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  • A cricketing dream comes true for Manoj

    FOLLOWING on from the start of redevelopment work at Thame Town Cricket Club recently,  comes news of a second, brand new sports ground, the culmination of a long-held dream of Thame cricket Instructor and ex-first class, Indian cricketer, Manoj Parmar, which will soon be opening in Thame, following the recent granting of planning permission for the facility, MP Cricket Academy sports field.

    Manoj Parmar proudly surveys the site of his new sports field

    Providing a total 12 Acres of land for cricket and sports, the new sports ground will be officially opened on Sunday, April 22, 2018 in the Afternoon.

    Manoj Parmar is a ex first class cricketer in India and Oxfordshire a member of the MCC and is a qualified ECB level three coach. He told Thame.Net: “I have been passionate about cricket for 34 years  and am dedicated to passing on my knowledge and expertise to youngsters of all ages from under 5s to under 19s.”

    Manoj’s MP Cricket Academy has planning permission at the Kingsey Road, Thame, site for two cricket pitches, a new pavilion, four cricket nets and parking for 30 cars.

    Manoj continued: “The facility will provide cricket for the kids of Thame and all surrounding areas and villages. After academy age of 19, they can join any local cricket club, to help the English heritage game of cricket remain alive. Children will now be able to play cricket on Saturday and Sunday. Now junior cricket teams can visit the academy in Thame to play matches and learn from all different parts of the UK and the rest of the world.”

    MP cricket academy’s detailed timetable for all age groups will be published soon on www.mpsportscricketacademy.co.uk

    Manoj concluded: “I would like to pass on a special ‘Thank you’ to Thame Town Council, SODC and all councillors, Joe Middleton and planner, Jake Collinge, for making this all possible. And, we have just received a letter of  congratulations from our MP John Howell.”

    With these two fabulous cricket institutions going from strength to strength, perhaps a cricketing hero or two of the future will be nurtured here in Thame.

  • FREE female squash sessions to celebrate International Women’s Day!

    RACQUETS Fitness Centre in Thame, will be celebrating International Women’s Day tomorrow, March 8  by offering FREE female squash sessions for those women and girls to have a go at the game of squash.

    Girls Squash Session 5pm-6pm,  and Ladies Squash Session 7pm-8pm.  To book a place, email info@racquets-fitness-centre.com or call 01844 261754.
    www.racquets-fitness-centre.com

  • Appeal: Do you have reason to miss Thame hospital’s lost beds?

    SAVE Wycombe Hospital campaign leader, Ozma Hafiz, is appealing for stories from patients who would have been using beds at Marlow and Thame Community hospitals. Overnight beds were closed in April 2017 for a ‘community hub’ pilot.

    She said: ”I’m deeply concerned about where patients who would have used the wards at Marlow and Thame hospitals are. A War Veteran had to fight not to be sent to a care home 30 miles away. I worry for patients who won’t be able to challenge things. Time was also spent in Wexham Park which could have been avoided had he been cared for at Marlow Community Hospital. Closures of beds at Wycombe and Marlow have contributed to a severe bed shortage in Bucks, which has resulted in patients being affected nationally. Beds needed for National Spinal Injury Centre patients are being used by general admissions.”

    Marian Mulady from Marlow said: ”My husband recently died from kidney failure after several months of increasing disability. Had Marlow Hospital still been open that was where he should have been, but as things now are he remained at home with the help of paid private carers and nurse back up from a charity.
    The District nurse team is under great strain due to the inability to recruit sufficient nurses so there was very little support from that quarter.

    “There were times when I felt overwhelmed but we both had to soldier on. The so called ‘hub’ has yet to achieve any community support from demonstrable success whereas the beds are sorely missed.”

    Health campaigner, Linda Derrick, said: ”My best analogy is with lung cancer. It is right that we spend resources discouraging people from smoking. However, we still have to spend resources diagnosing and treating lung cancer for a long time yet. There would be an uproar if we decided to increase resources on discouraging smoking at the expense of resources on treating lung cancer but this is what these transformation programmes are all about. We are cutting essential services before the benefits of the preventative services can feed through.”

    Ozma added: ”How are GPs replicating the daily ward rounds that these inpatients had, when they are currently under so much strain? I also worry for carers, many of them are elderly themselves and have their own health conditions. If we really care about prevention, the overnight beds wouldn’t be closed. I worry for the voices we won’t hear but hope some people will be able to come forward with their experiences. Where are the patients who would have used these much used and needed Marlow and Thame beds?”

