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YOUR FREE DDDDEEEEAAAALLLLEEEERRRR OOOOFFFFFFFFEEEERRRRSSSS Thebestlocalused cardeals.Allinoneplace. Tryoursearchbybudgetfeatureat banburycake.co.uk/cars JANUARY19,2017 REACHING18,603READERSEACHWEEKINPRINTANDONLINE banburycake.co.uk 01865 425282 Popstar’s £30k donation saved struggling dance company WE HAD FAITH IN GEORGE PopsuperstarGeorgeMichaeldonated£30,000toAnjaliDanceCompany,inset;below,founderNicoleThomson A DANCE troupe which feared it NaomiHerring MsThomsonadded:“Wearegreatly was never gonna dance again has [email protected] indebtedtoGeorgeMichaelforhishelp revealed £30,000 from superstar andwewillalwaysbegratefulforhis George Michael helped secure its George’scharitablefoundationforhelp, kindnessandconcernforothers. “IwasnotsurprisedtohearofGeorge future. whichwedid,andwereceivedtwovery Michael’sothercharitablestoriesasI AnjaliDanceCompany,basedatThe generous donations which enabled us hadheardandknewhewasaverygen- MillArtsCentreinBanbury,hasbeen tocarryon.” erousperson. workingwithpeoplewithlearningdif- MsThomson,thefounderandartis- “Heobviouslyreallycaredaboutvul- ficultiesforabout20yearsbutin2011 tic director, said the donations came nerablepeopleandwasjustincredibly faced a bleak future after losing vital overtwoyearsandamountedtoabout generouswithhismoney.” ArtsCouncilfunding. £30,000. Itwasrevealedearlierthismonththat But following two substantial dona- She added: “It was really wonderful George Michael was the secret donor tions, company founder Nicole Thom- andaverytimelyhelpinghand. who helped save Oxfordshire beauty sonsaidthecompanywouldforeverbe “Any regular grant funding for our spotThruppLakeinRadley. indebttothepopiconwhopassedaway coreactivitiesisalwayshelpfulinsta- Heploughed£10,000intoacampaign on Christmas Day at his Oxfordshire bilisingthecompanyandallowingusto tosavethelakesafterRWEnpowerwon home. continue.” permissiontodumpashinthewater. She said: “It is always a Thedancecompanyisspread struggle to survive as a across six different groups company in this current which include dancers of fundingclimate. allages,youngandold,and “At the time, one of specialisesintrainingpeo- George Michael’s sis- ple with learning difficul- terscametoseeaper- ties. formance in Oxford This includes regular and was completely training sessions, school bowled over by what workshops and also tours shesaw. suchastheupcomingUK “When she heard show Genius before about our difficul- performances in ties she suggested FranceandMexi- that we apply to colaterthisyear. PrintedandpublishedbyNewsquestOxfordshire,OsneyMead,OxfordOX20EJ, Tel:01865425362.NewspaperSalesDepartment01865425282.DirectDelivery08000284592. 2 BANBURYCAKE Thursday,January19,2017 banburycake.co.uk/news Elderly woman waits 14 Police seek man who ‘held pram’ hours for a hospital bed POLICEarelookingforamanwho complimentedawoman’sbabyandthen tookholdofherpram. Theincidenthappenedshortlyafter 6.30pmlastTuesdayneartheTesco ExpressinMiddletonRoad,Banbury. Thewomanpushedawayaman, Familyofpatientwhohas ‘significantlycompromised’. describedasAsianandbelievedtobe Amandasaid:“OnFridayitwas agedbetween25and30,whoputhis dementiatellofharrowing manic. There were three ambu- handonthepramwhichwascarryingher timeatoverflowingHorton lancesoutsideandtheyallhadel- child. derlypeoplein. Heissaidtobeofslimbuildandwas HannahSomerville “One of the paramedics I was wearingaredwoollyhatandablack [email protected] talkingtosaidonepensionerhad coat. been waiting in the ambulance Sincetheincidentadditionalpatrols since8pmthatnight. ANELDERLYwomanwithde- havebeentakingplaceinthearea. “It’s just dreadful. We are wor- InvestigatingofficerDetInspSteve mentia was left waiting for a riedtodeath.They’vegotnobeds. Raffield,fromBanburyForceCID,said: cubicleformorethan14hours How are they possibly going to “Thisincidentwasconcerningforthe at the Horton General Hos- keepup?” womanasshebelievedthemanmay pital’s overflowing A&E last Agrowingpopulation,busyand havebeentryingtotakethebabyaway. week. closed GP practices, and under- Hedidnottouchthechildduringthe BrendaMountford,whoturns78 staffed hospitals have been cited incident. tomorrow,wasrushedtotheBan- as main reasons for sustained pressureacrosstheNHSthiswin- “Weareinvestigatingthe buryhospitalat10.30pmlastFri- ter. circumstancesandIamkeepinganopen dayafterafallathome. But Amanda, who grew up in mindaboutwhathappened.Thismay Her daughter-in-law Amanda HortonViewoppositethehospital, havebeenamisunderstandingorcould Mountfordrecountedtheharrow- said:“Ihaveneverknownittobe havebeenadeliberateattempttotake ingwaitsheandherfamilythen likethis.” thebaby. endured as Oxfordshire’s hospi- OUH Chief Nurse Catherine “Iwouldalsoliketoappealtotheman talsremainonhighalert. Stoddartsaid:“Theemergencyde- involvedtocomeforwardsothatwecan Amanda,50,whokeptadiaryof partmentsatboththeHortonand establishthefactsinrelationtowhat theevents,said:“Icalledthehos- JohnRadcliffeHospitalshavebeen happened. pitalat1.30amandshewasstillin BrendaMountfordonatrolleyattheHortonGeneralHospitalat2am experiencingmajorpressuresand “Irecogniseincidentsofthisnaturecan anambulanceoutsideA&E. OUHstaff areworkingincredibly beconcerningtopeoplelocally,however “Shewasfreezingcold.Thesafe- Amanda said: “The corridors SinceDecember19,allsitesrun hardtoensurepatientflow. additionalpatrolsaretakingplaceinthe ty bars were crushing her. They were four-a-side. All the cubicles by Oxford University Hospitals “Wewouldliketoremindpeople areaandifanyonehasanyconcernsor had to keep turning the ambu- were full, the waiting room was NHSFoundationTrusthavebeen across Oxfordshire to stop and informationtheycanapproachand lanceonfortheheating.” full. onthesecond-highestalertforop- consideralltheoptionsavailable speaktoapoliceofficer.” FinallyBrenda,whothefamily “WewentbackonSaturdayafter- erationalpressures. to them before deciding to go to Anyonewithanyinformationaboutthe suspected had suffered a stroke noonatabout1pmandtheywere Itmeanshospitalsareexperienc- an Emergency Department, so incidentshouldcallthe24-hourThames andwasunabletowalk,wastrans- justputtingherinacubicleinthe ingseriousproblemswithpatient thatpatientswiththemosturgent ferredtoatemporarybedinacor- EmergencyAssessmentUnit.She flow and handovers from South needscanbetreatedmorequick- ValleyPoliceinquirycentreon101. ridorat1.45am. isstilltherenow.” Central Ambulance Service are ly.” banburycake.co.uk/news Thursday,January19,2017 BANBURYCAKE 3 Zombie invasion marks movie premiere Council alert over flytipping PEOPLEinapicturesquemarkettown hadabitofashockonSundaynight RESIDENTShavebeenreminded whentheywereinvadedbyzombies. tomakeproperuseofrecycling Crowdsoftheundeadgatheredin banksafteraheapofcarrierbags thecentreofChippingNorton, fullofrubbishwerefounddumped thankfullynottoeattheresidents inNorthOxfordshire. butforascreeningoftwo