Wokingham

Adults needing social care in the Wokingham Borough get a good service from the council and the service has promising prospects for improvement according to the Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI).

CSCI gave Wokingham Borough Council’s adult services a ‘Good’ two star rating in its 2008 annual performance review and judged it to have ‘Promising’ capacity to improve. Last year the service received one star and was rated as having uncertain capacity to improve.

The inspection looked at seven separate areas to produce the overall rating. These were how well Wokingham council: improves health and emotional well-being; improves quality of life; makes a positive contribution; increases choice and control; ensuring freedom from discrimination and harassment; improves economic well-being and maintains personal dignity and respect. The council’s services were rated good for all of these except ‘increased choice and control’ which was adequate.

The ‘capacity to improve’ judgement was based on a combination of a rating for leadership and the commission and use of resources.

The inspectors particularly praised Wokingham council’s strong commitment to preventative work to stop people’s needs deteriorating, working with other organisations to protect vulnerable adults, helping people with a learning disability and mental health problems, find and keep employment and the range of information including on the council’s website. The leadership team at the council was praised for its clear understanding of strategic direction.

Also highlighted as strengths were the increase in the number of people with a learning disability having the chance to assess their own needs and being offered more control over their own care and the range of leisure opportunities being offered to people with physical and sensory disabilities.

Wokingham Borough Council leader Cllr David Lee said: “This report shows the council is moving in the right direction within adult social care and has the ability to improve even further. Staff in the team have been hit hard by the death of their general manager Pat Brecknock last month, but this report is a wonderful tribute to her and her work here.

“The council is putting great emphasis on giving people choice in social care and on preventing problems rather than reacting to them and I believe this report shows that the success of that is being recognised. It is also vital that vulnerable people are protected, and the inspectors have noted that the council is doing this as well as providing more choice.”

Despite the good and improving rating, Wokingham Borough Council is not complacent and there are areas of development highlighted in the report such as the need to increase access to complaints procedure and increase opportunities for older people and young adults with physical disabilities to live at home. The council’s community care team are already working on these issues.

Wokingham Borough Council

Next week (December 1 to 5) over 10,000 secondary school pupils will have the chance to vote in the Wokingham Borough’s Member of Youth Parliament (MYP) election.

Young Wokingham people’s votes will be cast at the annual elections and polling stations will be found at local schools, youth centres, and some church youth groups across the borough as well as the Connexions office in Wokingham. They will use the traditional ballot box method to cast their votes.

A record number of young people are standing in this year’s election. They are: Adam Connell (17) from Wokingham, James Evans (15) from Earley, Josh Hutchins (14) from Woosehill in Wokingham, Thomas Joy (14) from Woosehill in Wokingham, Shabana Karim (16) from Earley, George Knowlson (15) from Winnersh, Chris Miller (17) from Earley, James Potter (16) from Wokingham, Charlie Vaughan (16) from Ruscombe, Subi Wahogo (15) from Earley, and Sam Wheldon-Bayes (16) from Earley.

The 11 Wokingham candidates have been campaigning on a range of issues that are close to the hearts of young people. The candidates have already recorded an election DVD spelling out why they want to be elected and this has been shown in school assemblies, lessons and at youth clubs. Some of them are using other methods to appeal to young people including Facebook groups and their own individual websites outling their election manifestos.

Catriona MacMillan, participation worker, said: “This year the young people have been campaigning in so many different ways. As well as the traditional methods of posters and talking in assemblies, they have set up Facebook groups, and some of the candidates have even set up their own websites. Many of the candidates have also visited youth centres to canvas other young people.

“With so many candidates, we are expecting fierce competition and we hope every young person in the borough will take up the opportunity to cast their vote and decide who should represent their views.”

Cllr Malcolm Bryant, deputy executive member for Wokingham community development, said: “This is a great opportunity to give a national voice to the young people from the Wokingham Borough. Last year, we had five candidates and just under 2,000 youngsters voted in schools and youth clubs. This year we hope to build on this success and see many more voting. I am absolutely delighted that a record number of young people are standing in this year’s election. They have been campaigning hard over the past few weeks and I would like to wish them all good luck for the election.”

The votes will be counted on the morning of December 9, and announced at a special ceremony later that day in the council chamber, civic offices, Shute End, Wokingham. The new youth MP will take up their position on February 1, 2009 and will represent the borough regionally and nationally in the UK Youth Parliament.

Wokingham Borough Council

School support staff from across the Wokingham Borough who go that extra mile at school were rewarded for their efforts by the borough council’s general manager children’s services Wendy Woodcock at a special ceremony on Wednesday (November 19).

Winners of the Wokingham super hero awards were: Dawn Cobbold from Farley Hill Primary School, Emma Griffiths from Southfield Special School, Mike Cooke from Hawkedon Primary School, Banny Shaw from St Crispin’s, Hilda Phillips from Farley Hill Primary School, Dawn Wojcik from The Hawthorns Primary School, Vivien Ward from The Piggott Secondary School, and Nina Watkiss from St Dominics Savio RC Aided Primary School.

Wokingham Borough Council’s recognition award for school support staff is in its second year and schools were invited to nominate their unsung heroes. General manager children’s services Wendy Woodcock said: “For the second year running we have received many entries from across the borough for the unsung heroes in our schools. Many of them make a contribution well over and above what we expect and they should be immensely proud of their achievements. It is great to celebrate their effort and commitment. Our support staff are invaluable in assisting schools in being so effective to help children achieve the very best they can.”

Dawn Cobbold from Farley Hill Primary School, was nominated in the school office category by her school. They said: “Dawn is the most amazingly professional and dedicated business manager, she knows the school inside out and is always eager and interested to find new ways of working. She manages the support staff efficiently, professionally and with such empathy.”

Emma Griffiths from Southfield Special School, was nominated in the teaching and learning category. Her school said: “Emma is just incredible in her work with our pupils who have challenging behaviour issues and is a motivating and uplifting teaching assistant. She is respected by both pupils and staff for her contribution to the teaching and learning and well-being of all our pupils.”

Winner of the facilities in the Wokingham primary category was Mike Cooke from Hawkedon Primary School. They said: “Mike is just marvellous, he pretty much does anything and everything around the school. He maintains buildings, spends lots of his own time doing thing to improve the environment and is constantly trying to help people. He is hugely important in just checking that everyone is ok and will drop anything to solve problems. He always goes beyond his job. He helps directly with pupils, reinforcing behaviour and expectations and works with the pupils in design technology lessons. He is outstanding and we couldn’t do without him.”

Banny Shaw from Wokingham St Crispin’s School was nominated in the facilities category for secondary schools. The school said: “Banny works with our pupils in developing the school garden and an ecology area. He worked tirelessly to support the pupils in the last two years’ gardening competitions. Banny makes a real contribution to all aspects of the school life and gives far more of his time which has such a positive impact on pupils and the school.”

Hilda Phillips from Farley Hill Primary School was the winner of the premises for primary schools category. The school said: “Hilda has worked for 30 years at our school and she is just wonderful, there are hardly words to describe the fantastic job she does and her commitment to the pupils and school! Nothing is too much trouble, she goes the extra mile, coming into school during school holidays and always looking for ways to improve the school facilities.”

The all-rounder category was won by Dawn Wojcik from The Hawthorns Primary School. The school said: “We nominated Dawn for her tireless service over many years to the Hawthorns community, she is a brilliant road crossing patrol person, lunchtime supervisor, teaching assistant and governor.”

Wokingham Borough Council

This week (November 27), Wokingham Borough Council’s decision-making executive is set to agree to submit an ‘expression of interest’ for £80million worth of funding from the Building Schools for the Future (BSF) programme to benefit the borough’s secondary schools.

Cllr Norman Jorgensen, executive member for Wokingham children’s services, said: “Back in 2003 the council submitted its original proposals to the BSF programme but we were told that we would have to wait a significant amount of time before we would benefit from this funding as the government initially concentrated funding elsewhere. We are currently in wave 15, the final stage to receive this money. However, we do have one school being rebuilt under the BSF umbrella and we now have the opportunity to re-submit our proposals for the remainder.”

The Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) recently invited all local authorities to re-submit their proposals to rebuild or refurbish schools under the BSF programme. In light of this, the council has set up a project group, made up of council officers and three secondary headteachers, to prepare the bid and consultation has been carried out with the borough-wide secondary federation.

Secondary headteachers have been consulted on how to prioritise schools for funding, if the bid is successful. The criteria agreed includes provisional 2008 GCSE results for five or more A* to C including English and maths, condition and suitability factors.

The Wokingham Borough is currently at least five years away from receiving further BSF funding. However, the government has set out new criteria for allocating this funding earlier and the borough council is aiming to take this up.

Under the proposals, the Wokingham council will have to demonstrate how rebuilding or refurbishing schools would lead to higher educational standards and achievements and that the projects can be delivered within a specified timescale. These projects must also relate to the council’s draft core strategy, a blueprint for development for the next 20 years in the Wokingham Borough, to ensure there are enough secondary schools places to support the draft strategic development locations in North and South Wokingham, Arborfield and Shinfield.

Educational and social needs of the local community remain very much at the heart of any decisions made on funding and councils must be ready to deliver these projects within a specific timescale.

At its meeting on November 27, the ten-strong executive will be asked to agree to submit ‘an expression of interest’ to the DCSF. They will also agree four schools for the initial project and four schools for the follow up project. The initial project group is: The Bulmershe, The Emmbrook, The Forest and Southfield Special School. The follow-up group is: The Holt, Maiden Erlegh, The Piggott and St Crispin’s. Headteachers have been informed of this proposal. It is still early days and whilst the council has separated schools into two groups, this is not set in stone. The next step will be for the council to prepare a report, expected to be in the spring, setting out detailed proposals and feasibility studies.

Wokingham Cllr Jorgensen continued: “We are delighted to have been invited to put in an expression of interest again for BSF money and if successful, this will enable us to carry out the much needed major improvement works to our secondary schools.

“Our vision is for excellent children’s services and skills for all and we have made a long-term commitment to provide a high standard of education and we want to take every sensible opportunity to have the required investment in our schools.”

Wokingham Borough Council

Next week, representatives from Chau Chu Kang Primary School in Singapore will be visiting four Wokingham Borough schools to learn more about the schools’ use of learning platforms.

Pupils in all schools in Wokingham Borough have access to their own online learning space via UniServity learning platform. It is a set of online tools to help pupils and teachers share, store and manage their information and work at its schools.

A learning platform gives children and young people the chance to learn in the ways which best suit them – by providing a personal online work space; by allowing access to learning materials at anytime and anywhere; and it gives an opportunity for materials to be tailored to meet the needs of individuals.

They have access to a vast range of services for their pupils and staff, including: a personal working space online for pupils and staff; individual logins for all pupils, staff and parents; shared files and workspace that could be accessed by specific users only; ability to host and manage schools’ websites; other communications tools and facilities such as calendars, surveys, instant messaging and discussion forums and the ability for all individual users to create webpages for a restricted audience or for general publication. Parents can follow their children's progress more easily and resources can be shared with the wider community.

The Singaporean visitors will arrive on Monday (November 24) and later that day will visit Polehampton Infant School in Twyford to see the learning platform being used and they will be joined by representatives from UniServity. They will also take part in a problem-based learning activity with a group of children.

The following day (Tuesday November 25) the visitors will meet pupils and staff from Gorse Ride Junior School in Finchampstead to see at first hand the learning platform being used, and will take part in a student voice activity. Later that day, the group will travel to The Colleton Primary School in Twyford to see the learning platform being used by year five and six pupils to create interactive stories.

On Thursday (November 27) the four borough schools along with schools in neighbouring authorities will meet the visitors from Singapore at UniServity Head Office in Reading and they will hear more about Chau Chu Kang’s own learning platform.

And on the final day of their trip, Chau Chu Kang Primary School will visit The Coombes Primary School in Arborfield to meet parents and support staff.

David Congdon, senior adviser for ICT and music at Wokingham Borough Council, said: “It is great to see that the work our teachers and schools are carrying out on the learning platforms is being recognised around the world. This type of technology is being used in many different places around the world and Wokingham Borough pupils are becoming part of an expanding global education community.”

Fiona Aubrey-Smith, head of education at UniServity, said: “Bringing teachers from Singapore and the UK together for this professional development opportunity perfectly demonstrates how learning in 2008 really is through global classrooms. The UniServity learning platform enables these international teachers and their students to be able to continue to collaborate, communicate and co-construct learning experiences together regardless of the date, time or venue that they are in – true 21st century learning.”

Wokingham Borough Council

White Ribbon Day will be marked around the world on November 25 – and Wokingham Borough Community Safety Partnership and Domestic Violence Abuse Forum are using the occasion to highlight the issue of domestic violence locally.

Domestic violence is often a hidden crime, one that is under-reported across the country, but Wokingham Borough Council and its partners hope to change that by raising awareness of the problem. In the UK, two women a week are killed by their partners or former partners and, in the course of their lives, one in four women and one in six men in the UK will be a victim of domestic violence.

Wokingham Council community safety staff and representatives from Berkshire Women’s Aid will have a stand at the council’s offices in Shute End, Wokingham from 10am to 3pm from November 24 to 28 where they will provide information and advice to anybody calling in.

The Domestic Abuse Forum has produced a leaflet detailing how victims of domestic violence (and those who suspect they may know a victim) can get help. Help is also available from Berkshire Women’s Aid on (0118) 950 4003.

Wokingham Borough Council executive member for corporate services (with responsibility for community safety) Cllr Rob Stanton said: “Domestic violence is a nasty crime that causes emotional as well as physical harm. It can turn a person’s home – which should be a place of safety – into a place of fear. What makes it even worse is that it is very often unreported and that is why initiatives such as this are so important to raise awareness. I would urge any victim of domestic violence, or anybody who suspects they know a victim, to come forward – there is help available to vistims.”

White Ribbon Day is marked across the world to highlight the problem of violence against women.

Domestic abuse occurs among people of all backgrounds, income levels and cultures can take many forms: psychological, physical, sexual and financial and it accounts for 23 per cent of violent crimes in the UK.

Wokingham Community safety officer Stephanie Nagiel said: “Although we are using White Ribbon Day as a means to spread our message, it is important to remember that men can be victims of domestic violence as well. Our drive at the moment is to raise awareness of the problem and to encourage all victims to come forward – whether they are men or women, in same sex or different sex relationships. People often just assume domestic violence is something that happens somewhere else but the fact is that domestic violence is just as likely to happen in a nice leafy lane in the Wokingham Borough as it is in an inner city. In fact, the chance or a neighbour realising there is a problem is lower in a large detached home than in a cramped terraced street – so the need to reach more affluent victims is even greater.”

Wokingham Borough Council

Wokingham Borough Council’s new overview and scrutiny management committee is set to carry out an in-depth review of all travel support offered to older and disabled people in the Wokingham Borough.

Chairman of the Wokingham overview and scrutiny management committee Cllr Liz Siggery said: “The rising cost of travel affects a lot of people in the borough and we have brought in various subsidies over the years. The overview and scrutiny management committee is going to take this opportunity to get a total picture of how things have changed, what exists now and what level of support the council should be providing in the future.

“The committee will review the totality of travel subsidy and support that is available to residents in the Wokingham Borough, not just that provided through the national bus pass and travel tokens, and will consider alternative options for providing travel support. The travel requirements of elderly and disabled residents throughout the borough will be a key part of the review.”

The review will identify all travel subsidies, concessions and support available to residents from the Wokingham borough council and other organisations in order to identify any duplication and consider whether the current system provides the most appropriate way to help older residents and people with a disability.

The travel support within the gambit of the review would include (but is not limited to) the national bus pass, travel tokens, subsidised bus routes and bus operator subsidies.