    Thame Town Council, Cllr Nigel Champken Woods, recently told fellow councillors said that since the changes at Thame hospital, the number of ‘bednights’ at Wycombe and Stoke Mandeville hospitals had reduced. LINK HERE

    Stories can be sent to savewycombehospital@live.co.uk People are also being encouraged to send their concerns to their politicians and the ‘Scrutiny Committee’ at Bucks County Council.

    NB You can read about the recent changes to services from Thame Community Hospital HERE  back stories  HERE 

  • Thame restaurant admits food hygiene lapses & obstructing inspectors

    A Thame restaurant has been fined £35,000 after inspectors found opened chutneys and naan dough in a rat-infested cellar, and for obstructing hygiene inspectors.

    The Star and Garter restaurant in Thame

     

     

     

    At Oxford Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday The Star and Garter in Wellington Street, Thame pleaded guilty to 11 charges, including failure to comply with EU food safety and hygiene regulations and obstructing hygiene inspectors.

    When inspectors visited in March last year, they found evidence of an infestation of rats and the restaurant was ordered to stop using its food storage area.

    But when they revisited the following day, inspectors found the prohibition notices covered up. Later that week officers were satisfied things had improved and allowed them to use the food storage area again.

    In recent weeks, the restaurant has been inspected again and awarded a three-star rating out of the five possible.

    Magistrates were told that the restaurant managers had not taken adequate procedures to control pests and that debris, dirt and grease and rat droppings had been found.

    One of the charges read: “You failed to protect food in the rear storage area from contamination, there was a box of fresh ginger on the floor, next to the box there was a tray a naan dough covered with cling film next to a rat trap.

    “Raw chicken was being defrosted in a dirty sink, and raw chicken was being prepared in the rear storage area where there was evidence of rat droppings on the floor.

    Another charge read: “There were boxes of open salad, prepared vegetables, and open trays of chutney in the cellar, where there was evidence of a rat infestation and the presence of rat droppings.

    “You failed to ensure that the food premises were kept clean and in good repair and condition, in that there was an accumulation of debris rat droppings and extraneous matter throughout the food storage area and an accumulation of food debris, dirt and grease under the cooking range and work preparation unit in the kitchen area.”

    Staff had covered up its ‘Hygiene emergency prohibition notice’, which officers had fixed to the front and rear doors of the restaurant.

    At the hearing on Tuesday, February 27, the company pleaded guilty to all counts and was fined £35,000 plus £2,071 costs and a £170 victim surcharge.

    The most recent inspection, on January 10, rated the curry house ‘fair’ when it came to food hygiene and safety structural compliance.

    SOURCE: Oxford Mail

  • £¼ million grant for Thame Sports Club

    THAME Bowls Club and Thame Tennis Club, which together are Thame Sport Club, are celebrating after learning that South Oxfordshire District Council has awarded Thame Sports Club a grant of £250,000 which will help to provide a new building for the whole community to use.

     

    Thame Sports Club’s clubhouse doubles up as a community building where many other groups meet to take part in a variety of activities including whist, art, wine appreciation and toddler groups.

    The South Oxfordshire District Council Capital grant will make up over 45 per cent of the estimated total project cost of £554,000. The sports club has now raised around 70 per cent of the total cost and the sizeable funding from the council will make it much easier for the club to attract the final 30 per cent.

    The grant was agreed by the capital grants panel and has now been given the final stamp of approval by South Oxfordshire District Council cabinet member for community services, Cllr Lynn Lloyd.

    Cllr Lloyd said: “I am absolutely delighted that we were able to make such a substantial contribution towards the rebuilding of the clubhouse, which has been a part of Thame for almost a century.

    “However, all those years of use have taken their toll and a full rebuild will make it a wonderful community hub for generations to come.

    “I hope that our contribution will encourage other funding organisations and local residents to support them. I also hope the new building means that people in Thame will continue to have great place to meet for decades.”

    The original part of the clubhouse was built in the 1920’s and is in poor condition, especially the roof and much of the woodwork. Also, because it has little insulation it is expensive to heat during the winter months.

    The club has, in their own words, “…an ambitious project to demolish it and to replace it with a modern pavilion”.

    The new designs could mean that the clubhouse could accommodate indoor bowling which means the Bowls Club could join the local winter leagues, increasing participation numbers during winter months.

    The rebuild committee is aiming to start building in October this year with completion by the end of March next year.

