Volunteering For The Vale

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Volunteering For The Vale
The Chairman of The Vale of White Horse District Council, Councillor Mike Badcock, presented awards today for people recognised for their voluntary service to communities in the Vale of White Horse.
Volunteering For The Vale
There were awards for two people who Mike said had done a great deal for South Abingdon.

Both Preston Road Community Centre and Thameside School independently nominated Mary De Vere.

Mary also gives a lot of her free time working for Drayton Road Allotment Association and All Saints Church (in North Abingdon).
Volunteering For The Vale
The other main force at  Preston Road Community Centre is Ray Ball. As well as organising a lot of recent improvements to the centre; he runs youth groups, The Vineyard Church, and with Ellie his wife organises community activities such as mother & toddler groups.

There were lots of other examples of people who went above and beyond from other towns and villages in the Vale. That even included the man who scours the White Horse in Uffington to keep it bright.

1969 Bike Sign

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Bike Sign
On the perimeter wall of Abingdon’s older Cemetery there is a bike sign. Cycle Racks were there in Spring 1969. They are gone now but the sign remains as a memorial to the cycle racks – presumably they were put there for the workers of the MG Car Plant nearby.

The MG Car Plant held a grand celebration of 50 years of the MG in Abingdon in 1979, ten year later.

After a speech, The Plant Director, Peter Frearson, raised a toast to the Mayor of Abingdon and people of Abingdon. He said “Here is to the next 50 years!”

The following Monday he received a phone call telling him to announce the closure of the Abingdon plant within the next 3 months.

I Read in the book “Turbulent Times in the Car Industry” by David Buckle, the Cowley Shop Steward …

“The stewards began a campaign to save the plant and their jobs and let the public know what was happening to this much respected car factory.

The management said that anybody who did anything to prevent the closure would be dismissed due to industrial misconduct and would lose all their severance pay.

The campaign against closure collapsed and the final irony was that each employee received a letter of thank for ‘assisting the Company in closing the plant down.’

Please Re-paint Your Sign

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Wok Sign
Michael was hoping to get the Magic-Wok Chinese takeaway in Oxford Road to re-paint their sign.
Wok Sign
He doesn’t think they’ve had their sign repainted since they set up.

He says “Maybe if you publish one of these pictures it will somehow jog them into action.“

2nd Decision on Two Pelican Crossings

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If the decision by the Oxfordshire County Council Cabinet Member for Environment at 10:30 on 9th October is to allow the replacement of one badly sited Pelican Crossing with two badly sited Pelican Crossings, on Marcham Road and Ock Street, then 159 houses will be allowed to be built on the field off Drayton Road, and that could be the end of the 2 year battle between the developers and local people.

Double Pelican Crossings
If he decides against the pelican crossings there is likely to be another legal challenge by the developers and the battle will go on.

At the first hearing to decide these Pelican Crossings, there were 11 speakers against –
4 residents,
2 Abingdon Town Councillors,
3 Vale District Councillors,
2 Oxfordshire County Councillors.

They argued that the issue was one of safety of school children and air quality for all. The decision went their way but Oxfordshire County Council failed to present enough evidence for their decision and so it has gone for a re-hearing.

This time there will be 12 speakers against:
5 residents (one also being a Town Councillor),
2 Abingdon Town Councillors,
2 Vale District Councillors,
3 Oxfordshire County Councillors.
and 1 speaker for – an expert witness for the developer wanting to build the 159 houses.
Double Pelican Crossings
At the last minute, and too late to go in the Officers Report, the developers have presented a raft of new evidence, including legal opinions, and safety audits etc. Presumably this is ammunition so that if the decision does goes against them they will have grounds to appeal again.

P.S The Cabinet Member for Environment was minded to allow the pedestrian lights. The developers were delighted. Local people felt let down again by another decision that ignored what local people wanted.