CherwellDistrictCouncilhas homegrownhorrorfilms. warnedpeopleofthe DirectorTonyJopiaintroducedthe consequencesofleavingwaste globalpremiereofhistwomovies– nearrecyclingbanksandnotin CuteLittleBuggersandApocalypse– them. atChippingNortonTheatre. Itcomesafterthecouncilsaida The50-year-old,fromEnstone,said residentwasfined£75for hewasstunnedbytheresponsethe flytippingoutsidetheformer twofilmsreceivedontheday. AdmiralHollandpubinBanbury. Hesaid:“Wewereabsolutely CherwellDistrictCouncillead blownaway. memberforcleanandgreen “Overallwecouldn’thaveaskedfor DebbiePickfordsaid:“Itmayseem anythingmore. relativelyharmlesstodropoff “Itwasmagical,inspirationaland carrierbagsofunsortedwasteat touchingthatsomanypeople recyclingbanks,butsuchlittering enjoyedit. blightsanimportantresourcefor “Thesupportfromeveryonethere thosewhoaremakingtheeffortto wasamazingandpeoplearealready helptheenvironmentbyrecycling. askingifwecandomorethisyear.” “Cherwellactivelypursues ApocalypsewasfilmedinBanbury flytippersandwillbemakingfull in2014andfollowsthestoryofa useofthefixedpenaltynotice journalisttryingtoreachher powersitadoptedlastOctober.” boyfriendafteravirusreleasedby Thecouncilcannowissuefines terroristsbeginsturningpeopleinto upto£250forasmalloffencesince zombies. thenewpolicycameintoforce. CuteLittleBuggers,asci-fiabout ReportflytippinginCherwellby bunnyrabbitstakenoverbyaliens contacting01295227007. andthelocalswhofightbackagainst 175th birthday thedeceptivelyadorableinvaders, wasfilmedinDunsTew. Bothfilms–producedbyTirana ASCHOOLnearBanburymarked FilmsandGreatDayneEntertainment its175thanniversaryyesterday. andline-producedbyBicester’sThe SibfordSchool’sfirstpupil,nine- FilmandTVCompanyandBrainy year-oldLucyEndall,registered MonkeyPost–willbereleased onJanuary16,1842,arrivingfrom globallylaterintheyear. Banburybycarriercart. MrJopiaaskedpeoplewhohad ZombiesinvadeChippingNortonforthe Yesterdaynine-year-oldpupils appearedaszombiesinApocalypseto premiereoffilmsbyEnstonedirectorTony cutabirthdaycaketomarkthe attendSunday’spremiere–in Jopia,centre;left,ApocalypsezombiesLinda occasionbeforeitwassharedat costumeofcourse. andSebHrickofromBanbury lunchtime. Thedirectoradded:“Therewasone reallymagicalmomentwhereone guywhohadappearedasazombie inApocalypsecameandtoldmethat beinginafilmwasonhisbucketlist. Hesaidhecouldnowdiehappily knowingheisinafilmthatwilllast forever.” MrJopiasaidheiskeentohear frompeopleinterestedin contributingtofutureprojects. Getintouchbyemailattony@ jopiaproductions.com Help us save our historic theatre Protestersagainsthomes outthebuildingtocreate12flats But this is the third applica- andshopsplanincallfor andtworetailunits.Essentially tiontodemolishalargepartof onlythefaçadewouldremainas the historic cinema excluding TheGrandtoberestored anacknowledgementtoits100- thefaçades.Thefirstapplication yearhistory. in2014wasapprovedbutnotvi- NaomiHerring “Of course, as well as reduc- ableandthesecondapplication [email protected] ingourhistoricartdecocinema was withdrawn after about 100 toafaçade,theapplicationalso objections. A CALL for the community entails the loss of a large and Thelatestapplicationhasbeen to revive a theatre in Ban- versatile, purpose-built perfor- submittedbyMentorInnsLLP. mancespaceof exactlythetype Mr Kinchin-Smith added: burydatingbackmorethan andscalesodesperatelyneeded “Ourmissionistorestoreand 100 years has been made by by the local community, local reviveTheGrandTheatreintoa