1pm

           

Sun 10 Friends of Lavell’s Lake Bird Walk

Morning stroll around Lavell’s, meet Sandford Lane car park at 9am. £1

           

Sat 16 Junior Rangers Wildlife Watch Group, Rubbish Fun

Wildlife Club for 8-12 year olds. Learning about rubbish and how to use old drinks cans and bottles to make something new and useful!

Dinton Pastures, 10am-12noon. £2

 

Mon 18 to Fri 22 Card Making at California

Card making activities, including Mother’s Day Cards, meet at the café at California, drop in anytime, £1.50

 

Mon 18 to Fri 22 ClayMates Ceramics– Handprint Mementos

This is a great opportunity to make Mother’s Day special with hand and footprint mementos, at California Country Park Café,

Contact Jo at ClayMates on 07966 929 517

 

Fri 22 Children's Weaving Workshop

An exciting opportunity to have a go at weaving the Navajo way! Dinton Pastures, 10am-4pm, £10 per child, Children must be accompanied. Please book in advance

 

Sat 23 & Sun 24 Basket Making Course Dinton Pastures,

A relaxing, friendly weekend creating your own baskets and learning a range of traditional weaving techniques. To book, ring Christine 0118 966 2250 Cost £50 includes all materials and refreshments 10am - 4pm

           

Sun 24 Friends of Lavell’s Lake Work Party

Practical conservation, meet Sandford Lane car park at 10am

For more information please contact: Countryside Service 0118 934 2016  countryside@wokingham.gov.uk

Lynn Yardley
Countryside Ranger (Education and Interpretation)
Wokingham Borough Council Countryside Service, Dinton Pastures Country Park, Davis Street, Hurst, Berkshire RG10 0TH
Tel: 0118 9342016, Fax 0118 9341987
Taking Care of Your Countryside

After some six hours of brain-storming, debate and critique, representatives attending the ‘Key to the Gateway’ workshop on Saturday (January 19) agreed some key principles for the next stage of this development project that is set to help revitalise the Wokingham town centre.

Some 50 people attended the Wokingham workshop from a mix of local groups and organisations as well as members of the public, all of whom contributed fully. There were many challenging questions including whether any change was necessary.

Facilitated by leading independent community planner Jeff Bishop, the workshop aimed to give local Wokingham people the opportunity to explore the issues they have around the proposed redevelopment project and to agree the major principles of the scheme. And during some lively debate, the delegates evaluated three of the designs exhibited in the summer consultation, shared and discussed ideas on the design brief that should be given to the eventual developer and agreed a set of principles that will inform the community involvement as the project proceeds.

The principles that were agreed are:

1. The development to relate to and complement the Wokingham town centre. This includes ensuring that any retail element adds to and does not compete with existing retail. It also applies to other uses on the site, such as leisure. It also means that this project should be a leading edge example, setting a standard that will encourage high quality developments elsewhere in the town centre.

2. The design to take account of the local distinctiveness of Wokingham as a market town. This applies not just to the style and the character of any new buildings, but also to ensuring that Wokingham re-establishes itself as a distinctive destination for shopping, leisure and community purposes (as it used to be in market town days).

3. A Wokingham town park to be an integral part of any scheme and become a destination in its own right. There should be one clear and major open space, even if subdivided for different uses (especially children’s play). Although thought of as a town park, it should also serve nearby residents.

4. The Council to retain sufficient interest to control the implementation of the scheme and future uses. The main aim of this is to ensure quality design, appropriate mix of uses and inclusion of community facilities – and to do so over time.

5. A high standard of community involvement and participation in the design of the scheme.

The next stage of the project is for the Wokingham council:

§ to incorporate the ‘principles’ in a revised design brief.
§ to establish a forum with community representatives to assist in selecting a project partner and retaining a watching brief on the ongoing scheme design.
§ to plan the next stages of the community involvement.

Wokingham Borough Council chief executive Susan Law said: “The council is absolutely committed to working with local individuals and groups on the next stage of this project, which is vital to boosting the vitality and viability of Wokingham town centre and an exciting and progressive step for the town.

“Being a relative newcomer to Wokingham, I certainly found Saturday to be an extremely interesting and lively day. It was very useful to hear all the issues aired from all angles. Indeed, there were many issues debated and I’m very pleased agreement was reached on the fundamentals that will underpin the next stage of this important town centre project.”

