• Archive Index
• Archive Index 2009

News Archive - Week Beginning 19th Apr 2009

Clubs

The Reading and Caversham Rotaract Club is said to have fulfilled a national Rotaract challenge recently ‘to hold a club breakfast in an unusual place’. The club’s vice president (‘and avid mine explorer’) James Ford chose the Box Mine near Chippenham - the former stone mine is said to be ‘renowned for its colonies of bats’. The activities of the Rotaract Club are profiled on our web links page. (Reading Chronicle 23/04/09 p32)

Crime

Utilising headlines including ‘winning the war against crime’ and ‘hats off to the boys and girls in blue’, the ‘Post’ comments on the publication by Thames Valley Police of statistics which say that between April 1st 2008 and March 31st 2009 the total number of crimes in Reading have fallen by 3.7%. A police press notice accompanies the broadly positive ‘Post’ coverage – highlighting a 12.1% fall in serious violent crime, a 10.6% decrease in serious sexual offences and a 5.7% decline in ‘serious acquisitive crime’ – a category said to include ‘offences like burglary, robbery and vehicle crime’. Less positive are a range of other Reading crime statistics analysed by the ‘Post’, which show a 5.5% increase in rape offences, a 3.7% increase in burglary from dwellings (up from 1,706 to 1,769 incidents), a 27.1% increase in ‘robbery of personal property’ (from 321 to 408 incidents) and a 33.2% rise in reported shoplifting offences – from 1,324 to 1,763 incidents. The publication of the crime statistics coincides with a report released by Endsleigh Insurance that ranks Reading as the sixth worst place in the country for burglary. (Reading 20/04/09 p11, Reading Evening Post 24/04/09 pp1, 5, 6)

Environment

The RBC cabinet decided on Tuesday, April 14th to revoke its six small Air Quality Management Areas (AQMA) – one of which covered the centre of Caversham. The AQMAs are being replaced with ‘one big one which covers Reading like a giant spider, taking in the town centre and spreading our along all the main roads into the town’. The AQMAs measure nitrogen dioxide – said to be the most common air pollutant, that is mainly produced by traffic. (Reading Evening Post 24/04/09 p8)

Festivals

A feature comments on the forthcoming CAMRA Reading Beer and Cider Festival to be held at King’s Meadow between Thursday, April 30th and Sunday, May 3rd. The festival will supply more than 500 types of beer and is expected to attract 15,000 visitors, with assistance from 350 staff. Further details can be found here. (Reading Chronicle 23/04/09 p37)

Planning

The RBC has refused Vodafone planning permission to build a 13-metre high phone mast at Elmstone Drive in Tilehurst, following widespread local protest. The refusal led on from the recent Council ‘blunder’ in Caversham that has led to Vodafone being allowed to build a phone mast on the junction of Westdene Crescent. A Tilehurst protestor said: “what happened in Caversham may have worked in our favour as the RBC was not going to make that mistake again. It just shows what these mobile phone companies are like”. The Council rejected the Tilehurst plan due to its “inappropriate sighting (sic) and excessive height and bulk”, stating that it would appear “unduly prominent and incongruous” and was detrimental to the street. These comments could apply to Westdene Crescent as well. (Reading Evening Post 21/04/09 p13)

The ‘Post’ comments on Conservative Party housing policy proposals – which include reversing the classification of gardens as brownfield land to prevent overdevelopment of neighbourhoods and the replacement of suburban homes with blocks of flats. The proposals would impact upon infill development in Caversham if they were to become law. (Reading Evening Post 24/04/09 p10)

Planning – King’s Meadow Baths

A letter from RBC Deputy Mayor Fred Pugh (the Conservative Councillor for Mapledurham Ward) responds to an earlier letter (April 17th) from Roy Smith concerning the Conservatives’ policies towards redevelopment of the King’s Meadow baths site. Mr Smith had described local Tories as “a disgrace” with regards the baths – his letter criticised Conservative Councillor Tom Stanway and MP Rob Wilson, but was particularly scathing towards Councillor Pugh. Mr Smith’s letter also asked: “where was the Civic Society?” with regards speaking on the issue of the baths. The response from Councillor Pugh urges Mr Smith “to check the facts” and supports Councillor Stanway who “did NOT vote against saving the pool. He backed the Askett Hawk (hotel) scheme which includes restoration of the pool, as the more credible of the two alternatives, but did not rule out the KMC option”. Councillor Pugh reminds readers that RBC Tories have “called in” the cabinet decision in favour of Askett Hawk for further consideration – in summary, although the hotel scheme has the best prospects for success, it is “not acceptable in its present form” and (according to Councillor Pugh) “the KMC proposal is still in the frame, as the fall back position”. (Reading Evening Post, 17/04/09 p6, Reading Evening Post 23/04/09 p6)

A letter supporting the King’s Meadow Campaign (KMC) proposals to redevelop and restore the King’s Meadow baths strongly criticises the “totally unsympathetic” RBC on the issue. The letter says: “they have deliberately abandoned the crumbling baths in the hope they do become what they have become, ‘a blot on the landscape’ to deviate and turn people away from any sane suggestion of restoration”. (Reading Evening Post 23/06/09 p6)

A short historical feature from an older reader reminisces about the King’s Meadow Baths in the late 1950s. The writer says: “the water was always very cold, quite often with leaves and dead flies floating on it. I remember the changing cubicles seemed pretty big and they used to cram about 10 of us into each cubicle”. Although the (unheated) pool was better in summer, “there were still a few leaves and dead flies though”. (Reading Evening Post 22/04/09 p34)

A letter says that: “reading about the (King’s Meadow Baths) still brings back many unpleasant memories of the weekly ritual of school swimming sessions”. (Reading Evening Post 20/04/09 p9)

Shops and Restaurants

The ‘Chronicle’ says that more than 20 jobs have been created in Caversham recently as a result of the opening of the Thelis and Alto Lounge cafés in Church Street and as a result of the news that the discount retail chain Iceland is to reopen in St. Martin’s Precinct. Caversham Ward Councillor (and leader of the RBC Conservatives) Andrew Cumpsty said that he and fellow councillors were “very sorry” when Iceland closed in Caversham in 2006 and are “delighted” it is returning. (Reading Chronicle 23/04/09 p31)

Matt Payne, the head of Caversham-based financial services firm Fox Payne Associates lists his five favourite lunch venues in Caversham. They include the Mya Lacarte in Prospect Street, which he describes as “the best restaurant in Reading in terms of service and atmosphere”, the Picasso tapas restaurant on Bridge Street, the Crown on the Bridge and Griffin pubs, and the Thames Candlelight River Cruises service – which he highly recommends. (Reading Evening Post / Business Post 21/04/09 p4)