residents objecting to hous- performersandlocalaudiences. professionally-run theatre, cin- ingplans. “The huge support for the emaandperformingartsspace, Proposals to turn The Grand friends,includingsupportfrom providing an inspiring and in- Theatre,builtinBroadStreetin almosteverylocalperformance clusive programme by, and for, 1911, into flats and shops were group,indicatesthereisahuge thewidercommunity. submitted to councillors in De- appetiteforjustthesortofcom- “But also to celebrate our cemberandsparkedacampaign munity hub and performance unique heritage in active part- tosaveit. spaceTheGrandcouldbe.” nership with the local commu- Community group Friends of Thebuildingstartedasa500- nity,securingalivinglegacyand the Grand Theatre has urged seattheatre.Itnearlydoubledin savingourpastforthefuture.” peopletorespondonlinebefore sizein1935tobecomea950-seat Mr Kinchin Smith said there the consultation closes today Egyptian-themedcinema,before was a ‘growing list’ of people andhelpwitharestorationplan. 30yearsofbeingusedasabingo steppingforwardtohelp. Member Rob Kinchin-Smith hall, a nightclub and most re- Email grandbanbury@gmail. said:“Theproposalistohollow centlytheWonderLounge. com 4 BANBURYCAKE Thursday,January19,2017 banburycake.co.uk/news Hundreds get look behind Trustholdsopendayina bidtoattractnewrecurits toallareasoftheservice GeorginaCampbell [email protected] HUNDREDSofpeopleturned out to get a taste of what it wouldbelikeworkingforthe county’sambulancetrust. SouthCentralAmbulanceSer- vice(SCAS)openeditsdoorsto thepubliconSaturdayinabidto encouragenewrecruits. After500residentscametothe opendayin2016,40peoplewere hired and Matt Green, a para- medic,wasoneofthem. The29-year-oldsaid:“Abigplus forworkingwithSouthCentral Ambulance Service is that you areworkingwithpeoplewhoac- tuallycare. “These people come to work every day wanting to do their bestforpatients. “Before,Iwasaparamedicfor the London Ambulance Service andyoudidnotgetthevarietyof jobsthatyoudohere,whilework- ingincountiesthathaveurban andruralareas. “Iloveithere.” Acrossthetrust,290peopleare employedinOxfordshireaspart ofthe999servicewithanother90 people employed in non-clinical roles. AmandaCundyisthecommu- nityliaisonandtrainingofficer Top,clinicalmentorandsimbulanceeducatorLouGale,left,andeducationsimulationfacilitatorKarina Diamondmonitorandcontrola‘patient’inthesimbulance;above,theambulanceHQinBicester;theNHS 111callcentreandsenioroperationsmanagerforpatienttransportSimonBosher banburycake.co.uk/news Thursday,January19,2017 BANBURYCAKE 5 scenes at ambulance HQ for the 1,000 volunteers across Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Communityliaisonandtraining BerkshireandHampshire. officerAmandaCundyshowsvisitor Shesaid:“Thisreallyisafan- RebeccaFortescue-Phillipsmedicalkit tasticwayforpeopletoseehow theycangetinvolvedonavolun- usedbycommunityfirstresponders tarylevel. “Our community first re- sponders are an integral part of ourservicebecausetheyare sometimesthefirstonsceneata life-threateningemergency. “Byopeningourdoorstovisi- torstodayweareabletoexplain atlengththetrainingandsup- portweareabletogiveourvol- unteers.” MsCundysaidthatafterlast year’sopendayabout30people signed up to be a community firstresponder. She added: “Even if some- one came along today and did notsignup,bytalkingtotheir friends and family about what theyhavelearnedandseen,we found last year a lot of people volunteered through word of