faringdon-online community web site home	talking points
	september - december 2003

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Christmas Vandal -27/12/03 Sometime during Boxing Night some Christmas decorations in Faringdon were vandalised. This was not a difficult operation and it required no great physical or mental powers. It is obvious that whoever did this shouldn't be blamed as he must be suffering from some form of mental illness and he must be pitied. But I find it hard to believe that he was alone. He probably had a minder, who must have been aware of what was going on but was unable to control the poor man. This message is for the minder. I can sympathise with your predicament as your patient may well appear fairly normal some of the time. However should he cause more damage or injury in the future the responsibility will be yours not his. Please, if you have any feelings at all for this poor unfortunate, try to get him to seek professional help. Concerned

Star of Wonder - 27/1203 Thanks to Peter White for the impressive star on the Folly Tower It is only through his initiative and hard work that there is electricity in the Tower that enables it to be lit each year. I'm not sure who funds the work or the electricity each year- but I suspect it's Peter White THANKYOU Gene Webb

Irritated of Faringdon - 27/12/03 We know that the Vale of the White Horse Council isn't perfect. The Bank Holiday changes to the rubbish collection schedule are such that there is maximum pain for everyone - everyone's dustbin day changes over Bank Holiday times. I understand this is so that it is fair for everyone!! BUT - they do tell us well in advance of these changes. However many local residents still put their rubbish bags out at the normal times - having the effect of cluttering the streets over a holiday period - a time when we have visitors to the town. Not a good impression Please, please,do look up when your changed day is and put the rubbish out for this collection time Name supplied

Merry Christmas!!!!! - 23/12/03 Hi Gene I know you're a busy girl and at this time of year you will be very busy wrapping presents, planning who sits where in order to reduce the inevitable friction associated with family parties and rushing out to get extra Christmas Cards for the people on your 'Damn we haven't sent them one ' list. I have just checked the Website thinking to find a cheery festive greeting and what is your thought for the day ? Street Cleaning ! So on the day before Christmas Eve I would like to say to all Faringdon-Onliners and to you and your fellow faringdon.org helpers: Happy Christmas and all the best for 2004 Harry. G.Mitchell Thanks Harry - Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you and thanks for all your contributions Merry Christmas and Happy new Year to everyone else too!! GW

Parking again - 24/12/03 I moved to Langford House recently, and was shocked by the chaotic parking situation in Gloucester Street, and the speed at which cars and vans, etc., hurtle down to the town centre. Noticing the street was a major pedestrian thoroughfare to and from the town centre, a school and a library, I wrote to councillor Jim Moley on the 25th November, 2003 voicing my serious concerns. I said that the street is an accident waiting to happen because of the number of children who use it, and the restricted views for both pedestrians and drivers caused by the line of parked cars. I asked for "real" traffic calming measures to be installed, viz. speed bumps and carriageway constrictions, as they have at, say, the bottom end of Corn Street in Witney. I haven't received a reply yet, but I have noticed the correspondence here about residents' parking in Gloucester Street, and I hear talk of enlarged buildings and new flats being built in the area, which will add to the parking problems (and which I knew nothing about). Though I'm new to the area, I do think that the residents need to come together, to do some "joined up thinking" about the whole issue of traffic in Gloucester Street- public parking, residents' parking and speeding. I believe any fair minded person would agree that residents should as far as practicable have allocated parking spaces, with visitors using the public car park, but I think it necessary that traffic calming be installed, too. The lack of the former will result in frustration and inconvenience for residents, and perhaps a degree of resentment towards those who habitually use the parking spaces outside of their properties; but the lack of the latter will lead to an increase in the current mix of speeding cars, school children and severely restricted visibility and by the laws of probability will eventually lead to a fatal accident. Name and Address Supplied

