TALENTED young people from across South Oxfordshire, including Thame, have been recognised for their accomplishments in art, sport and citizenship.
A total of 21 people between the ages of 11 and 18 were each awarded a certificate and a cheque for up to £250 to mark their achievements, in a special ceremony on Tuesday (25/02), hosted by South Oxfordshire District Council.
Included among the winners of this Young Achievers Scheme, which distributed £5,250 between the 21 winners, were:
Chelsie Horne from Towersey for achievements in dressage Thomas Condon from Thame for achievements in cricket Hannah Hawken from Thame who received the sports award for achievements in swimming
To qualify in the sports category applicants must have been competing at county level , whilst in the arts category there must have been a high level of commitment and skill in the chosen art form, which can be anything from photography to music. A citizenship award is awarded to young people who have made an outstanding contribution to their local community.
Nominations for the next round of awards opens on October 6, 2014. For further details and full criteria, see www.southoxon.gov.uk/grants.
Councillor Bill Service, Cabinet member for grants at the council said: “As always, it is an honour and a privilege to acknowledge the achievements our young people have made.”
“Their dedication to sport, their craft, and helping their community really is remarkable”.
WITH the new cricket season starting in April, Thame Town Cricket Club has announced that experienced Club players, Sam Lachlan and Chris Jeffcock, are to be the new Captains for the First and Second teams respectively.
Sam Lachlan
Both Captains have played for the Club since they were juniors, with Sam having played for over 20 years, and in the First XI since the age of 16. Sam replaced Mike Higgs as Captain of the Firsts during last season; meanwhile, Mike will be taking on Vice Captain duties.
Chris Jeffcock
Chris also has a solid history with the Club having played for the junior teams for many years. In recent seasons he has scored heavily for the senior teams and so he is well placed to assume Captaincy of the Seconds. Angus Lachlan and Pete Tervet will share the Captaincy duties for the Third XI.
Club Chairman Angus Lachlan, commented: “It’s great to see two players who have come all the way from the Club’s junior teams reach the top. We are very proud of developing young players and have a strong track record of promoting talented younger players into the senior teams.
“We’re thrilled that a player of Sam’s calibre wishes to remain as skipper for the Firsts while Chris’s recent performances and eagerness to gain Captaincy experience will prove to be a great asset to the Seconds. We have the best Captains in place so we are very excited about the season ahead.”
The Club is always looking for new members and is actively recruiting new players of all ages and abilities. All age groups are currently training with properly qualified coaches at Lord Williams’s Lower School Sports Hall, ahead of the 2014 season. Training will continue throughout the summer on weekday evenings at the Club’s ground at Church Meadow, Thame.
Any new adult or junior cricketers interested in playing for the Club should contact one of the following: Sam Lachlan on 07789 011971 Sally Patey, Honorary Secretary 07703 924742 Sheena Beard, Junior Secretary 07814 699519
The Club is also very keen to offer local sponsorship opportunities. For further information, contact Guy Holmes on 07740 145217.
THE people of Thame this week had the opportunity to explore career and study options at Lord Williams’s School’s Future Fest, the largest careers event in the area.
With over 80 employer representatives, training providers and colleges under one roof, current students and their parents, ex-students of the school and other Thame residents were able to get their questions answered on study pathways, career areas and job roles. Visitors were able to obtain information from employers about apprenticeship opportunities as well as attend talks on the subject given by Oxfordshire Apprenticeships and the National Apprenticeship Service.
One student commented: “This has been a really useful evening. I’m looking for an apprenticeship after Year 11 and have spoken to employers about what they have to offer.”
Many local Thame firms were represented including Atlet, DAF Trucks, Osbornes Insurance, Abbots Office Solutions, Stuart Barr CDR, Richardsons Accountants and others.
Town Cllr Mike Dyer who attented the Futures Fest, said: “It’s great to see young people talking with employers about their future career plans. We need employers to open their doors and inspire young people into their businesses.”
A complete facelift for Thame Skate Park came a step – or maybe that should be an ‘Ollie’ – closer last night, when Thame Town Council agreed to go ahead with the scheme, using the design ‘Wheelscape’ chosen by the skaters and BMX bikers of Thame.