mouth.” The trust had all their bells and whistles out during the event at its Bicester headquar- ters,fromtoursarounditsNHS 111callcentretoatraining‘sim- bulance’. Although the trust said it was not looking to recruit im- mediately,theopendaywasan opportunity for people to find out more about how the trust worked. Childminder Suzanne Ware- ham,fromKidlington,saidshe hadcomedowntoseewhatvol- unteering opportunities were available. Shesaid:“I’mthinkingabout being a community first re- ActingheadofNHS111 sponder,asIthinkIwouldreally NorthRuthPage;right, enjoyit. paramedicMattGreen “It is helping people out and helpingtogivebacktothecom- munity. “Itisaveryinterestingroleso hopefully something will come outoftodayforme.” The event ran from 10am to 2pmandthetrustwillbehosting anotherrecruitmentdayonSat- urday,January28,atitsHamp- shirebaseinOtterbourne. For more information visit scas.nhs.uk Reader Offer Barcelona,Montserrat &thePyrenees 6daysfrom£509Flyingdirectfromanairportnearyou, ApriltoJune,September&October2017 TheexcitementofoneofEurope’s‘must-see’cities. Tourhighlights üAguidedtourofBarcelona CatalanPyrenees üSeeGaudí’smonumental üFullyescortedbyafriendly, SagradaFamilia experiencedtourmanager üJourneytothesacredmountain- üFivenights’four-starhalf-board topshrineatMontserrat hotelaccommodation,return üAscenicjourneythroughthe flightsandtransfers Call03301607730 QOUXOTSE Visitwww.newmarket.travel/oxs16612 Theseholidaysareorganised&operatedbyNewmarketAirHolidaysLtd.ABTAV7812. ATOLprotected2325.Subjecttoavailability.SinglesupplementsapplyStandardphone charges 6 BANBURYCAKE Thursday,January19,2017 banburycake.co.uk/news Man jailed for a knife attack on his brother MichaelRace how the brothers did not [email protected] haveagoodrelationship. He added: “The com- A MAN who slashed plainantsaysthelasttime he saw the defendant was his brother’s face with aboutayearbeforethisin- amakeshiftknifemade cident. outof atoothbrushand “They had an argument a razor blade has been on the phone and he says jailedforfive-and-a-half theywerequiteabusiveon years. bothsides.Itresultedinthe Joshua Derosa admitted complainanthangingupon Fromleft,LewisTaylor,MathewHillandOliverCoulling-Green attackingLewisDerosaon thedefendant.” Teens launch medieval fantasy game hissibling’sdoorstepafter Defence barrister Gra- the pair had an abusive JoshuaDerosa hamBennetttoldthecourt argumentonthephoneon Sentencing Derosa, who acommentmadetothede- September22lastyear. had 19 previous convic- fendantabouthisdeceased THOUSANDSofpeopleplayedan isamedievalfantasycity Intwodaysthegamemanaged The 22-year-old defend- tions for a total of 41 of- childduringthephonear- onlinegameinjusttwodays buildinggame,whereplayers topullinnearly7,000viewsfrom ant, of Clarks Row, Ox- fences, recorder Andrew gument “wrangled” him, afterthreeBicesterandBanbury managethecity’sresourcesand allovertheworldincluding ford,stormedroundtohis BurrowsQCsaidDerosa’s adding Derosa acknowl- Collegestudentslaunchedtheir populationtocreateaworldthat gamersinRussia. brother’s flat in Banbury attack was “clearly pre- edged his culpability and creation. willcontrolitself.” Thestudentsmadethegameas and slashed him with his meditated”. responsibility for what Sixthformgamedevelopers Headded:“Overthebreakwe partofanextra-curricularproject self-fashioned weapon af- Hesaidtheslashwiththe happened. Derosa admit- LewisTaylor,18,MathewHill,17, workedonmakingitas intheircollegestudiesofgames