What we could NOT fit into the February Magazine
Or perhaps it arrived after the copy deadline!
Pruning the cost of the green garden waste service
Green fingered recyclers are being offered even better value from Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council’s green garden waste collections service with extra collections for the same price as last year during the peak growing season.
The service starts on Monday 6 February just as gardens across the borough spring to life and keep their owners busy gardening, mowing lawns and trimming hedges, and continues until the week of 21 December.
Other improvements to this year’s service mean that residents will be given an extra sack when they sign up. And residents that join once the service has already started will not pay the full cost, as they would have done in previous years, the cost will be charged for how many collections are left.
This year’s collections will not be on Saturdays, residents will be given a week day dependant on which area of the borough they live.
Everything collected in the large hard wearing green garden waste bags is composted locally to produce bags of Pro-Grow, high quality organic soil conditioner to help gardens grow.
Last year over 4,000 people in the borough joined the scheme, sending an impressive 1,000 tonnes of garden waste for composting.
Cabinet Member for the Environment Cllr Elaine Still said: “The green garden waste collection service is environmentally friendly and a convenient and easy way to recycle your garden waste.
“The improvements to the service mean that residents are getting more collected for their money which I hope will encourage more residents to sign up to make sure this waste is recycled and not put in their grey bins.”
For more information or to sign up visit www.basingstoke.gov.uk/go/greenwaste to complete an online form or call the council on 01256 844844.
For further information please contact: Sophia Waite-King, External information Communications Officer, on 01256 845746 or email sophia.waite-king@basingstoke.gov.uk. Don't forget to follow us on Twitter @twitter.com/BasingstokeGov
It is the time of year when some of our teenagers will be starting to prepare for their GCSE exams which they will take in May and June.
Many pupils and their parents are particularly worried about success in Maths, especially at GCSE since many college courses or occupations require certain grades for entry.
It may be difficult to find a suitable source of support or to choose the most relevant resources from the many that are now available.
From my experience as both a Maths tutor and a mother of two teenagers, I have developed a list of tips and suggestions which may help pupils and their parents in preparing for the GCSE Maths examination.
I will also be running some small group GCSE Maths Examination Practice classes for a moderate charge.
If you would like a free copy of the ‘Tips and Suggestions’, or wish to find out more about the classes, please email me at enquiries@TheMathsClass.co.uk giving both the first and last name of either the pupil or a parent, and also the current school year group for the pupil.
Sally Shaw, BSc (Honours) in Mathematical Studies, PGCE
Cats Protection’s Basingstoke and District Branch is
starting to feel the pinch
Cats Protection’s Basingstoke and District Branch has reported today that the slowdown in the UK economy and recession is now having an impact on its day to day running and it has been forced to increase its annual membership from £6 to £10 per year and the cost to adopt a cat has risen from £50 to £60 .
According to Hilary Wells, Branch Co-ordinator, they are feeling the pinch in two main areas. As well as a drop in donations to the branch, the branch is also finding that cats are taking much longer to be re-homed.
Hilary explained further: “We understand that during tough times everyone has to tighten their belts, however it is often during these times that we are at our most needy. As fewer prospective owners come forward to re-home cats, our running costs increase whilst our income from donations decreases. We would really be very grateful for more help in any way at the moment.”
One pair currently in need of a home is Freddie and Matilda who are lovely
natured gentle cats who are looking for a quiet home with a garden away from
traffic. Freddie is a one year old ginger cat who likes to be combed and
petted and Matilda is a two year old black cat with a white tummy and bib who
enjoys cuddling up on laps. They adore each other and love to play
together.
For more information on giving a Cats Protection cat a home please email the branch at: adoptacat-basingstoke@hotmail.co.uk, or to make a donation to help the charity continue its vital cat welfare work in the area, please call the branch on 01256 352281. More information about the branch can be found at www.basingstoke.cats.org.uk.
Cats Protection’s Basingstoke and District Branch is part of the charity’s nationwide network of 257 volunteer-run branches and 30 adoption centres that together help over 230,000 cats and kittens in the UK each year.