Residents wanting to register their interest in being involved in future workshops should email: keytothegateway@wokingham.gov.uk by the end of February.

Wokingham Borough Council

Local residents joined Wokingham Borough Council’s mayor Cllr Annette Drake to sing in the Christmas season with traditional carols around the tree, on Friday December 21 in the Mall at the Civic Offices, Shute End in Wokingham. And this year Carols in the Mall raised £300.

Carols hosted by the Wokingham mayor are held each year and local residents are always welcome to join in the festive fun where they can enjoy a glass of mulled wine and a mince pie, and sing along to favourite Christmas carols.

This year Berkshire Maestros South Berkshire youth brass group once again provided the music, and the mayor was joined by councillors, officers and visitors for singing, mulled wine, and a collection for the mayor’s charity Building for the Future.

Building for the Future is an umbrella group of five charities that already work with disabled children and their families locally: Peapods, Friends of Ryeish Green Bungalow, Mencap, Wokingham Autism Spectrum Partnership and Friends of Bridges. The charity’s vision is to provide a state-of-the-art building to cater for children’s individual needs as well as for community groups.

The mayor said: “It was a wonderful way to start Christmas. The young musicians are extremely talented and it was great to see everyone having a good time. Their interpretation Bohemian Rhapsody was especially good!”

Wokingham Borough Council

Responsible driving saves lives – and the For My Girlfriend (FMG) campaign has been bringing this message home to young drivers in the Wokingham Borough since 2005.

This year the Wokingham campaign, which will peak in the run up to St Valentine’s Day, asks young people to ‘take responsibility when driving’ and brings home graphically the potentially terrible consequences for drivers and passengers when things go wrong.

Wokingham Borough’s youngsters will see posters showing a team of fire fighters and paramedics attempting to free a girl from a crashed car with the headline: ‘If you don’t want to see this many blokes around your girl…take responsibility when driving’.

Valentine cards will be distributed to schools, pubs and clubs and other places popular with young people. The cards look romantic on the outside, but inside carry the campaign’s hard-hitting message.

Executive member for community safety Cllr Barrie Patman says: “Through this hard-hitting campaign we are reminding young people of the terrible dangers and consequences when things go wrong on the road. More young females aged 17-19 years are killed or seriously injured while travelling as passengers in cars than as drivers, so at this romantic time of year we are using the FMG campaign to ask young male drivers to take special care of their female passengers – and to point out the particular dangers that young girls face as passengers.”

Wokingham Borough Council

From the Okavango Delta in Botswana to Lake Baikal in Russia, and from Uluru in Australia to the Krubera cave in Georgia, primary school pupils in the Wokingham borough will be experiencing the natural wonders of the globe this year with an innovative new scheme from Wokingham Borough Council, being piloted at Emmbrook Primary School.

Called Active First, the scheme encourages Wokingham children to walk to school, which will improve their health and help to conserve the world’s resources. Participants learn about the world’s most amazing and endangered natural wonders at the same time.

When Active First pupils walk or cycle to school, they are able to gradually collect 50 different cards depicting natural wonders all over the planet. They also receive stamps on their own map of the world, showing their route across the globe as they walk their way to greater understanding of the world’s most spectacular sites and precious wildlife.

Wokingham Borough Council’s school transport advisor Eddie Dolan said: “The world is filled with amazing natural wonders which are at risk due to damaging human activities. Unnecessary car use is very damaging to the environment and Active First rewards children for walking or cycling and reducing car use. They also get to learn about other countries and cultures at the same time.

“To get a stamp they have to walk at least 400m to school but if they live nearer than that they can always walk around the playing field when they get there. We are piloting the scheme this term with a route of 50 natural wonders, so a child who walks to school nearly ever day should be able to complete the route in a term. If the scheme is a success we’ll expand it to other areas.”

Executive member for Wokingham environment Simon Weeks said: “The health benefits to children of walking or cycling to school are well known. Active First could prove to be an excellent incentive for more parents and children to find ways to fit walking to school into the daily plan and leave the car behind. I hope many more schools will soon be involved and that the children will enjoy collecting the cards with our planet’s natural wonders on them.”

For further information about Active First, teachers and parents can contact the school travel advisor on (0118) 974 6297 or at transportplanning@wokingham.gov.uk

Wokingham Borough Council

History will be brought to life for young people in the Wokingham borough in an innovative project funded by a £25,000 Heritage Lottery Fund grant and being launched this month.