The review will take into consideration the travel requirements of elderly and disabled residents within the Wokingham Borough and will also look at how travel support schemes operate in other local authorities.

All local authorities are required by law to issue a national bus pass to all residents over 60 and people who are registered disabled and there is no question of that changing in the Wokingham Borough.

The overview and scrutiny management committee will report their findings and preferred option for future travel support to the council’s decision-making executive in the New Year.

Wokingham Borough Council

Wokingham Borough Council’s animal warden is today urgently appealing for information about how several injured and sick dogs have been dumped in the Farley Hill area, before another animal is subjected to the same cruel treatment.

Mandy Dorman, Wokingham animal warden, said: “Over the past 12 to 14 months at least five dogs have been dumped in the same area of Farley Hill in a really terrible state. This cannot be coincidence and so I’m appealing to the public for any information they may have on what’s been happening, so other animals are not subjected to this brutality.”

The first dogs to be discovered by Mandy were Charley Farley and his sister, who were discovered in the graveyard in Farley Hill in late August 2007. Mandy, who has spent decades caring for animals, said that young Charley had the worst case of mange she had ever seen. Unfortunately his sister had already died before Mandy found the pair. Charley has since been re-homed and is a healthy and happy pooch living a normal life.

Since then several other dogs have been found in the same Wokingham area without an owner and suffering from serious infections and illness associated with mistreatment. The poorly dogs found include:

• Two springer spaniels that were both found in the same graveyard as Charley on May 17, 2008 and were both suffering from bad cases of mange.

• A six month old rottweiler pup that was found collapsed in a gateway in Church Road, Farley Hill on August 5, 2008 suffering from an infection.

The two springer spaniels and the rotweiller have now started new lives with caring families after being re-homed.

Mandy added: “The dogs have all been very distressed and suffering from some really bad ailments that are associated with neglect and mistreatment. No owner has ever come forward for any of the dogs, but the cases are so serious that if they did they would be liable for prosecution for causing such terrible animal cruelty.

“What worries me is that this will keep happening. There is a pattern here and I suspect it is the same spiteful person causing these dogs to suffer, either intentionally or unintentionally, and then dumping them. If you know who is doing this please let me know so that more animals don’t lose their lives in this wicked way.”

Cllr Rob Stanton, executive member for Wokingham corporate services, added: “Please get in touch with Mandy if you know anything about these terrible incidents. This is a heartfelt plea for information so that more animals do not suffer in this terrible way.”

Wokingham Borough Council

School support staff from across the Wokingham Borough who go that extra mile at school are set to be rewarded for their efforts by the borough council’s general manager children’s services Wendy Woodcock at a special ceremony this week (Wednesday November 19).

Each of the winners will be presented with a certificate and award for the contribution they make in Wokingham Borough schools. Also at the ceremony support staff will receive certificates in recognition of gaining an academic qualification such as adult key skils in literacy and numeracy, support work in schools, NVQ, first aid, special education needs, foundation degrees and higher level teaching assistant status

Caroline Lyness, Wokingham school support staff development officer, said: “We are delighted to be celebrating the academic and personal achievements of so many school support staff. We have received many nominations from our schools for support staff who are special. These have included staff who regularly go that extra mile at work and people who have faced a personal challenge with a smile on their face. Every single member of support staff attending this ceremony should feel proud of the way they contribute to their school and this award scheme is a great way to recognise their efforts. I am also proud to acknowledge their hard work in achieving an academic qualification.”

Wokingham Borough Council

Over 75 pupils from across the Wokingham Borough took part in an anti-bullying day held at Twyford Youth Centre on Friday November 7.

This year’s Wokingham anti-bullying week focused on the Anti-Bullying Alliance’s national campaign ‘being different, belonging together’. Pupils discussed what makes children and young people different, whilst considering the things that unite them.

Six Wokingham workshops were held throughout the day and led by a number of different organisations including Thames Valley Police, the No Handbags visual theatre company and the borough council including officers from the youth service, traveller education service, healthy schools and community wardens. During the workshops, the young people learnt what it is like to have impaired vision or to be wheelchair bound. They also had time to reflect, for example what it is like to be a traveller.

Some 16 schools, including primary, secondary, independent and special schools, took part in the day. And the highlight for many pupils was the visit by rap artist El Crisis. Throughout the day young people were asked to put forward their ideas for an anti-bullying rap which El Crisis will be putting together on their behalf.

Differences whether real or perceived are often at the heart of bullying. Children and young people may be bullied because of differences such as skin colour, gender, disability, sexuality, hair colour, size, accent or dress sense – or for any of the many differences between us. Whatever the reason – the council is joining the Anti-Bullying Alliance to send out the message that bullying is always wrong and that schools need to challenge prejudice based bullying behaviour.

Cllr Norman Jorgensen, executive member for Wokingham children’s services, said: “We want to send a clear and positive message to our young people that bullying is not acceptable. It was good to see so many pupils taking part in this awareness raising session and getting involved with Anti-Bullying Week. I hope the pupils will take back what they learnt at the session and share it within their school.

“I think we are all clear that bullying others because they are perceived as different is not acceptable, and like all other forms of bullying, will not be tolerated in our schools.”

Julian Bushall, senior adviser behaviour, attendance and emotional literacy, said: “It was a delight to see so many children and young people from Wokingham Borough schools working so well together to take on board the very important anti-bullying messages that were being shared with them. Their participation and enthusiasm for all the varied activities was very impressive, and they were a credit both to themselves and their schools.”

Some of the comments received by young people about what they learnt on the day included: everyone is themselves and we are all unique; no matter what people look like, we can still be friends; we are all the same in different ways; and people with disabilities can be affected by bullying too.

Wokingham Borough Council

Black History Month in the Wokingham Borough was brought to a fitting finale with an evening of food, music and fun in Woodley on Saturday November 8.

The successful taster and performance evening at Woodley Baptist Church was hosted by the Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) Forum Wokingham in partnership with The Wokingham African Caribbean Society, AJ's Caribbean Scheme and Wokingham Borough Council and more than 170 people joined in the celebration of different cultures.

Cllr Bob Wyatt, co-chairman of the BME Forum Wokingham, said: “It was a wonderful evening and the church was packed to capacity. All the performers were of a very high standard and by the end everybody was up dancing to the steel band. There was both Indian and Caribbean food to try and it was also excellent. It was a successful evening and a fitting end to another interesting and enjoyable Black History Month.”

In addition to the taster and performance evening, Black History Month has been marked in the Wokingham Borough this year with a calypso evening, a question time event and exhibitions in the Mall Gallery at the borough council’s offices in Shute End, Wokingham.

Wokingham Borough Council social inclusion officer Ashwani Gupta said: “Those taking part in this year’s Black history Month included people from Asian, black and white cultures and the audience at the taster and performance evening included people from many different backgrounds. The month has been a triumph for community cohesion and social inclusion.”

Member of the BME Forum Wokingham Jeff Hinds said: “Black History Month has become an important cultural event in the calendar in Wokingham borough. The events have been great fun and provide important cultural education and the chance to bring different people together in different ways.”

Anybody who wants to take part in future events can contact Ashwani Gupta on (0118) 974 6790.

Wokingham Borough Council

Photography enthusiasts from across the Wokingham Borough spent the summer snapping photographs in the Wokingham Borough Council Mayor’s photographic competition.

Wokingham Mayor Cllr Pauline Helliar-Symons launched her competition with the help of Bearwood Primary School back in July. The competition, based on the theme Wokingham Borough…Past and Present, was supported by Snappy Snaps, Wokingham. The theme was quite broad in order for photographers to think about the Wokingham Borough and photograph something that captured either the past or the present or even a combination of both.

19-year-old Isabel Whitfield from Wokingham was the overall winner of the competition with her photograph ‘No parking at any time’. Speaking on her photograph, Isabel said: “Different periods of time are reflected in each aspect of this photo - historic buildings, a vintage car and the ubiquitous yellow lines of the present day.”

