Category: Thame news

A RUMOUR that one of Thame’s biggest employers has today made around fifty employees redundant, has been denied by the company.
Memec Europe, who are based in Thame Park Road,and who distribute semi-conductors internationally, told ThameNews today that they have put: “..45 employees ‘at risk’ of redundancy, and we will be in consultation with them for the next 30 days, by which time we shall know whether or not the redundancies will take place.”
Memec Holdings Ltd were aquired by AVNET INC, of Phoenix, Arizona, yesterday. (See http://www.memec.com/?cmd=detail&articleid=2608, for background information on the take over.
ThameNews.Net have sent the following email to Memec/AVNET, and await their reply:-

” I would be most grateful if you could forward the following questions to the appropriate person, following our information from a local councillor that MEMEC or AVNET, are to make 54 employees redundant.
I understand from you that in fact 45 employees have been put “at risk” of redundancy and that yourselves will be “in consultation” with those employees for 30 days.
Could you explain exactly what that means?
Would you mind also telling me how many employees your company has (in Thame), and the current circumstances that force you into this position i.e. market conditions, efficiency etc.
Also, what is the long term future of the Memec in Thame?
As you will appreciate, a lot of people from the Thame area work for your company so this is important news for the town, which fears the loss of so many jobs.” Ed.

A NEW Youth Cafe, where young people of Secondary school age can go after school, is to open in Thame.
This new facility, which is being spear-headed by the non-profit-making organisation, Fusion YAC, will be provided at the newly-refurbished Christ Church, in the Upper High Street.
It will be open Mondays and Wednesdays, from next Monday, July 11, between 3.30 and 6.00pm and will provide Broadband Internet, games consoles, snacks and sweets, thumping music and video editing facilities.
A similar cafe opened from today at the Granary Church in Wheatley, which will open on Tuesdays and Fridays.
Fusion relies on donations for its activities and upon volunteers to man the snack bars, etc and spokesperson, Danielle Evenhuis, told ThameNews.Net that the organisation has so far had an amazing response from volunteers but will be looking for further donations from organisations like Thame Town Council to keep the project on-going.

PLANS for Thame’s Victory Day Celebrations on Sunday, July 10, are well in hand and include a Sherman Tank and other military vehicles, a fair, war time band music and much, much more.
The full programme, which will begin after the service at 11.30am at the War Memorial, is as follows:
? 11.30 ? 12.00 Bicester band music
? 12.00 – 12.15 Marching display, Air
Training Corp.
? 12.00 ? 12.55 Local pop groups on stage
? 12.55 ? 13.10 Country and Maypole dancing,
John Hampden school
? 13.10 ? 14.00 Soundforce Band (Nostalgic
songs)
? 14.00 ? 14.30 Local pop groups on stage
? 14.30 ? 15.00 Oxfordshire Gymnastic club
Display
? 15.00 ? 16.00 Soundforce Band plays Glen
Miller

BRING A PICNIC !!

All junior and infants school pupils in Thame have been give a certificate to mark the occassion and on
the day, packages of goodies, which have been donated by Waitrose and the Royal British Letion, Thame, will be destributed to them. The Lottery Fund has assisted with the cost for the day’s events.

OVER 100 people gathered in the centre of Thame on Saturday, July 2, to add their voices to those in Edinburgh who wanted to Make Poverty History.
Wearing white Tee shirts, they encircled the Town Hall with a white band of cloth and chanted “Drop the Debt, Fair Trade, Make Poverty History!”
Passers by joined in the circle until there were people all the way round the Town Hall, holding up the cloth and chanting loudly.
“It was a rare sight in Thame!” said Margie Barber, one of the Marshalls and organisors.
“We were delighted that so many people wanted to take part” said Karen Dauncey, another of the organisers. “People kept coming up and saying how great it was to have the opportunity to do something in their own town. We wanted to offer Thame the chance to Think Global but Act local and they showed they were happy to do so”.

After the encircling black and white helium balloons were released with their messages of hope. Many people stayed to try the fun activities, including taste testings of delicious Fair Trade chocolate, bananas and biscuits, all donated by Waitrose. The most daunting activity, to try and carry a bucket of water on your head for ten paces, was only manged by a few people; many nearly got drenched when the water went flying. Tony Harrison seemed to have the knack best, walking around confidently and even turning round with the bucket still in place.