The Clothes Talk project will give local Wokingham young people the chance to create ‘video fashion flashbacks’ and explore the fads and clothing of past generations – from the kipper ties and colossal collars of the 1970s to the bodices and bloomers of the Victorian age – which form part of the Berkshire Costume Service’s collection.

The inspiration for Clothes Talk came from a young person volunteering at the Costume Service speculating what it would be like if the dresses and uniforms stored there could tell their stories. This led the borough council’s costume service to develop the Clothes Talk project.

The Wokingham young people will create their own videos around separate vintage items of clothing and accessories from the costume service. Projects could range from studying the history of uniforms or top hats to looking at changing shapes and sizes of women’s underwear – the only limit will be the young people’s imagination.

Participating young people will develop their projects and skills, supported by Real Time Video, an educational charity specialising in participatory arts projects. Berkshire Record Office will supply additional expertise in seeking out historical information such as maps or old photographs of shop fronts or fashions. The young people’s work will be brought together as multi-media exhibition and DVD.

Thousands of historical costumes are available for hire from the Berkshire Costume Service. There are more than 100 genuine period pieces – some dating back to the 19th Century –which will form the basis for the Clothes Talk projects.

Wokingham Arts and culture development manager Trish Steinhardt said: “Clothes Talk lets young people discover how vintage clothes can tell stories about the past. By using video, this discovery is easy and fun, and can result in an Arts Award for participating young people. We are grateful to the Heritage Lottery Fund for supporting Clothes Talk and look forward to working with lots of young people from across the Borough. To get involved contact the Millennium Volunteers at www.millenniumvolunteers.gov.uk.”

Heritage Lottery Fund South East England manager Sheena Vick said: “This is an imaginative use of antique costumes to engage the interest of young people in heritage and, particularly, the changing roles of men and women in society. It will introduce the young participants to historical research and use modern means of presentation to put their discoveries before a wide audience locally.”

Costumes from the Berkshire Costume Service, at 3 Hogwood Lane Industrial Estate in Weller Drive, Finchampstead, are available for hire by schools, drama groups and individuals who need something for a fancy dress party. The service is open on Mondays and Tuesdays from 9.30am to 5pm and Thursday from 9.30am to 6pm and visits are by appointment only. To arrange a time call the service on 0118 973 4796.

Executive member for community development Wokingham Cllr Dianne King said: “This is an exciting idea and I am looking forward to seeing what the young people come up with. Clothes Talk promises to be a great way to use of the treasure trove that is kept at the costume service.”

The service relies on volunteers and anybody keen on becoming involved can contact the council’s volunteers’ service on 0118 974 6263 or email: volunteer@wokingham.gov.uk.

The project will be officially launched at 4pm on Thursday January 31 at the Berkshire Costume Service, when young people will join representatives from the Heritage Lottery Fund, Real Time, Berkshire Records Office and the borough council.

Wokingham Borough Council

A snap happy resident has captured the Wokingham borough’s natural heritage and wonderful countryside with a close up of a Dunnock bird in the Wokingham Wildscapes competition.

Bill Watts, from Earley, scooped the top spot in the annual photography competition, which was run by Wokingham Borough Council’s countryside service, with his snap of the bird, also known as a hedge sparrow, perching on a tree at Lavell’s Lake in Dinton Pastures Country Park.

More than 220 photographs of sunsets, birds, wildlife, trees and flowers were all submitted as part of the competition but it was Mr Watt’s shot of the Dunnock which took first prize, when the winners were selected by the countryside service on Thursday (January 10).

A singing wren, captured by Wokingham resident Ron Simpson near Black Swan Lake in Dinton Pastures, took second prize and rays of autumn sunlight encasing Joel Park was the third place photograph, which was taken by Rodney Hart from Wokingham.

One of the winning photographs will be featured on the front-cover of Wokingham countryside service’s annual What’s On guide, when it is created this spring. The top three photographs and nine runner-up pictures will be displayed in the reception area of the Council’s Civic Offices in Shute End, Wokingham, in April and afterwards will be put up at the Dragon Fly Café in Dinton Pastures for park-lovers to enjoy.

