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Category: Missed a ThameNews story?

  • Police urge vigilance after Thame burglaries

    OVERNIGHT between Monday, March 3, and Tuesday, March 4, a number of properties in Thame were burgled. Offender(s) gained entry to properties in Henrietta Road, Overton Drive and Hazelrig Drive. Items stolen include handbags, laptops, keys and a camera.

    Thames Valley Police Alert
    Thames Valley Police Alert

     
    It is believed entry was gained via insecure front doors or by putting an implement through the letterbox to open the door from the inside, as there were no signs of forced entry.
     
    Residents are advised to be extra vigilant and to make sure doors are locked at night, ensuring handles are pulled up if necessary to engage any multiple locking mechanisms.  When secure remove keys from the lock and place them out of view and reach of windows, doors and letterboxes.
     
    Please click on the link below to obtain further “door” crime prevention advice.
     
    http://www.thamesvalley.police.uk/crprev/crprev-home/crprev-home-iyh-doorwin-door.htm
     
    If you see or have seen any suspicious looking people or vehicles in the area or have any information relating to this message please call the police on 101.
     
    Alternatively if you have information but wish to remain anonymous, please call Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 or online @ crimestoppers-uk.org.  No personal details are taken, information is not traced or recorded and you will not go to court.

  • Foiled fraud & other news snippets

    Thame Town Hall - Image Courtesy of Mark Percy
    Thame Town Hall – Image Courtesy of Mark Percy

    AN attempt to forge cheques to try to steal money from Thame Town Council has come to light. Six attempts were made using the forged signatures of two town councillors who have long left the council.

    Fortunately, the fraud was spotted by the bank because the signatures appeared to be photocopied and the cheque numbers were far out of sequence. 

    PRIOR to considering a request for a loan from a local sports club recently, members of a town council committee were asked to leave the council chamber if they were aware of a ‘conflict of interests’ .

    The perception of a possible conflict of interests among members of Thame Town Council’s Policy and Resources Committee, arose because the President of the club in question, Chinnor Rugby Club, is Simon Vickers, who is also the head of the club’s main sponsor, Rectory Homes; the town council is currently in discussions with Rectory Homes over its proposal for a housing development on Elms Field, next to Elms Park in Thame.

    No Councillors left the Chamber and all took part in the agenda item to consider a loan of £300,000 to Chinnor RFC for an expansion project due to be finished in time for the 2015 World Cup. The Committee agreed to support the request in principle but proposed that other avenues of funding needed to be explored first, including money from South Oxfordshire’s Community Investment Fund (CIF), or from Section 106 Agreement money from Developers (contributions that can be sought from developers towards the costs of providing community and social infrastructure, the need for which has arisen as a result of a new development taking place).

    FOLLOWING a question from Cllr Mary Stiles at a recent Thame Town Council meeting, it was confirmed at last week’s meeting (Tuesday 25/02) that the council does in fact pay ‘a living wage’ to its employees. See previous report HERE 

    FOLLOWING a request for a volunteer to take over the co-ordination of Thame Tidy Day, Sue Downhill, who has recently taken the reins of Thame4Business, has stepped forward. Sue is a Co-Director of Raquets Fitness Centre, in Thame.

    The date for Thame Tidy Day this year is May 11. More details to follow.

  • Great Big Guitar Party strikes a chord

    CLASSICAL guitarists from Thame and neighbouring villages came together in Ickford last Saturday (March 2)to play at, was billed as, the Great Big Guitar Party 2014.

    guitar_party2014 (400x349)

    Amateur musicians aged between eight and 50 came from Thame, Shabbington, Ickford, Worminghall, Tiddington, Morton and Long Crendon to perform at Ickford School in front of a packed audience. The programme, which included solos, duets and numerous ensemble pieces, was performed after just a quick afternoon practice together.

    Organiser Paula Child said: “‘The Great Big Guitar Party is quite a relaxed, spontaneous event. The classical guitar is usually played as a solo instrument, so it’s great to play together. The Finale, ‘Song of the Lonely Mountains’ (from The Hobbit) was a secret until two days before, so we only had one rehearsal with the singer. The dwarf anvil-beaters came as a surprise on the night.”