Street Cleanliness - 22/12/03 I wrote to VWHDC to say that our streets are not as clean as they were (new contract started in October 03) This is the reply I received:- "Thanks for your observations. We have experienced a slight delay in making the improvements to street cleaning we expected with the new contract, due in part to the departure of key members of staff both from the Vale and Cleanaway. That said, we have a new monitoring officer starting with us on 5th January to cover the North Vale area, including Faringdon. This, together with the appointment of a new Area Manager based at Cleanaways new depot will allow more focused inspections and I am confident that standards will improve as a result. The Applied sweeper (aka the "green machine") should be deployed in Faringdon every Thursday. We are being told that is the case and our new monitoring officer will be asked to verify this once she starts. The street cleaning standards and schedules are currently being modified from the original Biffa versions and updated maps and schedules will be distributed to the Town Council for display soon after the Xmas break. I would also hope to get this info on our website in the near future. I will relay your concerns to the supervisors and managers at Cleanaway and request that they raise these issues with the local operatives" Sounds as if they're on the case - but I think we need to be vigilant in letting them know where standards are not met. In the past the assumption has been that if we don't complain we must think its OK!! Gene Webb

Parking again!! - 16/12/03 We read your comments about residental parking on Gloucester Street. I tried to get a sensible answer from Oxford, Vale of the White Horse and Faringdon Town Council on how to apply for residental parking in Swan Lane, nobody could give me a good answer. The only suggestion was to bring it to the attention of our Politicians. Parking for us residents at Swan Lane becomes every day more and more difficult, especially now with the change of Faringdon Hotel from Hotel to 9 flats and 1 business, the start of building 66 apartment and houses in Swan Lane on 05.01.04 (construction will go on for 50 weeks) and the work on Market Place. Maybe we should pass a petition around for all households on streets which have no parking facilites like yours, ours and more likely others. Charlotte Rawson

Parking in Church St - 16/12/03 Just wanted to respond to the parking issue.....I think Church Street residents need to think about residents parking too because we already struggle to park outside our homes & are bound now to become a haven for those fleeing the Market Place restrictions. Who/Where's the best place to ask? Faith Mitchell

Residents Parking in Gloucester St - 16/12/03 A group of residents have got together and requested that parking for residents in Gloucester St is improved. You can see their findings in Parking in Gloucester Street(Word document)

Market Square parking - 16/12/03 I hadn't realised that a 30 minute free parking scheme was being suggested for the Market Place and feel it is too short. It takes my wife almost that long to choose a shopping trolley. However it is encouraging to see that some interest is being shown in the problem. Unfortunately it is not just a case of encouraging drivers to use the existing carparks because they are almost always full and the only area near the town centre not fully utilised is the Police Station Carpark. Any resident parking scheme would be almost impossible because I am sure there are more cars than prospective places and it would seem that almost any scheme would have to make allowance for the ubiquitous builder's skip. Harry Mitchell

More Parking Just as an adjunct to the previous letter, I noticed this in the guestbook of the Virtual Tour ( www.the-virtual-tour.co.uk ) of Faringdon town centre "For me, a Faringdon Resident, the Tour is very interesting but for Faringdon Expats the Virtual Tour must be fascinating. It even gives the impression that there really is room to park. Congratulations." Seriously, though, a large part of the problem is in the myopia of our town planners and our council representatives' willingness to allow planning permission for property development within the town centre. There have been a number of small sites adjacent to the streets where on-street parking is chaos, but intead of these being designated for residents' parking, they invariably gain planning permission for small housing developments, thereby adding to this predicament. All areas like Faringdon, with streets of cottages/small houses, - now often occupied by two/more car families, have this difficulty, and it is obvious that no landowner is going to sell land for parking when there is far more money to be made out of housing. The answer therefore must lie with the planning regulations and the relevant councils' awareness to understand the effect on the quality of life for all of us, plus the nerve to do something about it. Hilary Taylor