The group of skate park users sit in the council chamber, awaiting good news from the town council about their new skatepark
The public gallery at last night’s Thame Town Council meeting, was packed with local skaters keen to show their support for the scheme, which had become necessary once the existing skate park began to show serious symptons of wear and tear. RoSPA(Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents) recently reported that the existing skate park had a life expectancy of just 12 months.
Skater, Olly Ross, said: “”We are all very excited about the prospect of this new Skatepark. Everyone loves the design and cannot wait for it to be built.”
The £250,000 scheme, which will include completely new, state-of-the-art equipment, will be partly funded by South Oxfordshire District Council and Thame Town Council and other grants are being sought. As well as providing a great recreational and sporting outlet for Thame’s young people, it is anticipated that the facility will be an attraction for skaters from other areas who will help to increase footfall in the town.
Cllr Jeannette Matelot Green, who leads the Skate park Working Group, told Councillors: “BMX is now an Olympic sport, and most Snowboarders, so successful in the recent Winter Olympics at Sochi, started out as skaters.”
Several fund-raising events are being planned for the coming weeks and there will be a big launch event once the new facility is up-and-running, expected to be by November, 2014.
DESPITE losing a day because of a pre-arranged power cut that never happend, our very own, Thame cradle of squash excellence, Racquets Fitness Centre, saw over 20 young, new squash enthusiasts being introduced to the game at this week’s half-term Squash Camp.
Racquets’ Squash Camps have been a breeding ground for many young players now competing at County, National and International levels, including Alex Noakes who has just ranked ninth in the World in the under 19’s category.
Will John, Nicholas Ratnarajah and Aisling Guerzoni, all coached by staff at Racquets, are now competing internationally and Will John currently ranks 274 in the World Mens circuit.
Aisling is ranked 44 in the under 19 girls in the Uk and Ben, 79 in the under 17’s in the Uk.
A Thame company has been the subject of criticism on social media recently for closing off its car park to members of the public, many who took advantage of its location for the Phoenix Trail. Today, the company Daf Trucks, has explained why it has taken this action.
A DAF Trucks spokesperson, Jackie Vines, told Thame.Net: “We do like to help the local community but recently we had problems with a car that turned up and then several caravans which stayed overnight and all the next day. Not only were we subjected to verbal abuse, and called the police in, but it cost us a lot of money to clean up the terrible mess that was left behind when they left.
“It is not fair to our security staff to leave it them to decide who or who may not use the car park, afterall, this was just one car at first. We do have to protect our own area of the car park and keep it clean and tidy, and so unfortunately we have had to make the decision to close it to anyone other than our staff and visitors.
“If there is an official event like a Fun Run or something, then the organisers can come to talk to us. We do want to be helpful to the community but we do have a responsibility to protect our staff and our property.”
AN amnesty of unreturned hospital equipment held outside Thame town hall, was a huge success and the organisers have expressed their gratitude to the community for its response.
Members of Thame & District Lions Club show off some of the medical equipment handed in by local people.
Jackie Willoughby, speaking for Thame & District Lions Club which organised the event, described what was handed in on Saturday (22/02): “We collected 8 Zimmer Frames, 3 Wheelchairs, 2 Commodes, 13 Walking Sticks, 14 Pairs of Crutches, many pairs of glasses, numerous hearing aids, mobile phones, batteries etc,etc,etc.
“We would like to thank the community of Thame, Thame.Net and the Thame Gazette for their support. We are hoping to repeat this event soon both in Thame and in other local market towns.”
TO celebrate the completion of the Thame Health Centre refurbishment, the Rycote Practice is holding a photography contest to select some new artwork for the surgery.
They are looking for unusual and thought provoking photographs that reflect the town and community of Thame and the surrounding area.
A panel of practice staff and Patient Participation Group representatives will select the winning photographs and the winners will be announced at the opening ceremony on March 20.
A postman from Thame is awaiting sentence after admitting stealing thousands of pounds from bank accounts using bank cards he stole from mail.
Damon Alvey, 45, of Friday Court, Thame, worked at Banbury sorting office and delivered mail in Bloxham.
At Banbury Magistrates’ Court on Friday, he admitted stealing mail between June 23 and October 16 last year, as well as four counts of fraud by false representation when he stole £4,033 from two separate people’s bank accounts.
EVERYONE in the work place knows of colleagues who suffer, or perhaps they suffer themselves, from lower back pain, neck soreness and tight muscles. These can cause misery for the sufferer and through inefficiency or absenteeism, can be costly for their employers.