Marjorie Wyatt commented that, as a long term campaigner for Africa, she was impressed to see so many young people taking part. “Many of us were white headed” she smiled, “as you’d expect, but it was good to see the young peple there – showing their concern for the future.”

THE following statement was issued earlier today by Thame United Football Club:
“Members of staff at one of the town?s longest established organisations, the 121 year-old Thame United Football Club, were devastated this week (yesterday) when they received a visit from bailiffs acting on behalf of H M Customs and Excise. These Bailiffs had been instructed to remove goods and property in lieu of an unpaid VAT bill.
The club, which apart from its sporting and social activities hosts many local organisations including St Johns Ambulance, Thame U3A, Inner Wheel, Thame Boxing Club, the Oasis church, old peoples? activities etc., therefore anticipates a traumatic few weeks while it attempts to recover.
In the long term the club is determined to continue with its role as a major contributor to the community in Thame but in the meantime, it earnestly requests the support of its many customers and suppliers during what will undoubtedly be a difficult time.
An Extraordinary General Meeting of members has been called at the club for Wednesday, July 13, where the future direction of the club will be decided.”

Sandy Saulsbury, the club’s Operations Manager, told ThameNews: “This certainly has not been a very pleasant experience but we have cleaned up and it?s the Dunkirk spirit here.
“We are continuing to trade and opening tomorrow(Saturday) night. However, we are not taking any bookings and are taking legal advice as to how to proceed and will therefore know more next week.”

Library users across the county, including Thame, are taking part in an innovative joint promotion between Oxford Inspires and Oxfordshire County Council.
The cultural development agency has joined forces with the Council, one of its five stakeholders, to produce 50,000 bookmarks, to be distributed through libraries in July.

The colourful bookmarks are printed on both sides, one side promoting Evolving City, the cultural programme taking place in and around Oxford in 2005, which is coordinated and promoted by Oxford Inspires. The other side publicises the Oxfordshire Library Service?s new telephone and online book renewals services, which allow users to renew their books at any time of the day or night, and to access a range of other library services through the Internet.

AT around 2pm today, bailiffs moved into Thame United Football Club’s premises in Windmill Road, Thame.
Everything is being taken away including equipment belonging to other local organisations like the Oasis Church and the Thame Bridge Club who use it for their activities.
The club has been in financial difficulties for some time and has tried on several occassions to do a deal with housing developers to enable them to move to another site near Lord Williams’s Upper school. However, planning permission to build homes on the Windmill Road Site has been turned down.
Club officials were unavailable for comment this afternoon except to say that they planned to hold a committee meeting this evening to decide what to do.

Police are appealing for witnesses following an attempted robbery in Wheatley yesterday, when a man was repeatedly hit in the face with a pool cue.
At around 11pm, four men aged in their early twenties were at the top of Church Road, near to the telephone box, when they were approached by four males. One of the offenders was carrying a pool cue and when another demanded the men to hand over their mobiles and they refused, he repeatedly hit one of the men in the face and head with the cue. Another man was also injured.

Det Con Carron Chesterman, of Thame CID, said: ?This was a vicious, unprovoked attack. The men were heading home from The Railway pub where they had spent the evening.

?The man who was hit with the pool cue went to the JR2 Hospital where he received 19 staples in his head and received treatment to injuries to his nose and jaw.

?I appeal to anyone who saw a group of youths in the area with one carrying a pool cue in Wheatley last night, or witnessed the incident to contact police immediately.

?The offenders were seen leaving the scene of the incident in a red car and a turquoise car, possibly a Metro.?

The offenders were white and aged in their late teens. The youth carrying the pool cue was around 5ft 6ins, medium build and was wearing a light coloured tracksuit.

One was around 5ft 10ns, skinny and was clean shaven. He was wearing a light coloured Adidas tracksuit top and trousers and a black baseball cap.

Another was around 5ft 6ins, medium build and was clean shaven.

The fourth offender was around 6ft, medium build, with brown gelled hair with a centre parting. He was wearing a white track suit with blue and purple stripes down either side of the torso.

Anyone with information that could assist police inquiries is urged to contact Det Con Chesterman at Thame police station, via 0845 8 505 505. If you don?t want to speak to police and don?t want to leave your name contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

A THAME shop became the victim of a walk-in thief yesterday, when almost

THE four initial concept plans for the Thame Cattle Market site, can be viewed on line.
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