Runner-up was Wokingham resident John Drew who took two separate photographs showing the borough’s past and present. An ‘Evening at Dinton Pastures’ illustrates the present with a photograph of the modern day country park, whilst the tranquil centre of Hurst, which dates back to 11th century, is depicted in the photograph ‘Hurst Village Pond.’

For her winning efforts, Isabel received a studio shoot at Snappy Snaps Wokingham, plus an image of her choice produced on canvas. John won a collection of photographic gifts. Prizes were presented to Isabel and John by Mayor Cllr Pauline Helliar-Symons and Snappy Snap’s Jacqueline and Joe Chang.

Mayor Wokingham Cllr Pauline Helliar-Symons said: “The standard of entries received was good and I thought Isabel combined past and present in her photograph beautifully. I am delighted to learn that Isabel is very keen to carry on with her photography. John produced two very good photographs, one of which captured the wonderful reflections in the pond at Hurst. And, his scenic Dinton Pastures photo was very atmospheric. The competition was a great opportunity for local photographers to show off their talents and capture the past and the present of the Wokingham Borough.

“I am very grateful to Snappy Snaps Wokingham for being willing to support the competition and I thank them for their professional help in choosing the winners.”

Snappy Snap’s Jacqueline Chang said: “It has been a great pleasure for us to be involved in this years’ competition. As a longstanding local business, we enjoy working with the community of Wokingham Borough to develop the arts, as well as helping and advising people on the great ways they can enjoy their imagery.”

Wokingham Borough Council

Christmas is coming early for The Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (REME) this month when 50 gift boxes will be handed over by Wokingham Borough Council’s Mayor Cllr Pauline Helliar-Symons.

Back in October, the Wokingham council’s very own band Encore, played to a packed audience and raised over £700 to support REME troops serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. The event, which was organised by the council’s social club Revellers, saw staff digging deep in their pockets and thanks to their generosity some 50 gift boxes have been filled with Christmas goodies including disposable cameras, balloons, tinsel wigs, books and games as well as everyday items including sweet and savoury snacks, medication and toiletries.

Wokingham Mayor Cllr Pauline Helliar-Symons will present the boxes to Royal Mail on Monday November 17 who will deliver them to REME troops serving abroad.

Cllr Pauline Helliar-Symons said: “This is a great chance for the council to show our local garrison troops that we are thinking about them this Christmas whilst they are serving abroad. We hope that this small gesture will go someway to help them have an enjoyable Christmas despite being away from family and friends. We hope it will raise the spirits of everyone who receives a box of goodies.”

Deb Brown, Wokingham Revellers committee member, said “Many of my colleagues have been very supportive, as have the Friends of REME. We hope that the individuals soldiers that we are sending the boxes to will have a safe and happy Christmas.”

Wokingham Borough Council

The redevelopment of Waingels College in Woodley is a step closer after getting the green light from Wokingham Borough Council’s planning committee last night (November 12).

Subject to a number of conditions, approval was given by the Wokingham committee for four new two storey buildings and the refurbishment of five existing single and two storey buildings.

For the past 18 months Wokingham Borough Council and Waingels College have been busy working on developing proposals to transform the school. Much thought has been given to the designs and they are the result of hard work, innovative ideas and consultation with a whole range of interested people, including students, staff, governors, stakeholders and local residents. These state-of-the-art modern facilities will benefit students for generations to come and will create a learning environment that will really make a different to them and all members of staff.

Wokingham Borough Council

The wheels on the bus went round and round its improved route on Tuesday morning with a special guest on board – Wokingham Borough Mayor Cllr Pauline Helliar-Symons.

Cllr Helliar-Symons hopped on to a new-style easy access bus in Broad Street, Wokingham, to officially launch the improved bus service – which has been bedding in for the past two weeks.

An improved bus service for people getting about the borough and into Reading started on Monday October 27 and has seen many passengers use the new routes.

It is the latest in a line of improvements implemented by Wokingham Borough Council and bus operator Thames Travel and so the Mayor popped along to see for herself just how much easier getting about by bus has become.

Wokingham Cllr Helliar-Symons said: “I’m really pleased to see that in the past year alone we have improved the level of bus service on offer in the borough for people who want to get about in a more environmentally-friendly way or do not have a car.

“I am surprised and impressed by how comfortable buses are these days. This one had bright and cheerful upholstery and plenty of space to sit and move about; it was well sprung and and was really pleasant to be in. More like a luxury coach!”

Since Monday October 27 Thames Travel has been running the 126, 127, 128 and129, which link Reading, Woodley, Sonning, Charvil, Twyford, Winnersh and Wokingham, and has improved the shopping-time service to a regular hourly service.

Combined with the 850 service provided by Arriva, The Shires the Thames Travel improvements mean that a bus between Reading and Twyford is available every 30 minutes.

A later bus from Reading now runs into the borough – with the last bus leaving at 6.20pm. This improvement was put in place after commuters said they would like to see an early evening bus made available.

Getting into Maidenhead on a Saturday has also been made easier with a regular bus every two hours on the 127 route – which picks up passengers in Upper Wargrave on the way through.

The 128 and 129, which used to run between Wokingham and Winnersh via Emmbrook village, now goes direct along on the main Reading Road. The 122 and 123 buses now pick up and drop off in Emmbrook village instead – so an hourly bus service is still available, and morning buses also run all the way through to Tesco in Finchampstead Road.

John Wright, managing director of Thames Travel, said: “Thames Travel is delighted to be working in partnership with Wokingham Borough Council to improve the Wokingham - Twyford – Reading bus service. This will be achieved through improved publicity and on street information leading to greater awareness of the public transport options available and value for money fares.”

The new timetable and changes to the 126 to 129 complement the bus improvements that happened in Wokingham town, Emmbrook, Arborfield and Finchampstead earlier this year.

Wokingham Borough Council

A record number of young people are standing in Wokingham Borough’s Member of Youth Parliament (MYP) election next month (December)

Voting in the UK Youth Parliament (UKYP) elections is set to take place in the Wokingham Borough between December 1 and 5. Young people’s votes will be cast at the annual elections and polling stations will be found at local schools and youth centres across the borough during that week.

A total of 11 candidates are standing in the election next month (December) and hundreds of young people aged between 11 and 18 years will be heading to the polls. Current MYP Adam Connell and his deputy Shabana Karim are both running again in what promises to be a hotly contested election.

The 11 candidates are:

• Adam Connell aged 17 from Wokingham
Current MYP Adam is campaigning for youth democracy through the creation of a Wokingham Youth Council and for the abolition of unfair university tuition fees. He has also pledged to work with the UKYP to create a national transport concessions card for young people. Adam attends Emmbrook School.

• James Evans aged 15 from Earley
James attends Maiden Erlegh School, and he is campaigning for subsidised local entertainment and affordable transport for young people as well as better job opportunities.

• Josh Hutchins aged 14 from Woosehill in Wokingham
A pupil at The Forest School, Josh is campaigning for more transport or reduced costs for young people. He also wants to see reduced charges for teenagers at places like bowling and swimming during the school holidays. He would like to see more activities and places to meet such as a Hallowe’en disco.

• Thomas Joy aged 14 from Woosehill in Wokingham
Thomas attends The Forest School and is campaigning for fairer representation for teenagers, to help defeat the teenage stereotype. He also wants to encourage creativity, with a series of concerts, exhibitions and presentations for everyone to join in and to help sporting activities flourish, train young sportsmen, and help them compete in district, national and international events.

Wokingham Borough Council

Olympic bronze medallist Anna Bebington will join some of Wokingham Borough’s finest sportsmen and women at a special ceremony to mark their recent successes.

On Friday November 21 sportsmen and women from across the borough will attend Wokingham District Sports Council and Wokingham Borough Council’s sports awards ceremony. Helping them celebrate will be Anna Bebington, who won a bronze medal in a dramatic finish to the women’s double sculls in the Olympic Games held in Beijing this summer.