terthevictimansweredthe weapon left a “deep cut” tedonecountof wounding andOliverCoulling-Green,18, presentableandplayableas development. front door at about 6pm, on his brother’s face and withintentandonecount createdRealmofRulers–an possible,anduploadeditto Oliversaid:“Weallwanttogo OxfordCrownCourtheard addedan“aggravatingfac- of possessing an offensive onlineadventuregame–during GameJoltjusttoseewhatkind touniversitytocontinuetostudy onFriday. tor” in sentencing Derosa weapon. theirschoolholidays. ofreactionitgot. gamesdesignanddevelopment, Derosa’s brother needed wasthefacthecommitted Hewassentencedtofive Theyweresurprisedtoseeit “Weweren’texpectingmuch sohavingthisaspartofour eight stitches to the left the crime while serving a years and six months im- wentstraighttothetopofan butithasjustexploded. portfolioisabigbonus.” sideofhisface,whichpros- 16-monthlicenceperiodfor prisonmentforthewound- onlinehotlistonindiegamessite “Seeingthenumberofplays Toseethegamevisitgamejolt. ecutingbarristerJonathan a previous conviction of ingoffence,and12months, GameJolt. andviewsgoupsorapidlywas com/games/realm-of- Stone said would leave a actualbodilyharmin2015. torunconcurrent,forpos- Mathewsaid:“RealmofRulers amazing.” rulers/222904 permanentscar. Mr Stone told the court sessingtheweapon. banburycake.co.uk/news Thursday,January19,2017 BANBURYCAKE 7 8 BANBURYCAKE Thursday,January19,2017 banburycake.co.uk/news Day centres axe plan sparks fears Mountingconcernsthat the staff. The county council talks about making these deci- bidtoclose14ofthe22 sionsbutIdon’tthinktheyun- locationswilldisruptlives derstandtheextrastressitwill cause.” MattOliver About700adultscurrentlyuse thecouncil’sdaycentres,includ- [email protected] ingthosewithdisabilities,men- tal health problems, dementia CONTROVERSIAL plans to andthefrailelderly. close14daytimesupportcen- The council said it will con- tresfortheelderlyanddisa- tinuetoprovideservicesforpeo- Crowds flock to see rare bird bledcouldbepushedthrough plewithassessedneedsandthat withinweeks. self-fundinguserswouldpaythe The changes would see the RachaelScott-Hunterwithher saaftmeretrhaetecshaansgtehso.sBeuittistuspapyosrtist UNBELIEVABLEasitmight andeachwinterinBritain. arrivedinMarstonRoadto number of centres funded by daughterAlexandra cannotaffordtokeepfundingthe seemtosome,these “Theirwinterrange seethevisitorsonMonday, OxfordshireCountyCouncilfall Theycurrentlytakehertothe current£9.3mservice,whichin- cheekychicksaresorarein doesn’tusuallyinclude butbyWednesdaythe from 22 to eight, saving about Kidlington Day Centre but the cludes22centres. Oxfordshirethattheir Oxfordshire–mostlythey numbershadgrown,and £3.14mayearby2019. changeswouldmeangoingtoone Underthenewplans,thiswould appearanceattracteda sticktoeasternandcentral severalsetuptheir Cash-strapped bosses insist it inBicesterinstead,whereAlex- fallto£6.16mby2019andthere crowdoffeatherfanciers, Scotland,northern cameraswithtripodsand will put the service on a “solid andra could be separated from would only be eight centres, in brandishingtelescopic Englandandtheeastcoast hugelenses. footing”,butthereareconcerns friendsandstaffsheknows. Abingdon, Banbury, Bicester, lenses,tripodsandtea. ofEngland,butonceevery MrJaegersaid:“After itcoulddisruptthelivesof peo- MrsScott-Hunter,70,said:“We Didcot,Oxford,Wallingford,Wit- Infacttheyare fewyearstheyspread midday,workingpeople plewithdisabilitiesandmakeit