Open letter to Thames Valley Police, Chief Constable- 13/11/03 Dear Chief Constable, I feel impelled to write to you to express my pleasure at the lifting of parking restrictions in Faringdon. This is a pleasure which I am sure is shared by all other car owning Faringdonians. The knowledge that we can park our cars without let or hinderance adjacent to, on, or straddling yellow lines - single or double- is a great source of relief to us all. Equally it is a relief that we can park in the various zones marked 'no parking' such as the bus stop zone outside the Old Town Hall, and most convenient of all, on the pavements throughout the town. The lifting of all these restrictions is a most imaginative action. It relieves us of the hassle of finding a car parking space ,or of having to use the town's car parks which cost money to use. I expect you have come to your wise decision on the basis of reports from your officers who must have told you that although most of the streets are normally completely cluttered up with cars both day and night, and have been for some years, the town has so far not experienced a complete shut down. There is I feel only one situation in which you could think of taking some action and that is with those inconsiderate people who stick 'Pavements are for People' labels on our car windscreens when we park on the pavements. Of course the cars cause an obstruction to a few people but most of us can deal with complaints from the elderly in their battery propelled buggies - a rude word with a tinge of aggression is usually enough. With young mothers with push chairs - one normally suggests that it would be better for their health if they carried their babies in their arms, and even with the visually impaired - one just suggests that they can walk in the road and listen out for oncoming traffic. What these label stickers do not seem to realise is that our cars are our pride and joy, that they have a high aesthetic value, that we put much elbow grease into polishing them, and that most of us have borrowed a lot of money to buy them and have to pay the banks a lot of interest just to keep the loans going. To have a nasty little label stuck on one's windscreen is deeply upsetting! This is perhaps our only grumble in what I hope you will accept as an appreciative letter. We hope that we can now look forward to a bright yellow sticker to go inside our windscreens with the words 'Faringdon resident: exempt from parking restrictions.' in our forthcoming Christmas mail. Yours in appreciation, N.J.Snelling A Faringdon resident.

Pump House update - 12/11/03 The Council met to accept that Lord Faringdon's proposal - in the form of a draft order- should be agreed. During discussion it became apparent that the draft order had not been considered in detail by the Pump House working party- they appeared to be relying on their solicitor to do this and advise accordingly. They agreed it anyway. I asked again that they inform the town of the financial implications for both short and long term. This is especially important as they seem to have decided not to turn the upper floors into residential accommodation(and therefore no rental income). The draft order includes deadlines of 15/7/04 for the plans and specifications to be approved by the Faringdon Collection Trust and that the work should be complete by30/06/2005 There appears to be an issue about a rent charge from VWHDC for the use of the Corn Exchange - I've heard £17k pa mentioned. Faringdon Town Councillors are discussing this with the Vale. It is evident that they are considering moving out of the Corn Exchange to the Pump House. The Finance meeting that followed spent most of it's time picking over grant requests- total sum around £4k. The discussion on the 2004/05 budget was less detailed, and did not mention the Pump House and its costs, except to say it should defered until it is known how much is needed to be spent (out to tendersfor Ground floor, and upper floors) A fun evening!! Gene Webb

The logic of VWHDC Planners!! - 10/12/03 The VWHDC has sent me a letter confirming that the old Physio Building, now an almost completed "affordable dwelling", can be demolished in order to provide an entrance to the proposed development in the garden of 18 Coxwell Road. Kate Barker, a member of the Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee, has just revealed that the building of affordable dwellings in our area falls short of the number required to keep up with demand. Admittedly Coxwell Road has not, so far, been specifically mentioned. The old Health Centre site would have provided 10 such affordable dwellings but the Vale of White Horse Environmental Services Directorate (the Planners) has agreed to the demolition of one of them in order to "facilitate construction of private drive" The following offering sums up my view and I am certain I am not the only one to be puzzled by the committee's thinking. Ode to the Planners The old Health Centre Building is now almost complete The tasteful gables in the roof blend in..they're very neat. The topsoil that's been brought in contains no builder's rubble The gardens and surrounding lawns should thrive with little trouble So congratulations Planners you knew what you were doing When you said it would be OK to convert an ageing ruin. The Physio Department is now a cosy flat. You said it could be altered.. You can be proud of that. It needed underpinning, new doors and windows too This smart, much needed, dwelling is partly down to you. I know little about Planning..I believe what I am told. I don't pretend to understand..The jargon leaves me cold. You've just sent me a letter saying that this pretty flat Is going to be demolished.. Now where's the sense in that? H Mitchell