    Other pieces ranged from ancient to modern: from 16th century English Airs to Sea Shanties, taking in flamenco, blues and ‘Stairway to Heaven’ along the way.

    Guitarist of the Year Awards went to Joshua Greig (Senior) from Aylesbury Grammar School, and Jack Lowndes (Junior) from Ickford County Combined School.

    If you or your child is interested in joining a classical guitar ensemble, you can contact Mrs Child on tel. 01844 201236 or pchild77@gmail.com

  • Surrealist art, economics & politics will all help Syrian refugees

    THAME’S Oxfam Bookshop has a history of finding some very rare and valuable books amongst its donations. Shortly before Christmas, the shop sold a 1912 edition of Peter Pan, illustrated by Arthur Rackham, for the asking price of £300.

    Image: For illustrative purposes only. These may not be the editions of VVV sold by Oxfam
    Image: For illustrative purposes only. These may not be the editions of VVV sold by Oxfam

    Some more recent great finds include ‘VVV’, four wartime magazines on Surrealist art, bound into a book, which was sold through Oxfam’s internet site to a customer in Japan. A signed copy of Statecraft by Margaret Thatcher, was recently sold to a customer in the Thame shop and General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money, a First Edition, by J.M.Keynes, was sold this via the internet site to a customer in the south of England, who purchased it for a birthday gift for their son who is studying, yes, you guessed, Economics!

    The Oxfam Bookshop’s Manager, Dick Jennens, said: “These three sales have generated an amazing sum of money, over £1,600, for Oxfam to use for finding lasting solutions to poverty and suffering. This amount of income will be enormously helpful for our work with the refugees from the civil war in Syria.”

    Oxfam is planning to help 400,000 refugees between January and the end of March 2014.

  • Anger over delayed removal of dumped cooking oil

    THE search is on for whoever was responsible for fly-tipping eight drums of cooking oil outside a house in Lea Park, Thame.

    Image for illustrative purposes only. These cans of cooking oil were for sale on ebay
    Image for illustrative purposes only. These cans of cooking oil were for sale on ebay

    The owner of the property fought for two weeks with BIFFA, who have the contract with South Oxfordshire District Council for the removal of waste in the district, to remove the drums of oil, but according to Thame Town Councillor, Nigel Champken Woods, BIFFA ‘were intransigent.’

    The drums were finally taken away two weeks after they were dumped and the situation is ‘being looked into.’

    Responding to Cllr Champken Woods’ question about BIFFA’s handling of the incident, posed at last Tuesday’s Thame Town Council meeting, District Cllr David Dodds, said: “They should have known better,” and added that the rule that anything dumped on a householders’ lawn or any other private property, such as a farm, is the responsibility of the owner to remove, is ‘extremely unfair’.

     

  • Thame keep Reading to a draw at Meadow View Park

    THAME United drew 2-2 with Reading Town in a close game at the ASM stadium on Saturday (01/03).

    thame_united_logo

    The visitors came into the match in sixth league place whilst Thame were seventh. The game saw the home debut of the impressive ex Marlow striker Marcus Mealing. The first half was uninspiring, but it was a different matter after the break with both sides playing attractive, open football.

    United, who were playing 4-5-1, controlled the first 15 minutes, winning six corners, but not really testing the visiting keeper. Then Reading settled and Thame were ‘on the back foot’ for a while. The visitors went ahead in the 43rd minute when a Thame clearance was deflected across the six yard box, falling to visiting striker Taylor Mitchinson, whose shot ricocheted off a defender to beat Lee Farrow. United equalised two minutes later when bizarrely a Shannon Jesson in swinging corner was caught by the visiting goalkeeper but the well placed linesman signalled that the ball had crossed the line.