want to give our daughter the neyandWantage.Thenewpro- waxwings,Bombycilla muchfurtherwestand usedtheirlunchbreakto harderforsomeelderlypeopleto bestpossiblelife,butcaringfor posed budget is about £225,000 garrulus–aspecieslast south. comeandseethebirds, reachcentres. her is already stressful and as morethantheoriginalone,and seeninOxfordshirefive “Theirlastmajorvisitto andmorethanadozenof Rachael Scott-Hunter, from yougetolderittakesitstoll. includesextragrantfundingfor yearsago. Oxfordshirewasinthe uswereallhuddledina Chesterton,saidcouncilguaran- “Working with Alexandra is charities to bid for, with about Thisphotographwas winterof2012-13,andthis groupashortdistance teesthatserviceswouldcontinue veryspecialisedandittakesher £650,000 of ‘transition funding’ snappedlastweekinNew yearisanotherwaxwing fromthewaxwings’little in different buildings “missed months to become comfortable alsosettobemadeavailable. Marston,Oxford,by winter.” rowantree. thepoint”. withthecarersbecauseshehas Judith Heathcoat, cabinet birdwatcherHughJaeger, MrJaegersaidthebirds “IhopeNewMarston She and husband Ian care for severeanxietyproblems. member for adult social care, whoexplainedwhy werefirstspottedin residentsdon’tmindallthe their wheelchair-bound daugh- “We are up two to four times said:“Weareconfidentthatthe everyonewasgettingso CrowmarshGiffordnear birdwatchers–some ter Alexandra, 44, who had a everysinglenighttohelpherand new services will provide tai- twitchyabouttheavian WallingfordonJanuary4, residentscertainlyseem brain haemorrhage after birth hertimeatthedaycentresgives loredsupporttomeetneeds.” arrivals. theninBanburyonJanuary amused.Onepasser-by andnowsuffersfromaseriesof usimportantrespite. Thechangeswillbeconsidered Hesaid:“Waxwings 6andturnedupinNew stoppedandusedher severedisabilities,includingan “Itisalsosoimportanttoknow atacouncilcabinetmeetingon spendeachsummerin MarstononSunday. phonetotakeaphotoof inabilitytotalkandpartialsight. wecanleaveherthereandtrust Tuesday. ScandinaviaandRussia Afewbirdwatchers thebirdwatchers.” banburycake.co.uk/news Thursday,January19,2017 BANBURYCAKE 9 10 BANBURYCAKE Thursday,January19,2017 banburycake.co.uk/news Road users call for action Stricter rules for cabbies take effect over pothole blackspots NEWrulesfortaxifirmswhich includemandatorysafeguarding trainingforeverydrivercame intoforcelastweekinCherwell. Thenewlicensingpolicyagreed byCherwellDistrictCouncil makesitcompulsoryforall driverstotakethe‘fitandproper person’testtobettersafety standards. CherwellDistrictCouncillead memberforpublicprotection TonyIlottsaid:“Theaimofthis newpolicyistoensurethesafety ofresidentsandvisitorsusing taxisinandaroundthedistrict. “Taxisandprivatehirevehicles regularlytransportpassengers whomaybevulnerable,including childrenandthoseunderthe influenceofalcohol,soitis essentialourpolicymeetsthe higheststandardstosafeguard bothpassengersanddrivers. “Withtheseenhancedchecks andregulations,thegeneral publiccanhavegreater confidenceinusingtaxidrivers thathavebeenthoroughly trainedandvettedtoensurethey arefitforpurpose.” Thenewrulescameintoforce onMonday,January9,forboth privatehireandHackney Carriages. Italsoincludesnewspoken Englishtestsandstricteruseof criminalrecordsasanyapplicants convictedofseriousoffenceswill berefused. Theperiodofgoodbehaviour requiredafterconvictionsisalso raisedfromthreeto10years. SusanTraffordbythepotholeoutsideherhomeinKennington;inset,KimberleyBrain’sdamagedtyre