On Street Parking - 9/12/03 I've heard that we should expect to see the Traffic Warden around our streets far more often than we've been used to Gene Webb

COMMUNITY SPORTS LEADER AWARD - 29/11/03 Are you aged 16+? Would you like to gain a FREE nationally recognised award? The Community Sports Leader Award (CSLA) will equip you with the skills to lead sports sessions for children and young people. No prior experience is needed, just enthusiasm to work with young people and sport. Course starts: Thursday 8th January. Time: 7pm - 9pm Place: Faringdon Community College Gym For more information contact Helen Wynn (Sports Development, Vale of White Horse District Council) 01235 531197 or Rachel Kenyon (School Sport Co-ordinator, Faringdon Community College) 01367 240375

NETBALL LEVEL 1 ASSISTANT COACH AWARD Wednesday 21st January (6:30 - 9:30pm) & Sunday 25th January (9:00 - 4:30) Venue: Faringdon Leisure Centre Cost: £25 per person. For further information and to book on the course contact Helen Wynn at Sports Development on 01235 531197 or helen.wynn@whitehorsedc.gov.uk

Parking Enforcement - 29/11/03 There have been a few traffic incidents in the town recently, caused or exacerbated by illegal parking on the streets and around the Old Town Hall. Currently the Faringdon police, who are responsible for on street parking enforcement, have little or no time to work on improving the situation. We are entitiled to a share of a part-time traffic warden, based at Wantage, but often she is called to other duties, presumably seen to be more pressing than parking enforcement in Faringdon. We know parking will continue to be a problem- houses that once had none or one car now could have 2 or 3. It also seems to be the case that Planning permission for residential property does not always make allowance for enough parking space. Surely almost any property in this 21st century should have at least 2 off road parking spaces?? What do you think? What can be done? What should be done? Gene Webb

Market Square Improvements- 29/11/03 The contract has been let to Isis Accord (a contractor that Oxfordshire County uses). I understand some changes have been made to the spec as the tender was about £60k above budget. I've also heard that the surface of the area around the Old Town Hall will not happen or will be different in order to reduce cost. Gene Webb

Market Square Improvements- 15/11/03 You can see some 'pictures' and samples of the materials to be used in Faringdon Town Council Office GW

FARINGDON FOSSICKERS - 15/11/03 We - the Town Council and RIGS - have received a draft Trust document which will enable us to go ahead with the establishment of the Faringdon Fossil Trust to manage the Coxwell Rd. fossil site. We had a meeting with the Mayor,Mrs. Dee England,and Councillor Alan Hickmore on the 21st October to discuss the draft document which, subject to some very minor points was satisfactory to both sides and which will now be presented to the Town Council for final ratification (done 12/11) The Coxwell Rd. site will be gifted to the Faringdon Fossil Trust ( not the Faringdon Town Council) which will become responsible for its management. The Trustees will be two representative of the Faringdon Town Council, two members of Oxfordshire RIGS and up to three other co-opted Trustees. The powers and activities of the Trust are laid down by the Charity Commissioners, as are the duties of the Trustees. The conduct of meetings, and the presentations of reports and accounts etc are all strictly defined. Hopefully the Trust will soon be formally established and I will keep you all informed as things progress. It seems a long time now since Mrs. Mary Greetham first alerted us to developments in the Coxwell Rd site and I would like to take this opportunity to thank you all for your interest in and support for this venture. Thanks are also due to Mr. Ede of Builders Ede for his imaginative and generous donation of the site to the people of Faringdon Norman Snelling.