    To see the sports club’s plans on the Thame Sports Club website HERE

    SOURCE: Press release

  • All Thame Schools will be closed today!

    WITH further snow forecast, freezing temperatures and hazardous driving conditions, all of Thame schools have announced that they will be closed today.

     

     

    In a post on the its facebook page, Lord Williams’s School explained: “Lord Williams’s School is closed for all students tomorrow and the Dance Show tonight.

    “We have heard from a number of bus companies, that because of deteriorating road conditions, they are not running services tomorrow. In addition, we have had messages from parents and staff about worrying road conditions currently. With more snow forecast this evening and freezing temperatures there would be significant safety issues for all concerned.”

    The bus company, Arriva The Shires, are recommending that passengers check with its Facebook page for regularly updated travel bulletins: Depot teams will be out assessing roads early in the morning, and Arriva says it will aim to operate all services but the weather may cause delays and disruption in the morning that can’t be predicted.
    https://www.facebook.com/arrivatheshires/ and on twitter @arrivatheshires

    Chiltern Rail have published no bulletins so far, but any disruptions may be reported on the website: https://www.chilternrailways.co.uk/ or for more immediate warnings, follow @chilternrailway on twitter.

    Thame and District Day Centre will be closed today.

    Thame Town Council has issued its advice for coping with snow and ice and some useful links. CLICK HERE

  • Theo Paphitis presents Thame photographer with business award

    THAME based portrait photographer, Mark Hewitson, followed up on his Small Business Sunday twitter win when he met Theo Paphitis in Birmingham on Friday, February 23.

     

     

    Mark, who owns Mark Hewitson Photography in Thame, was selected by Theo Paphitis in June 2017, when he sent a tweet to the Dragons Den star as part of his Small Business Sunday initiative. The tweet about Mark’s business was retweeted by Theo to his 500,000 Twitter followers.

    As a result of being part of the SBS family, Mark was invited to attend an exclusive winners event in Birmingham on Friday. As well as attending several seminars, part of the event involved meeting Theo and being presented with his certificate.

    Theo Paphitis, Chairman of the Theo Paphitis Retail Group that encapsulates the Ryman Stationery, Boux Avenue and Robert Dyas brands, revealed at the event that only 0.68% of the 329,000 SBS entries since the inception of the award in 2010 have been chosen as winners.

    Mark said: “Since winning SBS last June, I have seen an increase in both business headshot bookings as well as twitter followers. The event on Friday was a fantastic day which gave me many great ideas for taking my business forward in 2018, and concluded with me chatting to Theo about my business. I feel honoured to be part of the select group of winners of this exclusive business award.”

    Mark has a reputation for creating beautiful family and pet portraits and can be contacted via his website at markhewitson.co.uk or on 01844 278015.

    Anyone looking to be part of the #SBS family should tweet Theo @TheoPaphitis about their business on Sunday between 5pm and 7.30pm and include the hashtag #SBS. Six lucky businesses are re‐tweeted every Monday at 8pm and then reap the benefits of the #SBS networking opportunities.

  • Invitation from Listed historic house and garden

    TURN End is a RIBA award winning group of three houses and a garden in the heart of Haddenham, designed by architect Peter Aldington. It is widely regarded as a fine example of post-war housing design. In November 2017 Historic England listed Turn End’s garden at Grade II and added it to the Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in England.

    Turn End Trust runs an events programme which includes education, creative and community led events appealing to architecture, garden design lovers and those who care about good design in the area. visit the What’s On page: https://www.turnend.org.uk/new-events/ for full details and online bookings at http://turnendtrust.eventbrite.com

  • Over 40 miles of swimming raises funds for grief support charity

    DURING the sixth Thame Swimathon, that took place at Thame Leisure Centre on Sunday, February 25, an incredible 2,640 lengths were covered by the teams that took part – that’s 66 kilometers – almost 41 miles! And so far they have raised over £4,000.

    The sponsors of the Swimathon, organised by Thame Rotary, were Thame Leisure Centre, Haddenham Beer Festivals Trust, Aston Hearing, and Ignite Sport. Their contributions covered most of the costs, so that more money could be directed towards Thame Rotary’s chosen charity, SeeSaw. Volunteer support was given by Thame Lions, Thame Inner Wheel, Princes Risborough Rotary, Wheatley Park School Interact Club as well as family members and friends of Thame Rotarians.