Will Worley in the capable hands of Pre-Hab 1st founder, Steve Meade
Luckily, an innovative, newly established local business is on hand to help. Prehab 1st, founded by Thame duo, Stephen Meade and Andre Bozon, is aimed at injury prevention, particularly in the workplace, thereby saving businesses money.
Stephen has a degree in Sports Science and is a qualified nutritionist with a sports background, and is an experienced ‘Judoka’. He noticed how minor Judo injuries would often affect his performance at work. It was this realisation, coupled with a growing awareness of the large number of people seeking treatment for what he could see were avoidable workplace related injuries, that eventually lead to the creation of Prehab 1st.
Whilst there is a range of sometimes costly therapists to treat muscle pains, it occurred to Stephen that there is no one currently going out to companies to nip any problems in the bud.
Uniquely it seems, Prehab 1st evaluates and identifies musculoskeletal imbalances of perhaps bad posture, incorrect use of equipment etc, in order to help prevent debilitating pain and injury from taking place. Once problems and causes have been identified, Prehab 1st then prescribes easy-to-do remedial exercises or activities to address the problem. All the tests Stephen carries out, and the results, are confidential and only take around 45 minutes.
Will Worley, currently gaining work experience withThame.net, caught up with Stephen for a personal demonstration of Prehab 1st ‘s methods.
Stephen has an interesting set of kit, with various rods, charts and an iPad to accurately capture the results of the exercises. The tests are designed to measure the body’s posture, biomechanics and functional movement ability. There is inevitably some jargon to contend with, but Stephen patiently explains what everything means in layman’s terms: “Think of the posture as the body of a car, the biomechanics as its engine and the functional movement as the test driving of it. If one goes out of sync, usually the others will follow,” he explains.
During the assessment, he also details which movements he will be asking me to perform. His informative and respectful style ensures we soon establish a good rapport.
The posture test is simple enough as I stand facing in various directions against a grid on a measuring chart and have my photo taken. This identifies any tilt of the shoulders for instance, or unusual spine curvature. Second is the functional movement screening, where some of the exercises I perform are squats, steps and lunges against the measured rods. Finally, the biomechanics section tests leg length (one of mine it seems is longer than the other; nothing to worry about as it’s a more common condition than is generally realised apparently), hip flexors, back health and others with simple, painless bodily positioning.
Thankfully my results are generally good, apart from a slight tightness in the right shoulder. Stephen spotted this during the first test, and it had a slight effect on the exercises further down the line. I am prescribed a simple anti-spasm exercise, for the ‘Pec Minor’ muscle, to carry out three times a day.
It’s no surprise that this is the same shoulder that gets tense from using a computer mouse at work for extended periods. Repetitive Strain Injury (RSI) left unchecked, can be an expensive problem for businesses, to the tune of £300 million per year, according to the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy. Stephen explained that musculoskeletal injuries are a leading cause of workplace injuries and sick leave. Furthermore, he explained: “With the retirement age going up, the risk too is likely to go up. The screening will help employees stay good at the movements they need to do their job.” There’s also the constant threat to employers from the market in legal action for workplace injuries. “Staff are more likely to respond better to an employer if they see they are looking after them,” claimed Stephen.
Prehab 1st believes that all employees could benefit from screening but especially those who may already be feeling niggling pain. “If you have a bit of lower back pain it could turn into a muscle tear relatively easily, from a very basic movement. You might get someone who gets off a chair, or lifts something relatively light, and injures themselves doing it.”
However, Stephen reckons that Prehab 1st ‘s promotion of a healthy office or other workplace environment will not only mitigate these risks, but also improve productivity by up to 30%. “Any workplace environment can see long term benefits,” said Stephen. “If your posture, biomechanics and functional movement are at a good level, your breathing and strength improves, and ultimately your performance is at a better level.”
Prehab 1st wants to help businesses save money by minimising the risk of workplace related injury to their employees. Its mobile operation can go directly to any place of work to carry out the tests. “It’s easy to make the small changes to help you on your way,” explained Stephen. “Intervention and education equals prevention.”
My experience with Prehab 1st really opened my eyes to a wide-spread, but avoidable negative aspect of fitness in the workplace, a problem that the clear, personal advice necessary for a healthier, more productive working life is available here in Thame.