Faringdon Town Council meeting - 12/11/03 This was a full council meeting, attended by 11 councillors. I had hoped to hear about the Pump House and the Skate Park - but these weren't discussed. The Recreation and Open spaces minutes of 15/10/03 indicate that VWHDC Environmental Health dept have discounted Marlborough Gardens as a potential Skate Park site. 'VWHDC Officers seem fairly positive about the land adjacent to Willes Close', and will visit other skate parks in the area, and report findings within one month. The Pump House working party minutes (24/9) indicate that the refurbishment is being pursued. In public speaking time I asked that the town should be made aware of where the money to do the work is coming from and the impact on our Council tax. It seems that De Facto the consultants will receive one more months payment(£2350), and then their work will be done. The Fossil Trust will take ownership of Faringdon's SSSI in Fernham Road. Councillors agreed to the Decaration of Trust document. Councillor Hickmore and Evans are to be the FTC representatives on the group. It was agreed that Faringdon would become a Fairtrade Town. There are 5 goals - most of which are already in place. Faringdon could be the first Fairtrade town in the south east. FTC has bought advertising space on the Community Bus. This appeared to be a way to give non grant money to the bus group. FTC receive, as consultees, various documents and information from VWHDC and Oxfordshire CC. I asked them to 'think cyclist' for relevant plans such as highways, pavement, parking changes etc Oxon CC, (Judith Heathcoat) report:- JH asked that FTC encourage businesses to allow employees to be volunteer fire fighters. Anyone under 55 can put themselves forward. Hours and cover can be arranged to suit work and personal circumstances. Unless more volunteers are found, Faringdon is likely to lose its 2nd appliance. Work on the pavement surfaces on the South Side of London St is likely to take place during November VWHDC report included: Tennis club's new site has been approved by Minister of State. Tenders for Faringdon Market Place work have been returned. £63k above the original quotes was mentioned. Some minor modifications have been made. I gave up at 9.20!! Gene Webb Please do email talkingpoints@faringdononline.co.uk and tell us what you think about these or other things!!