The sports awards is a terrific event that recognises and celebrates the achievement and contributions of sports people and clubs over the last year. There are 16 categories in which awards will be up for grabs.

Each winner will receive an award on the night, presented by the Mayor Cllr Pauline Helliar-Symons, Anna Bebington and local sponsors.

Wokingham Borough Council

Neighbourhoods that have suffered from under-age drinkers have been targeted in a joint Wokingham Borough Council and police crackdown.

The operation focused on Wokingham areas where police and council intelligence had highlighted under-age drinking and was designed to get a clearer picture of the problem, to highlight the issue of proxy sales (adults buying alcohol for children), to help off-licensees refuse sales to under-age youngsters and to enforce the drinking age limit wherever possible.

Police and Wokingham council officers worked closely with the off-licenses to ensure all staff were fully aware of the importance of their role in preventing young people from buying alcohol and to have the confidence to challenge them to produce valid identification. Posters were also used to warn customers against proxy sales and warning cards were given to any adult attempting to buy alcohol for under-age drinkers. The cards point out that such proxy buying is illegal and can land both the adult and child in trouble.

The areas targeted were Charvil, Twyford, Earley, Lower Earley, Wokingham and Woodley and these were regularly patrolled to provide a high visibility presence. This was well received by both the stores and the local community as young people drinking is a complaint often received by the police and council.

The parents or guardian of any under-age Wokingham drinker caught during the crackdown, or at other times, are sent a ‘yellow’ letter informing them of the incident and offering advice on how to discuss alcohol issues with children. Should the young person be caught again a ‘red’ letter is sent to the parents or guardian which will invite the young person and family to a police station to discuss the problem.

Wokingham Borough Council’s executive member for corporate services Cllr Rob Stanton (who is responsible for community safety) said: “Drunken youths blight many residents’ lives and the campaign has tackled the problem from all angles. Together with the police we have been educating shop owners and the young people but also gathering intelligence on where the problem occurs. We have also caught a number of young drinkers in the act and notified their parents of their behaviour.”

During the crackdown, which took place between June and September, officers caught 14 young people with alcohol in the targeted areas and were sent ‘yellow’ letters.

Wokingham Borough Council

As part of the national Youth Work Week (November 1 to 7), youth workers across the Wokingham Borough are visiting secondary schools to tell pupils about a website aimed solely at young people, which has been created by young people in the borough.

The theme of this year’s Youth Work Week is ‘promoting young people’s voices and influence’ and the website - www.activeyouth.co.uk - is a good example of a project where young people’s have been the driving force behind its creation. Andy Galpin aged 15 and Ben Crowther aged 15, both from Woodley, are leading a group of young people who are keeping the site up-to-date, adding new content and asking other young people what they would like to see on the site.

Over the next two weeks, Wokingham pupils will be spending part of their ICT lessons to check out the site and see what’s on offer for young people. The site includes advice on careers, health issues, good nights out in the borough, and how to have a say in the way the borough is run – as well as useful tools such as help writing CVs, and useful links to other websites offering things like travel, safety advice and cinema listings.

The website went live in April and young people have spent the past six months adding lots of bright ideas about issues that matter for 13 to 18-year-olds. Young people across the borough have fed back their ideas on the initial site and a number of improvements have been made. So far it has had 13,000 hits.

Andy and Ben will be giving a presentation to students at Waingels College on Friday November 14 to officially launch the website. They will be talking about their aspirations for the future of website and how they got the project off the ground.

Andy Galpin said: “We think this is a great site and we hope it's going to be used regularly by young people,” and Ben Crowther added: “We now want more young people to join us so that we can provide a more interactive site.”

Sandie Evans, area Wokingham youth work manager, said: “This has been a really exciting project for the young people to work on. They have put their skills to such good use and developed a website that is really useful to the borough’s teenagers with a wealth of information available on the site. It is extremely professional and a credit to all those who have worked on it. If there are any more adults out there with website skills who could give some time to help us develop it further, please get in touch with the youth service.”

Andy and Ben still want to get more young Wokingham people involved in the project. Any young people that are interested in joining them on the web team can contact Andy and Ben at activeyouth@wokingham.gov.uk. Adults wishing to share skills in these areas are also invited to get in touch, using the email address above or calling Sandie Evans on (0118) 974 6267.

Wokingham Borough Council

The Wokingham Acorn Community Centre will be opening its doors to all for a good cause this month when cakes made by people with a learning disability who use the centre will go on sale to raise money for the Mayor’s chosen charities.

The Wokingham Acorn Community Centre replaced the old WROC centre in Woosehill as the base for people with a learning disability last year but is also a community centre. It has a café which has been open to the public since earlier this year. The café and lobby will be put to great use on Monday November 17 for a charity coffee and cake morning.

Wokingham Mayor Cllr Helliar-Symons said: “The Acorn Community Centre is a wonderful facility and I am delighted those running it have decided to use it to help raise money for these charities. I am looking forward to sampling the cakes or biscuits made by those using the centre and to seeing the community come in and take advantage of what is on offer there.”

The mayor’s chosen charities this year are the Link Visiting Scheme and Life Education Centres. The Link Visiting Scheme was set up about ten years ago with Age Concern Woodley to provide friendship and support to older people who may otherwise become lonely and vulnerable. The Life Education Centre provides support to schools by giving children information on issues such as staying healthy and safe and making a positive contribution to society.

Wokingham Borough Council

Wokingham borough’s libraries will be getting members in the mood for Christmas with a series of seasonal events.

The first festive fun will be at Woodley Library on Sunday November 23 when the library will join in the Woodley Winter Carnival. The library will be open from 1pm to 4pm on the day and visitors will be able to enjoy the Discover Culture Hands-on Arts family craft activities, music from members of Reading Symphony Orchestra and refreshments. All the activities will be free and there’s no need to book.

Parents or guardians struggling to know what to give their families for Christmas might want to get along to Pottery Pals at Lower Earley Library on Tuesday November 25, Wokingham Library on November 19 and Woodley Library on Thursday November 27. Pottery Pals gives visitors the chance to decorate pottery with their baby’s hand or footprints – an ideal Christmas present for grandparents or other relatives. The sessions at Woodley and Lower Earley will be from 10am to midday and at Wokingham will be from 2pm to 4pm. Each session will cost £3.50 to attend and there is a cost per item on the day.

There will be a chance to step back in time to enjoy a Jane Austen Christmas experience when the History Wardrobe presents Festive Pleasures in the Age of Elegance from 7.30pm to 9pm on Thursday November 27 at Lower Earley. The evening will be a costume in context presentation inspired by the life and work of Jane Austen and featuring readings from her work and a display of original and replica clothing. The evening will cost £2 and places must be booked in advance from the library on (0118) 931 2150.

Wokingham town centre will be alive with festive fun for the Wokingham Winter Carnival on Sunday November 30 and Wokingham Library will be open from 11am to 2pm to join in the event. There will be a Discover Culture Hand-on-Art craft activities, music from Wokingham All Saints Handbell Ringers and a visit from the Bookstart Bear. All the activities will be free and there is no need to book.

The Twyford Handbell Ringers will perform Christmas music at Twyford Library from 3pm to 4pm on Friday December 12. There is no need to book for the free event.

Through December there will be card making sessions where visitors can learn to make cards for any occasions – including last minute Christmas card. These will be at Twyford Library from 10.30am to 12.30pm on Tuesday December 2; Woodley Library from 10am to midday on Friday December 5 and Lower Earley Library from 10am to midday on Tuesday December 9. Each session costs £5 and places must be booked from the library.

Wokingham Borough Council’s executive member for community development Cllr Dianne King said: “There is plenty to get library visitors in the festive spirit as well as events that could be really useful such as the card making and pottery sessions.”

The usual children’s and adults’ library activities will also continue in November and December in Wokingham Borough’s libraries

Wokingham Borough Council

A number of taxi and private hire vehicle drivers in the Wokingham Borough have recently been abused by passengers and Wokingham Borough Council has produced advice to help drivers keep themselves safe.