Lynn Yardley, Wokingham countryside ranger who organised the competition, said: “It’s always difficult picking the winners from such a wonderful selection of photographs but the beauty of the Dunnock was captured so well by Mr Watts that we had to award it the top spot.

“I’d like to thank everyone who took part because there were some really stunning scenes sent in as part of the competition.”

Cllr Simon Weeks, executive member for environment, added: “I was really impressed by all the entries, we have some very talented photographers in the borough who captured some simply wonderful and rare sights.

“Yet again this competition has shown just how lucky we are in the Wokingham borough to have such a diverse range of wildlife and landscape, which is available for everyone to enjoy.”

Wokingham Borough Council

Sporting competitors from across the south east will be getting on their bikes and pushing their fitness to the limit at a Woodley park on Sunday January 20.

Ashenbury Park, which is maintained by Wokingham Borough Council, will be the venue for this year’s final round of the Wessex Cyclo Cross League, which will see between 60 and 80 cross country cyclists race around the park to secure victory.

The park, which is off Tippings Lane, will provide a new course and challenge for the cyclists, many of whom are members of British Cycling and have pedalled their way around a host of courses in the south east, to get to the final round of the league.

A free junior race will be held from 10am for under 12s at the park, while under 16s will push off at 10.30am and the final round for adults will start at 11.30am. All races will finish by 12.30pm.

Wokingham has a variety of parks and open spaces that the public can request to use for major events including sports races, family fun days, fetes, and corporate team building events.

The council’s parks and open spaces team hopes this biking competition will encourage more people to use the borough’s parks for a variety of sporting, corporate and social events.

Cllr Simon Weeks, executive member for Wokingham environment, said: “We are very fortunate in the Wokingham Borough to have a great variety of parks and open spaces for everyone to enjoy.

“The parks and open spaces team welcomes ideas on how to encourage the use of our outdoor parks, especially sporting and social events, like the Wessex Cyclo League final round, which is being held at Ashenbury Park later this month, that will benefit the community.

“I’m pleased that Ashenbury Park is providing a new and challenging course for the cyclists and wish them good luck in the league. If anyone does have any other events they’d like our parks to host I’d urge organisers to get in contact with the Parks and Open Spaces Team.”

Stephen Jones, one of the organisers of the Wessex Cyclo Cross League Final Round, said: “A new course always adds an element of excitement to the event and I’m pleased that we are able to use a park in the Wokingham Borough to provide that challenge.

“The course will be cycled by people from across the area and has been designed by the Reading All Terrain Mountain Bike Association so it promises to be a very exciting final round for both competitors and spectators.”

Wokingham Borough Council

A series of improvements to Bearwood Road, Wokingham will take place in the coming months to increase safety for pedestrians, cyclists and motorists.

Wokingham Borough Council has teamed up with National Grid, which has offices on the Bearwood Road, to agree a series of safety improvements including a Vehicle Activated Sign (VAS), new road markings, better street lighting, and changing the footpath to into a footpath and cycle-path.

The safety measures are to be funded by National Grid, which agreed to work with the borough council to increase safety on Bearwood Road after an employee of the utility company was sadly killed on the road in January 2007,as he cycled from the company’s offices towards Winnersh.

There has been one other accident, which caused a slight injury, on the road since May 2005.

Wokingham borough council and National Grid have worked together for the past year to find ways to make the road safer and on Friday December 21 the council’s executive member for highways and transport, Cllr Keith Baker, agreed for a series of safety measures to be installed. Work is due to start in the next few weeks.

Road safety improvements that will be carried out on the road include:

· A new Vehicle Activated Sign (VAS) opposite St Catherine’s Church, showing the 40mph speed limit and displaying the words ‘slow down’.
· Contrasting road markings will be put across the width of the road before the speed limit changes from 40mph to 50mph in both directions.
· A change in street-lighting to highlight the entrance to the National Grid offices.
· Signs will be put up to change the footpath between the entrance to the National Grid offices and St Catherine’s Church to a joint footpath and cycle-path.

The improvements complement a package of safety enhancements to Bearwood Road and the surrounding area, recently approved by Wokingham borough council, including installing a pedestrian crossing on King Street Lane; and imposing 30mph speed limits on roads around the playing fields. Variable speed limits will also be put in place outside Bearwood Primary School later this year.