Re Special Provision for cyclists - 5/11/03 The writer of this message (below 25/10/03) seems to be missing the reason for the popularity of cycling and hence the requirement for more consideration to be given to the safety of cyclists on the roads. Here are just a few of the benefits of cycling. Bicycles are non polluters, they produce no noise or noxious fumes unlike a car which creates a great deal of noise in order to cause considerable pollution problems. They use up none of the worlds rapidly reducing natural resources. They do not require vast amounts of road surfaces when in use nor do they require enormous car parks when not in use. The speed attained by a cyclist is proportional to the physical effort applied to two pedals not the infinitesimal pressure required on a single accelerator pedal. The list is endless but it goes some way to explaining why no government has ever considered taxing this healthy and environmentally friendly means of transport. Indignant cyclist Faringdon Community Response Team- 5/11/03 In the UK some 150,000 people die suddenly, and with little or no warning, from sudden cardiac arrest. The majority of these deaths occur out-of-hospital. There are 300,000 heart attacks occurring annually. 85% of these sudden cardiac deaths are largely reversible if treated properly within the first few minutes of the victim collapsing into sudden cardiac arrest. The only definitive treatment for this is defibrillation. The Faringdon Community Response Team is part of a Nationwide initiative designed to provide trained people within the community who are equipped with defibrillators and who give their services on a voluntary basis by attending emergency calls. We work in conjunction with the Oxfordshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust and attend heart attack victims along with the ambulance and crew. The First Responder may reach the victim quickly within a few minutes of the onset of the attack thus providing a better chance of recovery for the victim. Sadly the chances of survival of such an attack will drop dramatically by 10% with each passing minute. Unless defibrillation takes place quickly, surviving a cardiac arrest is unlikely. The Ambulance Service within Oxfordshire is probably second to none, but the help of the First Responder is essential in such a large rural community where long distances on call out exist and it is not always possible to achieve arrival within this critical time scale. What type of incident would a First Responder attend ? The First Responder 'on call' is contacted by a dispatcher in the Oxfordshire Ambulance Service controlroom and asked to attend an emergency. The type of emergency may include unconsciousness (due to an injury or medical problem), chest pain and breathing difficulties either in the home or public/work place. An emergency ambulance is always dispatched to any incident attended by a First Responder. How can you help ? Join the First Responder Scheme. Anyone can assist our First Responder scheme with administration, fund raising, support, training etc. Become a First Responder. You will be over 18 years old, physically fit and be able to demonstrate a satisfactory standard of proficiency after training. You should have a sympathetic, caring approach to people and have the ability to work as part of a team, be honest, trustworthy and reliable. Make a donation. The start-up costs for the Faringdon Team are in the region of £5000 - this includes a defibrillator at a cost of £2000. Currently, the team are operating on an entirely voluntary basis - they receive no payment whatsoever for call-outs. Donations are always welcome and you can be assured that the money will put to good use. Support and training. Following any serious incident a designated person is available to offer confidential support and advice. First Responders will meet on a regular basis, offering on-going support and training. First Responders will hold a valid First Aid certificate and be trained in Oxygen Therapy, the use of an Automatic External Defibrillator, Risk Assessment and Manual Handling. Further information. If you would like further information about the Faringdon Community Responder Team please contact: Godfrey Smith 01367 242448 Cycling in Faringdon - 25/10/03 I'm pleased to see that the rights of the cyclists are being defended. I agree that they should be given some extra help in negotiating Coxwell Road. On the pavement they are constantly impeded by thoughtless pedestrians (some of them even pushing prams) and the cars using the road must be a constant irritation. It's quite a while since I was a cyclist and perhaps you could remind me how much a Road Fund License costs for a bicycle. Someone may well tell me that sarcasm is the lowest form of wit but you will already have realised I don't subscribe to that view. Incidentally I sincerely think your website is great and I wish more people used it . So how about some input from cycling Emailers for a start? Harry G Mitchell Broadband- 25/10/03 On the 18.10.03 I had a little moan about my Broadband connection and I contacted the Freeserve support team who admitted that glitches can occur with any computer ( I already knew that) but they also stated that the 50:1 contention ratio should not be a problem. Since then I have only had one connection problem which lasted for about three hours. I am now very happy with my latest toy but I appreciated Richard's input. I would like to get the views of other Faringdon Broadband users and particularly wonder if anyone knows how many are connected to the Faringdon exchange. Harry Skate Park in Faringdon - 25/10/03 Has anyone heard anything about it?? GW Traffic Calming- 25/10/03 Oxfordshire County Council (via the Traffic Advisory Group) have been asked to make provision for cyclists when they design the traffic calming in Coxwell Road. I have also heard mention of traffic calming in Park road. I have no details, but will ask OCC to improve the provision for cyclists in this road too. Gene Webb Street cleansing in Faringdon - 18/10 03 VWHDC have let the contract to a different contractor - from 1/10/03 Cleanaway, the new contractor has a different approach to keeping our streets clean. So far I have been told:- - a litter picker (with broom/buckets etc) will clean the Market Sq by 0800, - and the streets leading to it by 0900 - after this time other streets will be done when possible. - Given it is done manually there is a hope(expectation?) that areas where cars are parked will be done too - 'Our' green Dragon, is now kept at Wantage, will come here once a week (minimum every 2 weeks in the contract) to sweep the pavements - probably the town centre, beyond that I don't know - VWHDC will monitor the cleanliness - frequency, whether on foot, or from a car( they have been known to count this as inspection!!) not known - Contingency if our man is ill or on holiday is not known. - the contract is output based - as the previous one was. VWHDC did have pictures of cleanliness levels - maybe these remain the same. - VWHDC will be monitoring the contract closely and I have heard that they may produce reply paid comment cards for us to use. The Really Good news - the man employed has been seen doing a thorough job in Stanford Road - digging out weeds, sweeping - Sounds very promising!! In the meantime, if you see a real problem I suggest you ring VWHDC 01235 520202, or email waste.team@whitehorsedc.co.uk. Gene Webb Broadband in Faringdon - 18/10/03 I'm pleased with my connection(nildram), even though there are times I cannot connect - I guess because there is contention for bandwidth. How are you getting on? Let's share our experience Gene Webb Freeserve Broadband experience I installed Freeserve Broadband on 8/10/03 on a trial basis and am far from happywith what I am getting. The installation went very smoothly but I just can't rely on it being available when I want it. As a home user I am on the 50:1 contention ratio deal but the Broadband support team assure me this shouldn't cause a problem with my connection. I connect via an extension lead which is not ideal but I'm sure a lot of computer users have to do the same and if the system can't cope with this situation I will get rid of it. I am not prepared to install a second line as this would defeat one of the advantages of Broadband i.e. the 24/7 availability without losing my ordinary phone Harry G Mitchell Faringdon's Berlin Wall - 2/10/03 As a Vale District Councillor and Oxfordshire County Councillor I should like to thank Marian Costley, Chair of South Faringdon Residents Association for bringing to the attention of the Vale the concerns of over 300 Faringon residents in relation to the fencing off of land around the garages alongside Southampton Street close to the Tennis Club. This fencing off was undertaken by the Vale Housing Association which is not now part of the District Council since being sold in 1995 by our predecessors at the District. At Mrs Costley's request I have made enquires and discovered from the Rights of Way Officer at the County Council that no legal public right of way exists over this land. However, it is clear to me that the public have used this route for many years and I am pleased to report that legislation exists which may allow the route to be formally designated a right of way which would then require the Housing Association to remove their "Berlin Wall". To achieve this a formal application needs to made, supported by written statements, that evidence that the route has been used for over 20 years. I have supplied the necessary information to start the ball rolling on this and will be more than happy to support the application when it is made. Cllr Andrew Crawford Liberal Democrat Parliamentary Spokesman for Wantage Constituency