Guidance, which is based on advice issued by the Home Office, has been produced for licensed taxi and private hire vehicle drivers and will be sent to every driver.

The Wokingham advice includes ensuring controllers have passengers’ contacts and keep a list of locations that have been a source of problems in the past as well as advice on adapting vehicles to make them safer, such as mirrors to see passengers in rear seats. Drivers are also advised to drop cash off during a shift, be ready to explain fare structures to passengers and to trust their instincts if they do not wish to pick up a particular fare. There is also advice on what drivers should do if they are verbally or physically assaulted.

Wokingham Borough Council’s executive member for corporate services (who is responsible for community safety) Cllr Rob Stanton said: “It is a shame that this advice is necessary; many people rely on taxi and private hire vehicle drivers and so it is outrageous that any of them should be victims of assault – either verbal or physical. But we know these assaults do happen and drivers often operate at night and have to deal with people who have been drinking, which can obviously increase problems. So this advice is necessary to help drivers stay safe and I am very pleased we have produced it.”

In the past 12 months, 18 taxi drivers and private hire vehicle drivers have reported being verbally or physically assaulted while working in the Wokingham Borough.

Wokingham Borough Council

The Wokingham Round Table and the Association of Small Direct Wine merchants are running the very first Wokingham Wine Festival in aid of the Multiple Sclerosis Society.

The Wokingham Wine Festival is an exciting wine event where wine-lovers can come to taste and buy fine wines supplied by members of the ASDW (the Association of Small Direct Winemerchants). ASDW members offer between them a huge range of fine wines from around the world.

The event is organised by the ASDW, the Thames Valley regional branch of the Multiple Sclerosis Society, and the Wokingham Round Table. It's a charity event, and profits from the sale of tickets goes to the Mutliple Sclerosis Society.

The Wokingham Wine Festival is a 2-day event, and is being held in the Main Hall, upstairs in the old Town Hall, in the Market Place in the centre of historic Wokingham over the weekend of Saturday 6 and Sunday 7 December 2008.

There will be 11 winemerchants in attendance, each with a superb range of wines to taste and buy.

Pre-purchased tckets for the event cost just £5 per person and per day, and once inside, you can taste as many wines as you like for no additional charge.
It's a fantastic opportunity to stock up for Christmas, by buying from the exhibiting merchants

To buy tickets contact Rosemary Tocock (MS Society) on 0118 986 2591 or go in person to the Wokingham Town Council Information Centre, Town Hall, Market Place Wokingham - 0118 978 3185

Wokingham Round Table

A Wokingham Borough voluntary group that helps families with members with Autism Spectrum Disorders has donated books about autism and Asperger’s syndrome to the borough’s libraries.

ASD Family Help, an independent voluntary group that gives advice and support to families with adults or children on the autistic spectrum, has given the books to the Wokingham council’s library service, which will place the main collection of books in Woodley Library (owing to its proximity to Addington Special School) and some books in Wokingham library.

Wokingham Borough Council collection development officer Sarah Barrett said: “It is always great when the borough council can work with a charity and these books will provide important information and help to families who really need it. I am grateful to the charity for the books and pleased we will be able to bring them to a wider audience.”

ASD Family Help (which is also known as Wokingham Autistic Spectrum Parents) holds regular meeting for families to discuss problems and share accurate information.

Cathy Fastnedge, chairman of ASD Family Help, said: “Our aim is to try to make information more accessible, for both the families and the wider community. We are very happy to be able to work with the library service to make some books available to people in the borough, through their local library service”

Wokingham Borough Council

Local bands will be tuning their guitars and dusting off their drums on Friday November 7, when they play live sets for young people in aid of Cancer Research UK at Wokingham Youth Centre.

The Bands Against Cancer event, organised by 16 year-old Emma Layton from Bracknell, will raise money for the charity through ticket sales and donations and is supported by Wokingham Borough Council’s youth service.

Emma has dedicated the event to her grandfather who passed away four years ago from bowel and liver cancer. Emma said: “I wanted to mix something that everyone can relate to with something everyone loves. I couldn't think of a better way to raise awareness to young people, so with the support of local bands, I want to raise £2,000 for a charity thats cause is close to everybody's hearts.”

Cancer Research UK is the world's leading independent organisation dedicated to cancer research. It supports research into all aspects of cancer through the work of more than 4,500 scientists, doctors and nurses.

Richard Ferguson, area youth work manager for the Wokingham area, said: “Emma has organised the band night to raise awareness about cancer, but also to actively promote cancer charities. Her fundraising efforts should be commended. I hope that many people come along to support her hard work at this worthwhile event."

The evening’s line up will include The Kixx, Get Set Radio, Streetfight Silence, Spectrum 7 and A Stranger In Moscow, with U Burn First headlining. Tickets cost £5 and are available on the door.

Wokingham Borough Council

On Wednesday (October 29), Wokingham Borough Council commemorated the life of the late Captain David Hicks at a special ceremony attended by his parents and representatives from the council, The Royal Anglian Regiment, The Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers and the local community.

Following a notice of motion submitted at council by Cllr Malcolm Bryant, deputy executive member for community development, in June, committee rooms one and two at the Civic Offices, Shute End in Wokingham, have been named after the Wokingham Borough soldier who died in Afghanistan in August last year.

Captain David Hicks of the 1st Battalion The Royal Anglian Regiment was posthumously awarded the Military Cross for service with his regiment in Afghanistan. Whilst mortally injured, Captain Hicks continued to support operations to extricate soldiers under his command. Mayor Cllr Pauline Helliar-Symons unveiled a plaque in memory of Captain Hicks, and Mr Alun Hicks presented a framed photograph of David which is now hung in the room.

Wokingham Mayor Cllr Pauline Helliar-Symons said: “The council is honoured to pay tribute to a very brave young man, Captain David Hicks. Defending freedom is traditionally important to us, whether our own, or that of those too weak to defend themselves. David was posthumously awarded the Military Cross for service and for his support of his troops whilst injured. The council also wanted to acknowledge his sacrifice on behalf of the local community.”

Cllr Malcolm Bryant said: “We wish to send our sincere condolences to Captain Hicks’ parents on the tragic loss of their son. There can be fewer acts of courage and bravery than that shown by Captain Hicks whilst serving in Afghanistan. He was a brave young man who continued, although mortally injured, to dedicate himself to the soldiers under his command.

“Captain Hicks showed great leadership to his men, we could all learn something from him. Everyone in the Wokingham Borough should be very proud and I am pleased we are able to make a fitting dedication to him.”

Wokingham Borough Council

The valuable work carried out by charity, voluntary and community groups was recognised last month (Friday October 24) when Wokingham Borough Council Mayor Cllr Pauline Helliar-Symons hosted a reception party in their honour.

Over 120 guests from around the Wokingham borough joined the Mayor at the event held at Bearwood College. Guests from a wide range of local organisations that provide care and activities for all age groups in the borough, including representatives from youth groups and day centres for older people, attended this annual event in the civic calendar. The reception gave groups and volunteers a chance to meet and talk about important matters of mutual interest as well as showing the borough council’s appreciation for all their hard work.

This year, the Wokingham Mayor has chosen two charities - LINK Visiting Scheme and Life Education - to support during her time in office. Representatives from both charities attended the civic reception - Colin Preston from LINK Visiting Scheme and Rob Hughes from Life Education.

LINK Visiting Scheme organises volunteers to offer friendship and support to the more isolated older people of the Wokingham Borough. The money raised by the Mayor will enable LINK to add extra quality to older people’s lives by organising visits to places of interest such as the theatre, garden centres, National Trust properties and other interesting locations, often including afternoon tea, as a way of giving them contact with other people.

The second charity the Wokingham Mayor is supporting is Life Education, a national charity, which is working in Wokingham Borough primary schools to help children make informed choices about healthy living, particularly in relation to drug and substance abuse.