Cllr Keith Baker, executive member for highways and transport, said: “Wokingham Borough Council is committed to making the roads in the borough as safe as possible and has taken steps to ensure that the risk of anyone getting hurt on Bearwood Road and the immediate area is as minimal as possible.

“We have been working hard with the National Grid to make improvements to the road to safeguard the well-being of pedestrians, cyclist and motorists and I’m pleased that the National Grid have been supportive of the safety scheme.”

Alan Smart from National Grid added: “ The safety of our employees is extremely important to National Grid, and this is why we are pleased and keen to work with the borough council to improve road safety conditions in the Bearwood Road area to ensure our workforce can arrive and leave work in the knowledge they will be safe.”

Wokingham Borough Council

Due to severe flooding at the park and ride car park in Winnersh the main service has been suspended by Wokingham Borough Council.

Wokingham Motorists are advised that the main service, which operates from behind the Showcase Cinema and was suspended this afternoon (January 16), will not be running on Thursday (January 17) morning due to the floodwater level in the car park.

The service was suspended due to the nearby River Loddon bursting its banks and overflowing into the car park – with floodwater level reaching car windscreen level on Wednesday afternoon.

The car park will continue to be inspected by the council’s transport officers throughout Thursday and updates on the service suspension will be posted on the council’s website under the news section and on local radio.

The service to Winnersh triangle train station will continue to run throughout the suspension but motorists should be aware that it has a limited capacity.

Anyone who uses the park and ride is advised to check the council’s website and listen to local radio for information on when the full service will start running again. Alternatively park and ride users can call the park and ride’s dedicated flood information line on (0118) 989 2891 where the latest updates on the service are available.

Wokingham Borough Council

Wokingham Families with children aged under five are invited to join in a family fun day on Saturday January 26, to celebrate the launch of The Brambles Children’s Centre in Wokingham.

With £2.3million having been allocated from central government’s SureStart programme, which aims to deliver the best start in life for every child by bringing together, early education, childcare, health and family support, The Brambles Children’s Centre is one of eight scheduled to be up and running in the Wokingham Borough by spring 2008.

Wokingham Children’s centres are a new way of supporting families with children aged under five. The centres will make it easier for families to get advice, help and information they need all in one place, closer to their homes. Services will be developed for each individual centre according to demand, and local need will also determine the frequency and timing of activities.

Parents could be looking for a childminder or nursery place for their child. They might need help with a health issue or could be thinking about training or returning to work. Children’s Centres can give information on a range of family support services that are available either in the centre or within in the local area.

The Brambles Children’s Centre, located in Budges Gardens in Wokingham, has been offering services to the local community since the end of November and received official seal of approval from SureStart on December 17. And to mark this occasion, a special family fun day will be held on Saturday January 26 from 10am until 3pm.

Sessions will be running throughout the day including badge-making and smoothie-tasting as well as the opportunity to take part in ‘messy play’ with sand, water or play dough! A story-time session run by the borough council’s children’s librarian and sporting activites for children will be running throughout the day. Other educational and health organisations will also be offering help and advice.

Belinda Barrett, Wokingham children's centre co-ordinator, said: “We are very excited about our new children’s centre, which has been designed with the needs of local children in mind. We already have had many children and their families visiting and look forward to welcoming many more in the coming weeks. The family fun day promises something for everyone! I hope local families will come along to find out what’s on offer at this new centre.”

Officially opening The Brambles is Wokingham Mayor Cllr Annette Drake. She said: “Children’s centres are an exciting initiative in the borough. The centre is a one-stop shop for families with young children offering them support, help, training and social activities. The aim of the fun day is to celebrate the launch of The Brambles Children’s Centre and highlight services on offer to families and children.”

Wokingham Borough Council

Wokingham Borough Council has today (January 15) received information from central government’s communities and local government department requesting information on the number of households in the borough which remain displaced following the floods during the summer of 2007, who would wish to be considered for a further flood recovery grant.

Central government need to know the number of households currently displaced, as of January 17, who as a direct result of damage to their homes caused by the floods of June and July 2007 are living in alternative accommodation for all or part of the day.

This could include (but is not necessarily limited to) those displaced by the summer floods who:

• occupy some form of temporary accommodation secured by the council (for example, bed and breakfast);
• occupy caravans or other temporary structures (whether or not provided by the council);
• are staying with family or friends;
• occupy (or use) other forms of temporary accommodation for all or part of the day (for example, because their homes are only partially habitable due to flood damage).

