News courtesy of Kevin Foster
(MP for Torbay)
Police Appeal for Help
Torquay Police are hunting two men who attacked a 14 year old student in Torquay.
The attack happened in Chatto Road between 6.30pm and 6.45pm on Thursday, July 14. The two men approached the victim, who was with three other students at the time, and one of the men assaulted the student. You can read more on the Herald Express website, including a description of the men involved, by clicking here.
If you were in the area at that time and saw anything that might assist the Police with their enquiries, give them a call on their 101 non-emergency number quoting log 820 of 14th July 2016.
In addition to the above appeal for help Police are also advising women walking alone to be extra vigilant after two sex attacks in the Wellswood area of Torquay. Two women were groped in separate attacks believed to have been perpetrated by the same man. You can read more on the Herald Express website by clicking here.
Commissioner Announces Cash Boost for Victims
Our local Police & Crime Commissioner, Alison Hernandez, today announced that she has awarded £140,000 of new funding to help child sexual abuse victims in Devon and Cornwall
The money will go to eight organisations who will receive a share of the money which has been provided by the Government to ensure practical and emotional support to victims. These include Victim Support and Devon Rape Crisis.
You can read the full details by clicking here.
Unfair Parking Penalty Charges
We have received many complaints from residents regarding unfair penalty charge notices being levied by local independent car parks.
It is clear that this is not just an issue that affects Torbay, but one that affects people across the United Kingdom. MP, Kevin Foster, is looking to start a collective campaign involving Torbay residents that have been affected by independent car parking charges from both PPS (Premier Parking Solutions) and Premier Park Ltd.
Between now and August 31st 2016, he will be collecting data to assess just how many local residents have been affected. If you have been affected, please contact him via email or letter, including your name, full address, email address, telephone number, the car park in which the penalty charge notice relates to and the date that it was received.
Alternatively you can complete a survey which can be accessed here.
Rowcroft Announce Cuts
Rowcroft Hospice has this week announced that it is facing a £1m shortfall in its income and may have to make a range of savings to deal with it.
The charity has indicated that the shortfall has been caused by a decline in legacy income, demand for its services and pressure on NHS Budgets. Every year, it costs the hospice more than £8million to provide its services and of this almost three-quarters is funded through donations and legacies. The NHS provides funding for the remaining 27 per cent of the costs incurred by the hospice.
You can read more on the Herald Express website by clicking here. It goes without saying that the charity would welcome any donations residents can make to help support their services to avoid some of the changes that may be necessary to deal with this shortfall.
Rail Fare Dodger Pays The Price
A Paignton man who decided to try and dodge paying his train fare has been left counting the cost of doing so.
After deciding he could not be bothered to pay for his train ticket to Plymouth, costing £11.60, he boarded a train without one. When he got to Plymouth he was challenged by GWR staff and decided to give them a false name and address. Yet his plan to avoid paying soon hit the buffers when his real identity was revealed.
Yet not bothering to pay his fare is not the only thing he decided not to do, as a he failed to attend Plymouth Magistrates Court for the hearing which saw him hit with a bill (That included fines, costs and compensation) of £1,095.60. You can read the full story on the Herald Express website by clicking here.
This may seem steep but every year our railways lose out on £240m of income due to fare dodging. It is therefore right that Magistrates make sure those who lie to avoid paying find themselves on the fast track to a large fine.
Connections Offices to Close
In just over three weeks time the Torbay Council Connections service will be centralised to one office and from Monday 8 August 2016 will only be operating from Paignton Library and Information Centre.
Torquay and Brixham Connections offices will be closing their doors at 5 pm on Friday 5 August. Free phones will also be available in Torquay and Brixham Libraries to enable residents to contact council services.
A pre-booked appointment service will also be available for customers who are unable to resolve their enquiry over the phone or online. These appointments will be with a member of the Connections team within Brixham and Torquay Library on one day per week.
Prescription Changes To Stop Waste
A pilot scheme to cut medicines wastage and save our local NHS money has been launched.
Five GP practices across South Devon and Torbay are taking part in the 12-week pilot, with patients now ordering repeat medicines direct from their practice.