School governors and clerks to school’s governing bodies were also honoured at the Wokingham civic reception. Some 23 local school governors received either a shield or certificate for long service or outstanding contribution to their governing body and school. School governors form the largest volunteer workforce in the UK and in the Wokingham Borough alone there are just under 1,000 school governors. Each school has a governing body which makes collective decisions and plays a strategic role in the running of the school, whilst clerks to the governing body play an important role in advising the governing body on the legal aspects of school governance.

Wokingham Mayor Cllr Pauline Helliar-Symons said: “The reception allowed me to thank all of the dedicated people who make a contribution to the Wokingham Borough in a voluntary capacity. Every single volunteer makes a tremendous difference to our lives, and to so many of our residents in so many ways. I am pleased to honour their hard work in this way.

“It was a privilege to meet a number of the borough’s governors who over the years have made an outstanding contribution to their governing body and their school. I was delighted to honour them as they work tirelessly to ensure children at their schools receive the best possible standards in education. Some of the governors and clerks present at the civic reception have completed over 20 years’ service which shows a sign of real commitment and dedication, something of which they should be immensely proud.”

Wokingham Borough Council

Following the six week public Wokingham consultation on the proposed Core Strategy - the blueprint for development in the Wokingham Borough for the next 20 years - some 14 new additional sites for development have been put forward by residents, local groups and other interested parties.

From August 20 to October 1, the Wokingham council sought the public’s views on the Core Strategy, which sets out the vision for how the borough will develop and how the council aims to protect and enhance the good quality of life enjoyed by residents.

Not only were local people, groups and other interested parties able to make representations on the proposed Core Strategy as part of this statutory consultation, they were also able to:

• Propose new additional or alternative sites for development.

• Alter the boundary and/or reasons for sites proposed in the Core Strategy.

• Submit sites already put forward to the council but not included in the draft Core Strategy.

A list of these representations is available at the planning reception, civic offices, Shute End, Wokingham, from Monday to Friday 8:30am to 5pm and on the council’s website at www.wokingham.gov.uk/ldf/corestrategy/sites.

The Wokingham council is now consulting from November 5 to December 17 on whether the Core Strategy should be changed to reflect any of these representations.
Cllr Gary Cowan, executive member for local and regional planning, said: ”We want to know what residents think about the suggested additional sites and changes to sites proposed in the Core Strategy. You do not need to resend or repeat the comments made during the original consultation period from August 20 until October 1 as these are currently with the government’s planning inspector, who will take them into account when deliberating on the Core Strategy.

“Responses from this consultation on Site Allocation Representations will also form part of the independent inspector’s assessment as to whether the Core Strategy is ‘sound’ and what sites he thinks should be included.”

Any comments on the Wokingham Site Allocations Representations can either be emailed to corestrategy@wokingham.gov.uk or sent to Core Strategy Site Allocation Representations Consultation, Development Plans Team, Wokingham Borough Council, PO Box 157, Shute End, Wokingham, Berkshire, RG40 1WR.

And if you would like to be notified of when the independent examination and adoption of the Core Strategy occurs, please make sure you add this request to your consultation response which must be lodged by 5pm on Wednesday December 17.

Further information on this consultation or other the Core Strategy in general can be obtained from the council’s development plans team on (0118) 974 6478 or by emailing corestrategy@wokingham.gov.uk.

Wokingham Borough Council

More than 400 pupils from the Wokingham Borough will be taking part in a hard-hitting drama campaign in November to take heed of the message that cars can kill.

Mayor of the Wokingham Borough, Cllr Pauline Helliar-Symons, will be helping to hammer home the message when she joins young people from sixth forms around the borough as they take part in the Safe Drive Stay Alive initiative on November 6 at the Hexagon in Reading.

Safe Drive Stay Alive is now in its third successful year and is aimed at 16 to 18 year olds in the Thames Valley area who have just passed their driving test or who are about to start taking lessons. It is a drama production with a twist as it focuses on a road traffic collision but uses images from a real local crash, which features familiar roads and nearby hospitals to make the message more real.

It focuses on the personal experiences of local Wokingham people who have been involved in a car crash and via the on-stage drama it addresses:

• The reactions of drivers and passengers in a collision

• The medical implications of a crash

• How traumas can affect day-to-day living

It also keeps the audience guessing as to which of the car’s occupants survives the crash until the end of the production.

Wokingham Cllr Helliar Symons will be attending the production on November 6 and will be speaking to youngsters afterwards about their thoughts. She said: “Over the past few years there has been a reduction in the number of young people injured or killed on the region’s roads but we must continue to educate our young drivers on the dangers of driving in an unsafe way so that casualties continue to fall.

“The Safe Drive Stay Alive production is just one way in which we are trying to get the message that ‘cars do kill people’ across. It is a harrowing production but it is distressing for a reason – and that is so that the message really does hit home. I’m looking forward to seeing the production and discussing our young people’s reactions to it.”

Julie Pillai, Wokingham road safety officer, added: “Safe Drive Stay Alive has proved a very useful way in getting young people to think about taking a responsible approach to driving, and I hope that all the teenagers taking part this year take heed of the message that cars are dangerous if used inappropriately.”

Wokingham Borough Council

Visitors to Wokingham Borough Council’s Mall Gallery can enjoy an exhibition of paintings this month (November), produced by young people from the Berkshire Adolescent Unit.

The Wokingham exhibition opens today (November 4) and is a celebration of work produced by young people from the Berkshire Adolescent Unit during the summer. They worked one day a week, throughout August, with visual artist Karen Greville-Smith, who lives within the borough. A well known local artist, Karen had one of her paintings accepted for this year’s summer show at the Royal Academy, where it was sold.

During the first session she introduced them to the work of artists Terry Frost, Barnett Newman, Ellsworth Kelly and Patrick Heron as a starting point for inspiration. In response, the young people produced a series of canvasses using acrylics. The next session they worked with rectangles of water-colour paper and Japanese paper to create patterns using coloured inks, water-colour pastels and oil pastels.

At the third session Karen gave the young people circular and square canvas boards on to which they could collage or paint using a variety of media, and at the last session they used small pieces of mounting board which they painted with acrylics and imitation gold leaf. They also used texture paste into which they pressed different materials to create different textured surfaces.

During the four week session the young people worked together as a group to produce a triptych, a panel painting which is divided into three sections, that forms the centrepiece of the exhibition.

The exhibition is a joint project between Berkshire Adolescent Unit, Wokingham Borough Council and Maiden Erlegh Specialist Arts College.

And to mark the young people’s achievements a private view event will take place on Tuesday November 11 at 6pm, which will be attended by Wokingham Borough Council Mayor Cllr Pauline Helliar-Symons. She said: “Over the past year, the Mall Gallery has hosted a number of exciting and unique exhibitions and this latest show of artistic talent is truly wonderful. The exhibition runs until November 20, so I do hope that many local people will take the time to come and view it.”

Karen Greville-Smith said: “It was a privilege to be invited back again into the unit this summer. The young people have created beautiful pieces of artwork, of which they should be justifiably proud of this exhibition.”

This free Wokingham exhibition is running until Thursday November 20 and is open for the public to view 8.30am to 5pm every weekday. The Mall Gallery is located in the Civic Offices at Shute End and is sponsored by The Cultural Partnership.

Wokingham Borough Council

A presentation will be held at Wokingham Youth Centre on Tuesday November 18 to recognise the achievement of the Africa ’08 Project group who supported and visited a township school in Cape Town, South Africa, during the summer.

The special evening will also provide an opportunity for the Africa ’08 project group to thank a number of individuals, services and organisations for their continued support during the project. These include the Gordon Palmer Memorial Trust, Finchampstead Parish Council, Wokingham Borough Council, Connexions, British Airways, the Youth Opportunity Fund Committee - which is run by young people in the Wokingham Borough, and Winnersh Neighbourhood Action Group’s Penny Bradshaw and Pat Rowell, who helped organise the fundraising band nights.

