Ten Year Leisure Contract

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It was announced earlier this month that GLL, a large company that runs leisure facilities in many places in London, and round the country, including South Oxfordshire, has won the ten year contract to run leisure facilities on behalf of the Vale of White Horse District Council and South Oxfordshire from September 1st 2014.

GLL began life as Greenwich Leisure Limited in 1992, and merged with Nexus Community Leisure in 2011, and will now run over 120 facilities. So they are big.
Lesiure Contract
That means that the 2 facilities in Abingdon: The Vale of White Horse Leisure Centre, currently run by Active Nation,
Lesiure Contract
and the Outdoor Pool, currently run by SOLL, will come under the control of GLL.

(Management of Tilsley Park, Abingdon’s other facility, was previously taken over by Abingdon School.)

District Councils are increasingly in the business of managing contracts with specialist companies on behalf of council tax payers, rather than running services themselves. The new contract could be good news to Abingdon-on-Thames Town Council who currently subsidise the open air pool to the tune of over £40K a year.
Lesiure Contract
Anyway, good to see that the outdoor pool was a good temperature yesterday.

World Cup cup cakes and Two Town Criers

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World Cup Cupcakes
The World Cup Cupcake stall opened outside Cancer Research UK at 10 am this morning and were almost sold out when I visited an hour later.
World Cup Cupcakes
Just a few cakes left to show.
World Cup Cupcakes
Due to an administrative error there were two Town Criers about in town today.

As far as I know they were never both in the same place at the same time, and did not come to blows. Their duties included announcing:

  • The Queen’s birthday
  • Market Place Craft Fair
  • Carswell School Fete
  • Lace Making demo in the museum attic.

Storm Damage and other news from Trinity

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Last night there was a thunderstorm. Rain was falling heavily and thunder rumbling around.
Lightening Strike
At the end of April a similar storm caused damage to the roof at Trinity Church – just where the lightening rod comes down.
Lightening Strike
The damage has been repaired to keep the elements out.
Lightening Strike
Last Sunday (Pentecost or Whit Sunday) the visiting preacher was head of the Methodist Northampton District( a large area stretching from Oxford to Peterborough with Northampton near the centre). Trinity is both Methodist and URC, and is also part of the Wessex URC district stretching through much of the South West. So one way and another has much of the country covered.

Tomorrow is Trinity Sunday and Reverend Richard Bittleston, who leaves Trinity in August, will be preaching on ‘The Minimalist Christian’. And next Saturday, June 21st 2014, will be the Trinity Summer Fair. Stalls to include: Cakes and preserves, Tombola, Raffle, Jewellery, Toiletries, Plants, Tea/Coffee and light refreshments, Children’s activities,and Ice cream with a smile.

Ock Street on a Thursday Evening

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Mayor of Ock Street Ballot Papers
The Election of the Mayor of Ock Street will be on June 21st this year. Ballot Papers were being taken round this evening. It is earlier than usual to give people more warning, and also to avoid delivering ballot papers during the England v Uruguay game.

Only people living along Ock Street and side streets get to vote in this election.
Mayor of Ock Street Ballot Papers
It will be a two way contest this year between Roger Cox, the current Mayor, and Harry Knight.
Mayor of Ock Street Ballot Papers
The number of Ock Street occupants entitled to vote has been reduced by the demolition of the Mayott House Old People’s Home.

But by 2015 the new independent living quarters, built instead, will provide new electors.
Mayor of Ock Street Ballot Papers
On Ock Street today the Firemen were on strike over government changes to their pensions. As I gather it the government wants firemen to continue front line fire fighting until the age of 60.
Mayor of Ock Street Ballot Papers
Large clouds of smoke were rising this evening. Not a strike breaker – just a large bonfire at St Amand Drive as viewed from Meadowside off Ock Street