The pilot comes after 90 percent of respondents to a survey earlier this year said they agreed that instead of items on a repeat prescription being automatically dispensed every 28 days, patients should be responsible for only ordering what they actually require. Previously many had items on their repeat prescription ordered by a company or pharmacy, with evidence indicating this could be leading to unintentional over ordering. You can read more about this on the Herald Express website by clicking here.
Provided patients are kept fully informed it makes sense to trial this type of approach. At a time when health care budgets face real challenges wasting on cash on items that are not needed by a patient due to repeat ordering makes no sense at all.
Free Activities For Community Centres Week
Young people across Torbay are being invited to a range of free events planned to celebrate Community Centre Week.
Following funding from Sanctuary Housing, organisations including Play Torbay, So-Fly and Imagine CIC have teamed up to organise “Funky Mondays” and “Funky Tuesdays”, offering a range of evening events for young people.
The project will take place at two local community centres, with Funky Mondays taking place at the Windmill Community Centre in Hele, and Funky Tuesdays will be held at Foxhole Community Centre in Paignton, and both event evenings will run from 5pm until 8pm.
You can find more details on the Herald Express website by clicking here.
No Digging?
This week holidaymakers thinking of heading to our shores are being advised not to dig holes in the sand as they could pose a safety risk.
In a strongly worded warning Coastguards have been advising that sand holes may collapse onto someone and this can lead to death or serious injury. Whilst there have been incidents in the past, there have been no reports of this level of incident caused by a sand hole in recent years. You can read more on the Herald Express website by clicking here.
Perhaps leaving a child unsupervised to dig a large hole in the sand is extremely foolish, but few children will head to the beach with any digging equipment beyond a small bucket and spade. Finding they have dug a moat for a sandcastle or a small hole that fills with water is not the biggest risk at the beach if your child or grandchild is left unsupervised.
The key is not banning one activity, but ensuring any trip to the seaside is appropriately supervised and the sea is treated with respect by following any advice given by Lifeguards, Beach Teams or on information boards.
Barber Aims To Cut Mental Health Problems
A trip to the barbers can be a welcome chance to share a few stories and have a chat, whilst getting a short back and sides.
Now a collective of international barbers is trying to encourage men to talk about their mental health and seek professional help. In 2014, four out of five suicides were male. One of the men involved is Tom Chapman, of Tom Chapman Hair Design in St Marychurch Road.
Their work was featured on Channel Four news this week and you can watch the video of their report online by clicking here.
Devon Cat’s Great Escape Is Still On
Devon’s Great Escape is still ongoing as Flaviu the Lynx has still not been recaptured.
In the spirit of the many tales of daring wartime escapes, Flaviu had managed to chew through a board on his enclosure and head into the countryside around Dartmoor Zoo. As the Lynx was once a native species of the British Isles he can survive in our climate with relative ease.
Despite a number of sightings he is still on the run, although interestingly larger traps designed to trap him have only succeeded in trapping two keepers who tested them out! You can read the latest on the Herald Express website by clicking here.
Events
Goodrington Craft Art & Gift Fair
16th July 2016, 10:00 – 16:00, St George’s Church, Barn Road, Goodrington, Torquay TQ4 6NG
Cost: Free.
Booking: No booking necessary.
For more information, click here
Rotary Pedal Car Grand Prix 2016
17th July 2016, 14:00 – 16:00, Torre Abbey Meadows, The Kings Drive, Torquay, TQ2 5JE
Cost: Free.
Booking: No booking necessary.
For more information, click here
A ROYAL PARADE
17th July 2016 – 14:30 – 16:30 – Furrough Cross Urc, Torquay, TQ1 3SB
Cost: £8.00
Booking: Tickets are available by contacting: contact@choir86.co.uk
For more information, click here
Hope’s Nose Litter Pick
Torbay Coast and Countryside Trust Volunteers will be doing another Litter Pick at Hope’s Nose on Friday 22nd July and would be grateful for any assistance which you might be able to give.
Rendezvous will be at 10.00am on the roadside by the entrance; please report to Neil Stanlake. Litter Pickers and bags will be provided, please wear suitable footwear and bring your own gloves and drinking water. Your efforts will be greatly appreciated.