And on the night, a big thank you will also be expressed to the bands who played at the fundraising gigs, including Sister Gracie, Freestone, Streetfight Silence and U Burn First, as well as their parents and friends who came along to support and donate their money.

As well as the presentation by young people who took part in the exchange, there will be a photographic display featuring pictures from the youngsters’ trip. These photos have recently featured at the Black History Month exhibition at the Mall Gallery at Wokingham Borough Council’s civic offices. There will also be video presentations by the young people.

Richard Ferguson, area youth work manager for the Wokingham area, said: “This was an excellent project, allowing young people to learn and develop themselves. It has increased their awareness of the needs of others in their own and other countries. Their personal growth has been obvious. They have maintained contact with their African counterparts and will be able to express the positive impact of the project to all who attend this presentation in November.”

Cllr Malcolm Bryant, deputy executive member for Wokingham community development, said: “Over the past year there have been so many exciting trips and activities organised by the youth service, and this particular one to South Africa saw the group of young people working hard to raise the money for their trip. They should be immensely proud of what they have achieved. It really is a great time to be a young person in the Wokingham Borough as there is so much on offer at our youth clubs.”

Wokingham Borough Council

Wokingham Borough Council has just launched its annual grant funding scheme (2009/10) for local community and voluntary organisations working hard for the residents of the Wokingham Borough.

Community and voluntary organisations across the borough have until December 1 to submit their bids for grant funding. Bids will be welcomed from community and voluntary organisations providing services such as looking after people’s welfare and offering support to those in need.

Applications should be made using the council’s grant application form, and electronic bids are also accepted.

Each year Wokingham Borough Council allocates thousands of pounds in annual grants to support voluntary work in the borough. Decisions will be reported to the voluntary groups early next year and successful applicants will receive their grants at the beginning of the next financial year.

Executive member for community development Cllr Dianne King said: “The borough council recognises the importance many of our local voluntary and community sector groups play in our community. They provide a valuable service often complementing services provided by the council and share the same community ambitions as we do.

“The council does have a limited budget, but it is important that any organisation that may be eligible under the grants scheme gets their bid in on time. We can then take the very difficult decisions on how the budget can best be allocated and we will fund projects or activities that are run for the benefit of residents in the borough.”

Guidance explaining the application process and the criteria that groups must meet to qualify for a grant as well as application forms are available from Sue Roberts in the council’s strategy and partnerships unit on (0118) 974 6016 or by email: sue.roberts@wokingham.gov.uk.Further information is also available from Voluntary Action Wokingham Borough on (0118) 912 3144.

Wokingham Borough Council

Two rising stars from Wokingham Borough Council recently shone at national local government programme competition held in Lancaster, with one of them shining even brighter than all the rest!

Wokingham Assistant care manager Laura Boughton and Wokingham job coach Sarah Griffiths joined 28 delegates from all over England. Councils from around the country nominated staff in the early stages of their professional careers and each delegate had to take part in an extensive programme of activities. Laura and Sarah were nominated by colleagues at Wokingham Borough Council and were delighted to be chosen to represent the authority.

A vital part of the programme saw Sarah and Laura each presenting a 900-word paper on a topic of their choice which had to be current or controversial. Both had to research and write the article in advance and presented the paper in front of all delegates and judges. Sarah chose to discuss ‘how people with learning disabilities are treated by society’ whilst Laura chose a subject close to her heart ‘the NHS postcode lottery’.

As well as this, they also had to take part in an in-depth group discussion exploring two topics, one based on a newspaper cutting and the other on a word. Each group had to report back with a short presentation. A lively ‘yes, no, don’t’ know debate also took place and the groups had to debate ‘would you have a go? (a reference to citizen intervention)’, ‘In combating global terrorism, is the use of torture ever justifiable?’ and ‘are schools failing our young people?’

After their hard work, Sarah and Laura were both awarded a certificate for their outstanding achievements. Following the four day conference, Sarah was crowned Local Government Young Thinker of the Year and will now go forward to the final of the Young UK and Ireland Programme in March 2009. Giving a humanitarian insight into special educational needs, Sarah’s argument paper impressed the judges who said: “The eloquence of her writing and understated passion for her cause made it accessible and compelling.”

Roy Spence, manager of Wokingham borough council’s ‘It's Working’ supported employment scheme, who one was one of three members of staff who nominated Sarah, said: “I am very pleased to see Sarah coming away from the event winning top honours. She has done herself proud and is a fantastic member of our team. As a job coach to many with a disability who need extra assistance to succeed at work, Sarah provides them with invaluable support.”

Sarah said: “It was a good chance to network with people from other councils and learn more about the art of public speaking, which I haven’t had much experience of. It was a great experience but one that really challenged and pushed me out of my comfort zone. I am delighted that I rose to the challenge. I feel really passionate about learning disabilities and I thought it would make an interesting subject to debate. It’s exciting to get to the national finals next year and although I am feeling quite nervous about it, I will give it my best shot.”

Laura added: “It was pretty tough going but it was a great opportunity and a lot of fun was had. I am very passionate about the issues surrounding health and social care, which was why I chose to discuss NHS postcode lottery, something that is close to my heart. It was an intense few days, and all of the delegates were under a lot of pressure but it was an invaluable experience and I feel a real sense of achievement.”

Laura and Sarah will be presented with an award to mark their achievements by Wokingham borough council Mayor Cllr Pauline Helliar-Symons. She said: “This is great news and I’m delighted to congratulate both Sarah and Laura on their achievements at this national programme.
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“The event is a great opportunity for personal development, particularly in terms of written and verbal communication and research. And it was good to see Wokingham Borough Council represented at the competition as it gave us the chance to show the quality of our young staff to other local authorities. Both presented well and showed great confidence in what must have been a pressurised environment. It was a very rewarding experience for both of them and I would like to wish Sarah the very best luck in the finals next year.”

Wokingham Borough Council

“Holding the ten-strong decision-making executive to account and ensuring the council’s policies and procedures will be of benefit to local residents is what I shall be doing with my councillor colleagues as chairman of the proposed new overview and scrutiny management committee.” These are the words of Cllr Liz Siggery as proposals for new scrutiny arrangements at Wokingham Borough Council are set to be discussed tonight (Thursday October 30).

The new leader of the Wokingham council Cllr David Lee pledged to upgrade and make more effective the scrutiny structure and has charged Cllr Liz Siggery with the responsibility for this. And Liz, as the leading member on scrutiny, has worked with officers to bring forward proposals that will make the council more responsive to public challenge.

In order to make scrutiny more effective and take on board best practice, the current scrutiny committee is set to be replaced with an overview and scrutiny management committee with three overview and scrutiny panels reporting to it: finance; corporate projects and service development.

And to ensure information sharing and a consistent approach, it is proposed that the current health overview and scrutiny committee continues in its own right with its chairman becoming a member of the overview and scrutiny management committee. The chairmen of the overview and scrutiny panels will also sit on the management committee.

“These forward-thinking proposals will be considered by the council tonight (Thursday October 30) and I very much hope they are given the green light,” said Cllr Siggery.

“And if they are approved, our mission will be to make a real difference to local people not only by challenging the executive, but by keeping a close eye on the council’s performance.”

If given the go-ahead, the new Wokingham 12-strong overview and scrutiny management committee will hold its first meeting on Tuesday November 18 and its role will be to:

• Hold the executive to account – by scrutinising executive decisions at different stages in the decision-making process i.e. before decisions are made, before they are implemented and after they are implemented.

• Develop and review policy – shape the formulation of key policies by examining options set against need, resources and other issues and review policies by looking at their impact on residents or the council; whether the policy’s outcomes have been achieved; whether lessons have been learnt and applied for future improvements.

• Monitor performance – focus on failing or poor performing services, those of strategic importance and/or high public interest services.

• Scrutinise external organisations – by scrutinising the work of external agencies e.g. the Primary Care Trust, voluntary, public and private sector organisations and the Local Strategic Partnership, and the impact on residents and the Local Area Agreement.

Wokingham Borough Council