Archive
-
Date
Nationwide scheme for road safety wins award
Nationwide Building Society, based in Swindon, has been presented the Brake community road safety award for its Cats' Eyes for kids campaign. It was awarded to the building society by Brake, the road safety organisation, at its annual end of year reception
-
Date
Man killed in freak accident
A MAN was killed Friday when a tandem bicycle he was riding with his sister was struck by a horse in Hunten Hull Lane, Corsley, near Westbury. For reasons unknown, one of two horses reared up, kicking the 40-year-old, who comes from the Frome area. He
-
Date
Undisputed champions
SWINDON chess players Lewis Martin, of Westlea, Joshua Hall, of Commonweal, and Jack Campaigne, from Sherston, near Malmesbury, became undisputed champions with 100 per cent scores at the Wiltshire Schools chess championships, held at Headlands School
-
Date
Housing market is set for a slowdown
Swindon estate agents are celebrating the end of a bumper year as mortgage firms predict a slowdown in the housing market during 2002. The UK's biggest mortgage lender, Halifax, has announced an expected 50 per cent drop in the rise of house prices next
-
Date
Tummy ache turns out to be labour pains
A STUDENT nurse got more than she bargained for when she was taken to hospital suffering from period pains. For within hours, Vicky Sturgess, 24, had given birth to a baby daughter, Ellie Marissa, weighing 3lbs 10oz. The new arrival was born nine weeks
-
Date
Foxhounds stray on to main line
POLICE WERE called to Wootton Bassett after hounds from a foxhunt strayed on to the railway line between London and Bristol. Approximately 20 hounds were seen on the line for 15 minutes before being rounded up. No trains were delayed. A police spokesman
-
Date
Last minute dash has Angela fuming
A FAMILY who ordered a Christmas hamper nearly missed out on the festivities when an internet shopping service failed to deliver. Angela Morris, 48, from Chiseldon, spent £160 with the Sainsbury's To You service. She ordered goods ranging from Christmas
-
Date
An extra treat
Sara Young enjoyed a little extra New Year cheer when she got a chance to cuddle up with TV's Shane Richie. Sara runs classes for Slimming World at Moose Hall, Eastcott Hill, Old Town and Freshbrook Community Centre at 10am on Wednesdays and 6.30pm on
-
Date
Mariah in trouble
Britain's biggest music company, EMI, which has a CD manufacturing plant in Swindon, is reported to be in negotiations to drop top-selling artist, Mariah Carey. The singer suffered an emotional breakdown after persuading EMI to sign a record four-album
-
Date
60 years makes up for almost missing his wedding day
JOHN Clifford nearly did not make it to his wedding but he and wife Doris are now celebrating 60 years of marriage. The couple, who live in Toothill, met during World War II while stationed at an RAF base in Dover. On Christmas Day in 1941 Mr Clifford
-
Date
Undisputed champions
SWINDON chess players Lewis Martin, of Westlea, Joshua Hall, of Commonweal, and Jack Campaigne, from Sherston, near Malmesbury, became undisputed champions with 100 per cent scores at the Wiltshire Schools chess championships, held at Headlands School
-
Date
Do not forget the rights of consumers
CONSUMERS are being reminded of their rights by the council's trading standards department. The department advises that they are legally entitled to goods of a satisfactory quality, free from defects. If, when opened, goods are faulty or misdescribed,
-
Date
Housing market is set for a slowdown
Swindon estate agents are celebrating the end of a bumper year as mortgage firms predict a slowdown in the housing market during 2002. The UK's biggest mortgage lender, Halifax, has announced an expected 50 per cent drop in the rise of house prices next
-
Date
Gypsies can stay at closed ground
A GROUP of travellers who have who have set up home at the Chiseldon Firs gypsy camp have been told they can stay, despite the fact that the site is officially closed. A dozen caravans have moved onto the site, after a large trailer loaded with rubble
-
Date
Top Cats
When the Top Cats, Swindon's premier women's ice hockey team, decided that they needed to boost the club's coffers, one fundraising idea came out a clear winner: getting their kit except for the odd boot here or there off. SHIRLEY MATHIAS met some of
-
Date
Party-going drug users urged to show caution
THOUSANDS will head for Swindon's pubs and clubs to celebrate the biggest party night of the year but many will be abusing drugs. Nationally, around half of 16 to 25-year-olds are thought to have tried illegal drugs and some 220,000 young people in England
-
Date
Right priorities
THE Conservatives on Swindon council have expressed legitimate concern about the financial implications of building several skateboarding parks for young people. The facilities will cost £275,000 to build, plus a substantial annual maintenance bill. The
-
Date
Dignified silence hard to keep up
ANDY KING has admitted that it has been hard for him to keep a dignified silence for the past five months. The Town boss was given his marching orders in August by former chairman Danny Donegan, who later made some less than flattering remarks about King's
-
Date
Mariah in trouble
Britain's biggest music company, EMI, which has a CD manufacturing plant in Swindon, is reported to be in negotiations to drop top-selling artist, Mariah Carey. The singer suffered an emotional breakdown after persuading EMI to sign a record four-album
-
Date
Have you seen him?
