Category: Thame news

AN application to make lawful the use of a closed village pub near Thame as a private house, has been rejected by Thame Town Council.
The daughter of the pub’s owner, Mr A Brunner, has apparently been living in what was The Royal Oak in Moreton, near Thame, for two years, despite a previous planning application for change of use to residential being rejected by the planning authorities.
Almost half the residents of Moreton itself attended that original planning meeting of Thame Town Council, to protest at the loss of what they saw as, the social hub of village.
Poor trading performance forced the closure of The Royal Oak in 1999.
At a meeting of the town council’s Planning Committee yesterday (04/09), Cllr David Dodds questioned whether the business has been marketed as a pub for the required amount of time required by planning policy, before the decision to apply to turn the building into a private house, was taken.
Cllr Richard Walker, himself a pub Licensee in Thame, said that in his opinion The Royal Oak was mis-managed and that if the business had come up for sale, he would buy it himself.”
The committee concluded that it did not agree that the use of the building as a single dwelling house, was ‘Lawful Development.’

NB A Lawful Development Certificate is a statutory document “confirming that the use, operation or activity named in the document is ‘lawful’ for planning control purposes,” i.e. it provides protection against subsequent enforcement action being taken against the use that had been confirmed as ‘established.’

A planning application to demolish the Essex Road Hotel, in Thame, and replace it with two apartment blocks, has been unanimously rejected by the town council’s Planning Committee.
Thame Town Council tried to get the Victorian building Listed, but failed, despite an Appeal. It was originally built as the Railway hotel when the railway came to Thame, but it was subsequently decided to site the station further along the line (now the Phoenix Trail).
Cllr Nicola Dixon said that she had been to look at the site and was of the opinion that the proposed development would be too cramped. “Also,” she added, “there is bound to be increased traffic on the Chinnor Road, especially at its juction with Essex Road, already a death trap.”
The committee unanimously recommended refusal of the application on the grounds that it would be:
1. Unneighbourly
2. Over-development of the site
3. Out of character with the area
4. Traffic generation, parking and safety on an already very busy corner.

ONE of Thame’s District Councillors has warned that the district’s Council Tax Bill could rise by

ALL livestock classes in this year’s Thame Show have had to be cancelled, but the show’s organisers are determined that the show will still be able to offer a great day out for visitors.
The organisers of the annual Oxfordshire County and Thame Show, said: “Following the recent outbreak of ‘Foot and Mouth’ in the Surrey Area, the organisors of the Thame Show, have been in constant touch with DEFRA regarding our livestock section for the 2007 show. As the movement order for Animal Gatherings has not been lifted at this present time, The Committee have regrettably decided to CANCEL ALL LIVESTOCK classes for this year.
“The rest of the show will still be going ahead as planned and we hope that everyone will come along and have an enjoyable day.”
The main attraction this year will be the Musical Ride of the Household Cavalry, which will perform in the main ring. Other attractions for the whole family include displays of entries to the vegetable, fruit, flower and domestic classes; exhibition rabbits, caged birds and pigeons, an extensive craft market and trade stands from all over the country.
Visit the Thame show’s own website

for up-to-date news, timings and ticket information.

A NEW report, to be presented to South Oxfordshire District Council, has looked at the effectiveness of CCTV cameras, including those in Thame’s town centre.
The report shows that the 16 Thame cameras were involved in 121 incidents between April 2006 and April 2007, including incidents involving disturance, anti-social behaviour and those involving drugs.
Some of the incidents were following requests from police officers for camera operators to focus on incidents and others were picked up by the monitoring operators themselves.
As the year progressed, there were an increasing number of searches of recordings, following requests from the police, and a steady increase in the use of filmed material for use in evidence packs to be used by the police.
The report will be used to analyse the effectiveness of CCTV against crime and reducing the fear of crime, and used to reflect and see how improvements can be made.

OXFORDSHIRE’S top police officer has spoken out in support of Police Community Support Officers following a report in the Oxford Mail that PCSOs have not solved any crimes in Oxfordshire.
Chief Supt. Morley said: “The article today (30/8), which reports that PCSOs do not solve crimes, is misleading and is based on a misunderstanding of the role and the work that PCSOs do.
“Many people play a part in solving crime. Only the named police officer, who is the investigator, is formally credited with detecting that crime. It is like accusing forensic officers of not solving a crime, when in fact they play a vital part in the process.
“PCSOs contribute significantly to crime detection through their community work. Only last week in Witney, a PCSO stopped a man for cycling on the footpath. Inquiries revealed the bicycle was stolen and that the man was already wanted for a recall to prison. The PCSO called in a police officer and the man was arrested. PCSOs do not have the power of arrest, so it follows that arrests they have instigated are attributed to the arresting officer.
“I am extremely proud of the work that my PCSOs have done across Oxfordshire. Their community work is invaluable and cannot be quantified in crime detection figures.”

See the Oxford Mail’s original article. Link

DUE to a diary error, we mistakenly reported that there was to be a meeting of Thame Town Council’s Planning meeting, last night, Tuesday, August 28.
This meeting will take place NEXT Tuesday, September 4, at 6.30pm.
We apologise for any misunderstanding or inconvenience caused by this error.

WITH the future of housing development in our region featuring in the national news today, following an review by Inspectors, read this comprehensive report from the Financial Times. Link

THE Mayor of Thame, David Bretherton, has launched a photographic competition today to find an image that reflects “Life In Thame”, for this year’s Mayor’s Christmas card.
The closing date for the competition, which is open to people of all ages and levels of photographic skills, will close at 5pm on October, 2007. The judges will be the Mayor, Mayoress and Town Clerk, and they will make their decision at the town hall, on November 1, 2007.

Photographs should be original work, printed in
monochrome or colour, 7″ x 5″ or 6″ x 4″. They may be wet film or digital images (Digital images should be printed for judging but with digital format available).
Photographer?s credits will be acknowledged.

Please send or take all entries in a sealed envelope, clearly marked with your name, address and telephone number to:
Christmas Card Competition, Thame Town Council, Town Hall, Thame OX9 3DP

ON Saturday, August 25, at approximately 16:30hrs, a property in Lashlake Road, Thame, was the target of a Distraction burglary.
The aggrieved was approached in his garden by persons unknown at approximately 15:00hrs, who stated that a tree in the garden was unsafe and likely to fall down. At 16:30hrs, a noise was heard in the house and it was discovered that offenders had entered the property and stolen cash.

One suspect is described as a white male, aged 20-25yrs, thin build, short brown hair, wearing a green & brown striped pullover.

If you have seen any suspicious people or vehicles in the area, or have any information relating to this message, please call the police on 08458 505 505 and quote URN 1240 of 25/08/07.