    Louis Cordice came on a few minutes after the break, allowing United to adopt a 4-4-2 formation, and almost immediately, they looked more dangerous. In The 53rd minute Cordice picked up a ball just outside the box, ran to the left dead ball line, and was about to cross when he was scythed down from behind. Referee Evans rightly awarded a penalty. Mealing scored from the spot, sending Reading’s keeper the wrong way. There were chances at both ends before, with 25 minutes remaining, James Knight scored the visitor’s second goal with a powerful 20-yard shot, giving Farrow no chance. Thame played some good football as they sought the winner and Cordice, Mealing, and Matt Hall all brought saves from the keeper. It was however 2-2 when the final whistle blew and the points were shared.

    Thame United: Farrow, P Pykett, Hall, Hercules, Rhodes, Jesson (I Pykett), Connelly, West, Kedzierski (Cordice), Mealing, Rickets.

    United are without a game next Saturday (8th). The reserves however face Berinsfield in the semi-final of the Oxfordshire Intermediate Cup at the ASM Stadium (KO 3.00).

    SOURCE: Contributed – By Jake Collinge

  • Valuables stolen in car break-ins

    OVERNIGHT between Wednesday (26/2), and Thursday (27/2), entry was gained to vehicles in Chinnor and Kingston Blount, Thame.

    police-large (400x267)

    Offender(s) forced entry to a van in Greenwood Meadow, Chinnor, and stole power tools; entry was also gained entry to an insecure vehicle in Cowleaze, although nothing appears to have been stolen.

    Offender(s) gained to an insecure vehicle in Icknield Close, Kingston Blount. A mobile phone, camera and cash were stolen.

    Police are advising residents not to leave any valuable items in their vehicles overnight or when left unattended. For crime prevention advice on car security please click on the link below:
    http://www.thamesvalley.police.uk/crprev-auto-protectvehicle-car

    If you have seen any suspicious looking people or vehicles in the area or have any information relating to this message please call the police on 101.

    Alternatively if you have information but wish to remain anonymous, please call Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 or online @ crimestoppers-uk.org. No personal details are taken, information is not traced or recorded and you will not go to court.

  • Rock along to FREE gig at The Stables

    THE Stables, behind The James Figg pub in Thame, the home of Thame’s First Thursday Music Club, has a growing reputation as a regular venue for local bands and musicians to showcase their talents, and this Saturday, March 8, is no exception.

    Palahniuk
    Palahniuk

    Three talented, local bands will be ‘strutting their stuff’ as we said in my day.  Sinfiction, who recently released their single, Broken Window, and Palahniuk who also had a new single released back in February, and have played live on Thame’s Radio Blackfrog.

    Also on the bill are Bucks-based Indie Rock, Pop four piece, These Certain People. The night kicks off at 7:30 pm and is FREE ENTRY!

  • Glad to be Grey

    IN a show that blends nostalgia and humour, singer / songwriter Harvey Andrews celebrates the lives we have lived, bringing back memories of childhood innocence, our hopes and dreams, the realities of making a living and bringing up a family, through to the tranquillity of our later years.

    harvey_andrews (350x350)

    A superb evening’s entertainment for the baby boomer generation and  beyond, which is sure to raise both laughter and tears.

    Saturday, March 29,  2014. Proceeds to Thame Youth Memorial Trust.

    Tickets £12.50 – Buy online and from Tickets Anywhere (01844217228)

  • Housing numbers, Children’s Centres and road repairs

    NEWS in brief from Thame’s County Councillor:  IT is to be ‘business as usual’ for Thame’s and the other Oxfordshire Children’s Centres, following a £3m cut in their budget by Oxfordshire County Council.

    The centres will however, be expected to achieve economies, Cllr Nick Carter told Thame Town Council at their meeting on Tuesday.

    He also warned that the new SHMAR (Strategic Housing Market Assessment Report) due in a few months time, could mean higher new house building numbers for South Oxfordshire, which could effect the numbers Thame’s Neighbourhood Plan has been based upon.

    pothole

    Cllr Carter also warned that it could be some time before the very badly degraded road surface on the road between Thame and Chinnor, following flooding, is repaired. “Economies across the whole county are going to have to be made, and roads must take their share,” he said.