Reunion - Faringdon Secondary Modern School 1957 - 1961/2- 2/10/03 Terry Sillence, Derk Jordan and Lesley Butler are trying to get a school reunion organised for pupils at the school between 1957 - 1961/2. 1962 was the first year that pupils from this school took GCE 'O' levels. Anybody interested please contact TerrySillence@aol.com

Southampton St path to Health Centre- 30/9/03 Are there any plans to improve the footpath from Southampton Street to the new health centre? It's the obvious route linking the town centre and the new health centre but there is a section of rough stones that make it almost impossible to push a pram or push chair across. After all the money that has been spent it seems to be a let down that the path has not been properly finished. Jenny Barrett

FARINGDON AND DISTRICT LOCAL FOOD INITIATIVE The Corn Exchange, Faringdon, Thursday October 9th 2003 7.00pm Faringdon is now a BEACON MARKET TOWN The Vale of the White Horse District Council, The Town Council and the Countryside Agency have pledged support for Local Food into schools, hospitals and military establishments CHAIRMAN Poul Christensen Board Member of SEEDA Local Farmer KEYNOTE SPEAKER Carol Parker Children's Outreach Manager Public Health - Five -a-day programme Manager 'Food For Life' SPEAKER Alun Williams Local Businessman. Chairman of the Enterprise Gateway 'The Faringdon Local Food Business Plan' SPEAKER Rupert Burr Local Farmer 'Biomass 'What's in it for the farmer?' SPEAKER Roland Bonney Director: Food Animal Institute 'How we can help ourselves' Workshop: Groups Group 1 Finding the markets. Group 2 Site for a warehouse, and small processing/catering plants Group 3 Transportation of produce A Meeting for Producers, Processors, and Consumers. Everyone is welcome SUPPER of local food and wine . Enq: Daphne Saunders

Street Cleanliness- 29/9/03 I have heard that the VWHDC street cleansing service has been moved to another contractor - from 1/10/03. It seems that the green dragon pavement sweeper will no longer be available to Faringdon on a daily basis - another town is to have it!!! Lets hope this doesn't mean that the streets will be allowed to get dirty again - as they once were before Dave was employed. I have also been told that the frequency of cleaning is not specified in the new contract - but that cleaning will take place on an as it's needed basis. I suggest we 'help' VWHDC to achieve this by reporting any litter and street cleanliness issues whenever it is necessary. VWHDC main phone number is 01235 520202 Gene Webb

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