Paul Turrell, Wokingham deputy chief executive, said: “Central government has given the council a very tight deadline to collate this information and we need to hear from local residents who feel they may fit the criteria by this coming Friday (January 18). At this stage there is no guarantee that Wokingham Borough Council will be allocated any additional funds from central government. However, should we be successful this information will be publicised via our website and the local media.

“It is unfortunate the government has given us little time to contact affected people. We will be trying to contact residents whose homes were internally flooded to find out whether they remain in alternative accommodation following the summer floods. In the meantime if anyone else feels they may be entitled to receive additional flood recovery grants please get in touch immediately.”

Anyone wishing to be considered for a flood recovery grant can contact the council on 0118 974 6008 / 6026 / 6350 or email: customerservice@wokingham.gov.uk by Friday January 18.

Wokingham Borough Council

A clampdown on violent crime month in Wokingham Local Police Area (LPA) has been declared a success.

The Wokingham campaign, which lasted for the whole of December, resulted in a 16 per cent reduction in Grievous Bodily Harm and Actual Bodily Harm offences compared to the same period in 2006.

In December 2006 there were 50 GBH and ABH offences and this was reduced to 42 for December 2007.

Insp Lindsay James, who led the activity around the clampdown, said: “I think it has been an extremely successful campaign. There has been a reduction in the number of offences which is a positive step and we feel we have brought in a number of initiatives that we can now develop further.

“Wokingham town centre was very busy during the festive period but there were no significant incidents.”

During the month a number of new initiatives were introduced including operations involving passive drugs dogs, having a drugs itemiser at specific locations and patrols from the mounted section.

Wokingham Insp James said: “I think the work we did with the drugs itemiser and the passive drugs dogs sent out a very clear message that drugs will not be tolerated in our venues and we will be looking at doing further operations with the passive dogs during 2008.”

Another initiative that proved successful was the supply of lollipops to revellers as they left venues.

Insp James said: “We handed out the lollipops at the end of the night to give people a sugar hit when they reach that post drinking lull and also because it can help them to calm down.

“They were very well received and after we got through the first batch we expanded the idea to hand them out as part of a small information pack that also included details about how to get home safely and taxi firm numbers.”

Thames Valley Police ~ Bracknell

Working in Wokingham Borough Council’s environmental health and community resilience teams, Steve Richardson and Dean Trussler know all about the importance of planning, training and team effort for any of the challenges nature can set down.

And now Steve and Dean are putting the planning skills and determination their jobs have taught them to the test. They are about to paddle 125 miles in the longest non-stop canoe race in the world – the Devizes to Westminster International Canoe Marathon (known as the DW) on April 22.

Wokingham Environmental health manager Steve Richardson said: “We’ve been training hard all through the winter, going out paddling first thing in the morning before work. Most paddlers take around 24 hours to complete the race and everyone has to paddle through the night. Coping with fatigue in the hours of darkness is one of the biggest challenges.”

But facing tough work late at night is a challenge Steve and his fellow paddler, community resilience officer Dean Trussler, have plenty of experience of. Both are members of the council’s out-of-hours emergency duty team, a group trained to respond to emergency situations in the community at any time of day or night.

And this is one challenge Steve and Dean are especially keen to conquer. They both enjoy canoeing and are determined to raise money for charity as well – generating sponsorship and publicity for Orchid, a charity fighting male cancer.

“We are organising as many fundraisers as we can – quizzes, odd jobs for donations, and even a free gig from the band!” says Steve whose band, ‘Encore’, is already getting busy for the fundraising effort.

Wokingham Borough Council has offered the use of their staff restaurant for free as a concert venue, and Steve and Dean are well on their way to their target amount of £3000.

The DW race operates from the Wokingham Waterside Centre in Thames Valley Park. This year is the 60th anniversary of the race and hundreds of paddlers from all over the world will spend the weekend conquering what is known to many as ‘the canoeists’ Everest’.

Wokingham Borough Council

Police are appealing for witnesses after a robbery at the Co-operative store in Wokingham on Saturday (5/1).

At around 4.45pm, four men went into the Wokingham shop with their faces covered by scarves. Three of the men jumped over the counter, whilst another verbally threatened the staff and demanded the till was opened.