BASINGSTOKE CIVIL SERVICE RETIREMENT FELLOWSHIP
A happy new year to all. At our Christmas meeting we had a buffet of sandwiches and cakes and were entertained by a folk singer. On January 4th a talk was given by Susan Howe, a very gregarious lady who as well as being a London Blue Badge Guide had been a personal assistant to John Betjeman, a former Poet Laureate, had cooked for the super rich on a yacht and had very interesting friends such as Donald Sinclair, who was the real ‘Siegfried’ in the James Herriot stories. She told us that Robert Hardy, who took the part, was nothing like him and neither Donald or his wife saw any of the TV episodes. Her stories were entertaining and funny.
Outings - 7th March Lunch at BCOT following the AGM 16th March Osterley House and park (near London - National Trust). 26th April Hillier Arboretum. Please contact Kate on 01256 328791
All retired civil servants and their partners are welcome at our meetings
held on the first Wednesday of each month at 10am at Brookvale Village Hall,
Lower Brook St, Basingstoke. Coffee and tea are available.
Joyce Neville tel. 357932
SuperHome Open Days set to inspire your eco makeover
Interested in making your home one of the most environmentally friendly in your area? This is your chance to talk to someone who has already done it!
Pioneering owners of some of the UK’s most energy efficient SuperHomes will be hosting free open days between Saturday 17th March and Sunday 25th March 2012.
SuperHomes are older homes that have been refurbished to the highest standards of energy efficiency – resulting in greater comfort, significantly lower running costs and a reduction in carbon emissions of at least 60%.
SuperHomes showcase a range of home improvements likely to become popular following the launch of the Green Deal in October 2012. The majority of SuperHomes are super-insulated so visitors with draughty old solid wall properties will discover some clever ways to make their home more comfortable in winter. In many cases renewable energy heats water, provides electricity or contributes to space heating.
Attending an open day provides the opportunity to speak to a homeowner who has already done the thinking and undertaken and lived with some major improvements. Who could be better qualified to help you make the right choices?
The SuperHomes website makes it easy to find properties with features you may
have on your wish list. SuperHomes open to the public in March, September and at
other times by appointment. For more information, or to book to attend an open
day, visit www.superhomes.org.uk
SuperHomes - opening doors to low energy refurbishment
Photo courtesy of www.superhomes.org.uk
NEWS FROM ODIHAM COTTAGE HOSPITAL
The
New Year is now upon us and a time of great excitement for the cottage hospital.
The builders and decorators and many others are working hard to create a
welcoming environment for the new users of the hospital and a re-opening is now
scheduled for February.
All hurdles have been cleared for Rosefield Day Club to relocate from their current premises in Hartley Wintney to Odiham Cottage Hospital and we have undertaken building work, effectively re-instating the “Ladies Ward” for those who remember the pre-1999 layout, to create a huge open plan space for the day club clients, staff and volunteers. Decisions on colours and furnishings have been made and we look forward welcoming Rosefield to their new home.
Meanwhile our NHS partners, Calleva and Southern Health, continue to progress their development of the local integrated care team with the appointment of a dedicated Community Matron, Lynne Aldridge. The team are looking forward to relocating to their newly refurbished offices and running a number of medical clinics from the hospital, for the benefit of our local community.
This work has been generously supported by the League of Friends and this has been made possible by your support of the Friends shops throughout the past year. Through donations, shopping and volunteering, your efforts are paying results and are breathing life back into our hospital.
Meanwhile we are grateful to those who have continued to provide financial support to the hospital, most recently generous donations have been received from the Hook Christmas Cracker and the Hook Bowling club. All of these donations represent huge effort by many people and we are grateful to you all. Thank you.
Ginny East, Secretary to the Trustees.
Email: och1@btinternet.com,
www.odihamcottagehospital.org.uk
Hampshire and IOW Wildlife Trust
The latest article can be found here.