    The four teams from Barley Hill School proudly show their certificates

    Tom Wyse, the Mayor of Thame, awarded medals to the swimmers in recognition of their fundraising and physical efforts. Tom said afterwards: “I really enjoyed visiting the Swimathon on Sunday. It was a great event to raise money for the charities. I wish I had the energy that all those swimmers possessed!”

    Jo Sackett, of Barley Hill School PTFA, who recruited four teams of pupils, said: “It is such a pleasure to organise teams to take part in this wonderful event. Everyone is so enthusiastic; we raised an amazing amount of money and the children love every minute of it. We are very proud of all of them and can’t wait for next year!”

    Thame Swimming Club participated with 10 teams. Will Hard, Thame Swimming Club’s Communications Manager, added: “Our swimmers had great fun today at the Rotary Club of Thame Swimathon, whilst raising money for a worthwhile charity. Thank you to the Rotary Club for running such a well organised event. See you next year!”

    Pete Quartly participated with his family for the first time. He said: “This was a fantastic event; run very slickly, and massively enjoyed by the family. We will be there next year.”

    Marius Ciortan helped to organise and promote the Thame Swimathon. He said: “Most of the teams have taken the option to allocate 50% of the money raised towards their favourite cause, and 50% towards Thame Rotary’s main local charity, SeeSaw. John Singer, President of the Rotary Club of Thame, added: “It’s been another highly successful fundraising Thame Swimathon. Everyone involved on Sunday seemed to be having a great time with plenty of enthusiastic support from family and friends – a really great advert for the communities of Thame and its neighbouring villages.”

    The public has until March 5, to support the teams with their online fundraising. The links to the My Donate page can be found via www.thame.rotary1090.org

    More photos taken at Thame Swimathon can be found on www.facebook.com/thamerotary

  • Who’s your Thame hero?

    YOUR nominations are needed for the tenth Thame Town Awards. There are people all around Thame who help their neighbours, support local groups or go out of their way for others to make our community a safer, more vibrant and happier place to live. In

    The Town Awards scheme has been recognising and celebrating those
    exceptional people in our community for ten years and each year, members of the public are invited to nominate their local unsung heroes for a town award.

    Nominations are needed this year for individuals and groups who have made a special contribution to life in Thame. This could be a volunteer, a teacher, a shop assistant, a friend, a teammate, a doctor, a committee member – the list is endless!

    This year there are five categories in which you can make a nomination:
    Sporting Achievement (sponsored by Thame Leisure Centre)
    Do you know someone who deserves a gold medal for their commitment to a sports club in Thame? Perhaps a player or team who excels in their sport or someone who goes above and beyond to support their team from the side-lines.

    Volunteer of the Year (sponsored by Thame Freight Services)
    Thame thrives on those individuals and organisations who selflessly give their time to help others in our community. From event organisers and fundraisers to friendly neighbours and volunteers, there are plenty to choose from but who do you think deserves to be awarded Volunteer of the Year?

    Lifetime Achievement (sponsored by the Town Awards Panel)
    This award is for those in our community who have made a significant contribution to Thame over an extended period of time. A friendly face who is always supporting
    community events and local causes, or perhaps someone who has provided many years’ service to an organisation or business in our community. This award There are so many individuals and businesses who consistently provide a friendly service in Thame, but who do you know that should be recognised for it? We’re not just
    looking for shop assistants – we also want to hear about opticians, carers, cleaners and doctors, to name but a few!

    Creative Arts Achievement (sponsored by Towersey Festival)
    A person of any age who excels in the creative arts or contributes to the creativity of our town. This award covers a wide range of people – from the star of the show to the behind-the-scenes team and everyone in between.

    To date, the Town Awards panel has awarded 54 Town Awards to local people. One of last year’s winners, Ian Blyth, was delighted with his Sporting Achievement award: “I was shocked and surprised that I had been nominated to receive the 2017 Sporting Achievement Award. The nomination made me feel very proud that I had been recognised for all my hard work with Thame Swimming Club. I was not expecting to receive the award. The Town Awards event was well organised and held in a friendly and warm atmosphere which made the evening thoroughly enjoyable for all the award recipients.”

    Marking a nomination could not be easier. visit: www.thametowncouncil.gov.uk and complete the online form, or pop in to the Town Hall Information Centre and pick up a nomination form. Be sure to follow the Town Awards Facebook page ‘Thame Town Awards’ and on Twitter #ThameAwards to be one of the first to find out who has won a Town Award this year. The nomination period starts today (February 26) until 5pm on Thursday, March 29, 2018.
    Please visit  www.thametowncouncil.gov.uk for terms and conditions.