The group then ran off with an undisclosed sum of cash from the till and packets of cigarettes, which they loaded into clear plastic sacks.

Wokingham Det Con Ali Bagshaw, leading the investigation, said: “This incident happened on a busy main road in the town and I am confident someone must have seen the gang make their getaway.

“Thankfully, nobody was hurt during the robbery, but we need to catch those responsible, so please get in touch with any information you may have.”

Det Con Bagshaw can be contact via the 24-hour Police Enquiry Centre on 0845 8 505 505. Alternatively, if you don’t wish to speak to police, or leave your name, contact the Crimestoppers charity on 0800 555 111.

Thames Valley Police ~ Wokingham

Residents of the Wokingham Borough have been urged to make a green start to 2008 by recycling their Christmas trees.

Now the turkey has been eaten and the festive spirit has started to dwindle, Wokingham residents can get make sure their drooping pine trees and other festive foliage is disposed of in the most environmentally friendly manner, through a variety of schemes this January.

Anyone who is part of Wokingham Borough Council’s green waste collection scheme can leave their trees out with their other garden waste for recycling on their usual green waste collection day. A list of green waste collection days is available at www.wokingham.gov.uk/recycling

For Wokingham residents who are not part of the scheme, there are two recycling points that will take Christmas trees as well as holly and mistletoe sprigs and wreaths of festive foliage for free recycling on Saturday January 19 from 8am to 11am. The recycling points are located at:

· Wyevale Garden Centre in Hare Hatch, Wargrave
· Swallowfield Village Hall in Swallowfield Street, Swallowfield

Trees left for recycling should have all their decorations removed and must be real trees – artificial and trade/ commercial Christmas trees should not be disposed of via the special drop-off points.

Alternatively trees can be taken to Longshot Lane Civic Amenity Site in Bracknell and the Smallmead Civic Amenity Site in Reading – both sites are open seven days a week from 8am to 6pm and Wokingham Borough residents can drop trees off for free recycling at either site.

Green-fingered residents, who have access to a garden shredder and want to make their gardens bloom this spring, can chop their Christmas trees up to use as mulch – which, when scattered in flowerbeds and around shrubs, creates a protective barrier and encourages vegetation and plants to grow.

More than 37 per cent of all household waste in the Wokingham borough was being recycled at the end of 2007, and simple steps like recycling Christmas trees and taking part in the council’s green waste collection scheme can help recycling grow even further.

Cllr Simon Weeks, executive member for Wokingham environment, said: “I hope all residents of the Wokingham borough make good use of both the green waste scheme and the special drop-off points for their Christmas trees this year.

“Our recycling rates have really grown over the past few years and everyone who has had a real tree over the festive period can help support our efforts to compost and recycle as much waste as possible by simply taking their tree to one of the drop-off points or leaving it with their green waste for collection.

Wokingham Borough Council

Log pile homes have been created for Great Crested Newts as part of an ongoing project to ensure the future of the endangered species within the Wokingham Borough.

During a day-long Wokingham conservation task, members of staff from Cisco in Green Park left their desks behind and pulled on their wellies to help create log-pile refuges for Great Crested Newts and clear up woodland surrounding Mugnell’s Pond – which provides a spring breeding spot for the creatures.

The volunteers and their families worked alongside rangers from Wokingham Borough Council’s countryside service, to cut back willow trees that were encroaching on to the shallow pond in Dinton Pastures Country Park. If the trees are not cut back the pond would be taken over by woodland and the newts would lose one of their breeding spots.

In order to provide a winter refuge for the creatures the volunteers created several log piles – which the newts can use as a home until breeding season starts in early spring.

The work that was carried out on Friday December 21 is part of the 2007 Great Crested Newt Ponds Project, where the Berkshire Biodiversity Partnership gained funding from Natural England to create and restore several ponds across the borough.

Great Crested Newts are internationally rare and are a protected species. It is believed that there are now more than 60 breeding ponds for Great Crested Newts across the Wokingham Borough.

Simon Weeks, executive member for environment, said: “I’m really pleased that staff from Cisco decided to volunteer and help ensure that Great Crested Newts do not become a thing of the past.”

Nigel Townley, engineering director at Cisco, added: “The team and myself had a fantastic time and it made a superb and enjoyable team building event to finish off the year. I am pleased that we were able to support the team in some small way.”

Wokingham Borough Council