BRINKWORTH: Police are looking for a man who fired a pellet from an airgun at the French window of a house near the Suffolk Arms, on November 14. PC Ian Brown, of Malmesbury police, said a postman had also been fired at. "If anybody sees anyone in that
-
Date
Foxhounds stray on to main line
POLICE WERE called to Wootton Bassett after hounds from a foxhunt strayed on to the railway line between London and Bristol. Approximately 20 hounds were seen on the line for 15 minutes before being rounded up. No trains were delayed. A police spokesman
-
Date
He could cause a Little danger
BATH are on red alert for the Little man who could pose a big threat to their hopes in this afternoon's Premiership derby at home to Bristol (2pm). The visiting player in question is double World Cup winning Australian midfield legend Jason Little, whose
-
Date
Home in time for their festive lunch
WHEN Andy and Sue Carruthers sat down for Christmas dinner they had a new guest at the table. Baby Anastasia Paige Carruthers was born at 4.01am on Christmas Day and the family were back home in time for their festive lunch. The family were expecting
-
Date
Hospital ends all its GPs' contracts
ALL the Cirencester area GPs working at the town's hospital are to have their contracts terminated within weeks. The jobs of three or four others working within the hospital will go at the same time. And unless a viable new method of running the hospital
-
Date
'Chancellor must put funding right'
A NATIONAL organisation is using Swindon as an example of why unfair funding for schools is such a disgrace. The National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT) has analysed this year's budget settlements for local education authorities and found gaps of
-
Date
Christmas charity raises £950 for boy
WELL-WISHERS raised nearly £1,000 for a child whose mother died in a house fire just days before Christmas. The appeal was started following the fire in Holbein Close, Grange Park, on Sunday, December 16. A single mother was killed but fortunately her
-
Date
Matthew gets his breath back for Christmas
IT is something most people take for granted, but Matthew Kent is about to spend his first new year without the need for equipment to help him breathe. Since his premature birth on July 27, 2000, Matthew has constantly battled to put on weight and because
-
Date
Regeneration the name of the game
SWINDON Council's 30-year vision has received a boost, with the town becoming one of the first in the country to set up an Urban Regeneration Company. The new Government initiative has been piloted in just seven other areas, including Liverpool, Sheffield
-
Date
Man killed in freak accident
A MAN was killed Friday when a tandem bicycle he was riding with his sister was struck by a horse in Hunten Hull Lane, Corsley, near Westbury. For reasons unknown, one of two horses reared up, kicking the 40-year-old, who comes from the Frome area. He
-
Date
Dutch connection
Firms in Swindon are going Dutch as delivery company DHL Worldwide Express revealed that the Netherlands is the town's fastest growing export market. Shipments to the country rose 80 per cent in the last year, with other growing export markets for Swindon
-
Date
A420 single lane
SHRIVEHAM: Motorists are warned that traffic will be reduced to a single lane on the A420 Highworth Road at the B4000 overbridge for work on safety fencing. The restrictions will be in place until February.