Fed-upresidentsflagup apotholeoutsidehishomethat Kimberley Brain said her wasfixedjustbeforeChristmas. wheel had been damaged by a theworst-affectedareas But he said a “crumbling” potholeontheA361. onNationalPotholeDay patchoftarmacnexttothehole County council spokesman wasignoredbycouncilworkers MartinCrabtreesaid:“Ourroad SophieGrubb whentheyfilleditin,eventually conditions on the whole are [email protected] deteriorating into another pot- in line with national averages hole. – there is absolutely nothing Hesaid:“Itwasliterallyright uniqueaboutOxfordshire. ROAD users across the nexttoit,theycouldhavefixed “Weworkallyearroundand county flagged up pothole itallinonegobutI’vehadtocall allhourstomaintainourroads blackspots and called for themoutagain. andfixpotholes.” action to tackle the worst “There are pushbikes swerv- Lastweek,theDepartmentfor ing to miss it; it’s quite a big ones on National Pothole Transport revealed the council hole.It’sdeepenoughtodamage DayonMonday. abicycle.” would receive £19.4m for road TomarkthedaytheRACcalled Other readers got in touch maintenanceinthenextfinan- onpeopletoreporttheroadde- aboutroadsthatneedattention. cialyear,with£1.3mspecifically fectsusinganewapp. JohnBateysaidMarstonRoad forpotholes. The motoring organisation inOxfordwasablackspot,while The news was welcomed by saidithadseena24percentin- Derek Bradshaw nominated WitneyMPRobertCourts. creaseinthenumberofpothole- GreenRoadandAbingdonRoad He said: “The state of our relatedcall-outsinthelastthree inDidcot. roads is consistently raised by monthsof2016. NeelumAlisaid:“Therearea local residents and remains a And in Oxfordshire people lot of potholes on the footpath greatsourceoffrustration. said more work was needed to along Donnington Bridge Road “Thisfundingiswelcomenews tackletheproblem. in Oxford between Swinburne forfamiliesandbusinesseswho Kennington villager Gary RoadandAbingdonRoad.Iusea relyonourroads.” Trafford,64,complainedtoOx- mobilityscooterandthestateof TheRACappReportPotholeis fordshireCountyCouncilabout thefootpathisreallybad.” availableonline. ‘Elected mayor must be a referee’ ANELECTEDmayorofOxfordshire committee:“Itwouldbegoodto crunchtalksbetweencouncil willneedtobepreparedtoreferee getsomeoneasmayorwhoisnot leaders,whoarehopingtoagreea rowsbetweenscouncils,the apoliticalpartyhackandwhocan devolutionproposal.Theyare leaderofonelocalauthorityhas reallyprojectOxfordshire’s expectedtoputforwardplansfor said. potential.” amayorwhowouldleada SpeakinglastThursday,Bob Hesuggested“someonelike combinedauthoritywithpowers Pricesaidproposalsfortherole LordDrayson”,thebusinessman, overtransport,housingandskills wereyettobefullyagreedbut amateurracingdriverandformer fundingfortrainingandfurther thatanyonewouldbeableto Labourministerwhoowns educationcolleges. standasacandidateinelections. Kidlington-basedfirmDrayson Itishopedthatinreturnthe TheleaderofOxfordCityCouncil RacingTechnologies.MrPrice Governmentwillguarantee wasgivingevidencetoitsscrutiny added:“Itshouldbesomeone hundredsofmillionsofpoundsin committee,whichrecently whocanbepoliticallyneutraland fundingformajorschemes. publishedareviewofoptionsfor whocanactasanarbitrator Theproposalhassofarbeen devolution–theprocessof betweenlocalauthoritiesandtake supportedinprinciplebyallfiveof clawingbackpowersfrom aprofessionalperspective.” thedistrictcouncilsand Westminster.MrPricetoldthe Hiscommentscameaheadof OxfordshireCountyCouncil.