-
Date
Council tax rise
CRICKLADE: Residents will be paying more for their council tax services next year. The town council has agreed to a 34.7 per cent rise in the town's precept for the next financial year. Last year the town's precept was set at £108,750, but from April
-
Date
Nationwide scheme for road safety wins award
Nationwide Building Society, based in Swindon, has been presented the Brake community road safety award for its Cats' Eyes for kids campaign. It was awarded to the building society by Brake, the road safety organisation, at its annual end of year reception
-
Date
Inside the uniforms and lives of firefighters
Children from radiation-hit Belarus were treated to a VIP tour of Swindon's main fire station. The nine 12 to 14-year-olds got to see how a fire engine works, try on uniforms and see the brigade's specialist cutting gear in action at the Drove Road fire
-
Date
Tributes paid to teenager who died in road accident
TRIBUTES have been paid to an 18-year-old who died in a road accident along with a 21-year-old passenger from South Cerney. Ryan Preston, 18, of North Home Road, Cirencester, died after the Vauxhall Nova he was driving was involved in a collision near
-
Date
Snap shot of life
ASHTON KEYNES: A book which takes a personal look at life in Ashton Keynes at the beginning of a new millennium has been distributed to householders in time to celebrate the dawning of 2002. A questionnaire was circulated in the village two years ago
-
Date
Have you seen him?
BRINKWORTH: Police are looking for a man who fired a pellet from an airgun at the French window of a house near the Suffolk Arms, on November 14. PC Ian Brown, of Malmesbury police, said a postman had also been fired at. "If anybody sees anyone in that
-
Date
Cross-dressing David is Queen of the Salon
EXTROVERT hairdresser David Donegan received more than a few double-takes when he dressed up in drag for some festive fun. David, 26, who works at Talk of the Town in Devizes Road, Old Town, said: "I think I had a few gents at the salon who thought 'she
-
Date
129 homes may be created from block
A DISUSED office block which has lain empty for three years looks set to be transformed into 129 homes plus a health and fitness centre. Plans have been lodged for the redevelopment of Windsor House, formerly The Atrium, in central Swindon. The Princes
-
Date
Lottery cash plea
I AM 80, never written to a newspaper before but I feel so strongly about the way the lottery money is being spent. The Government has allocated £620 million to the Dome and £200 million to Wembley. The money is not theirs to allocate and it should all
-
Date
Age Concern challenge to the benefits system
AGE Concern is campaigning for a change to the benefits system. Ever since 1948 when the National Insurance system was introduced, pensioners have faced a reduction in their pension if they are in hospital for six weeks or more. For a single person, after
-
Date
Two wrongs do not make a right
As secretary of Swindon's Coalition to Stop the War, I would like to reply to some of your correspondents who have said we are wasting our time (eg Dec 18 'Wheel comes off leftie bandwagon'). I think democracy is worth defending, and the best way to defend
-
Date
Dignified silence hard to keep up
ANDY KING has admitted that it has been hard for him to keep a dignified silence for the past five months. The Town boss was given his marching orders in August by former chairman Danny Donegan, who later made some less than flattering remarks about King's
-
Date
Duty to protest
THE tirade of abuse directed against regular contributors to your letters page by Jo Garton (EA, Dec 20) displays the mentality of someone who is still wet behind the ears. Those like myself who came through WWII unscathed have a duty and responsibility
-
Date
It's a poor deal
I was appalled to hear that the Government is backing plans for the sale of a £28m air defence system, made by British Aerospace which has a local presence, to Tanzania, one of the world's poorest countries. Tanzania is a country where one in four children
-
Date
One or two things need tidying up
THE completion of the improvements to Oxford Road is of course to the great delight of the residents of that area who for weeks have had to put up with the noise, dirt and general upheaval. There are however, several points which need clarification. First
-
Date
The buck stops at the civic offices
As a certain lady said of Bill Clinton, "You'd think the boy would learn". A few months ago, Ofsted reported unfavourably on Swindon's education department. Council leaders responded by defending themselves and their department. Nobody offered to resign
