Springtime brings longer days, blossom on the trees and the Spring 2019 edition of Community News.

The mayor of Winchester cuts the cake at the inaugural Chat-Tea Café at the Community Centre

In this edition we welcome the new Chat-Tea Café.

The Chat-Tea Café’s opening on 28th January was an outstanding success. The enthusiasm and welcoming manner of the volunteers promoted the first of many Chat-Tea Café afternoons as all gathered in the cosy and relaxed setting.

News from our Local Schools

• In November, the children of Badger Farm Pre-School joined Stan, our local representative from the Royal British Legion, to purchase their poppies for Remembrance Sunday.
• Oliver’s Battery Primary School celebrated Christmas with brilliant Nativity performances, a Christmas Service at St Luke’s Church and a visit from Father Christmas. Years 5 and 6 were treated to a visit by an Adventurer called Wendy Searle. She told the children all about how her goal this year is to be the fastest woman to ski to the South Pole!  She inspired the children and told them how they should always follow their dreams.
• The new headteacher of Stanmore Primary School finds it “an exciting place to be.” From the seed of an idea amongst the year 4 pupils the school has joined the RSPB, signed up to the Big Garden Birdwatch and persuaded the very tolerant site manager to set up a bird feeder. They are looking to develop the grounds to give children those first-hand experiences but this needs time and expertise. If you or someone you know has this and feels able to volunteer, please get in contact with Mr Jim Boyne at the school.
• It has been a busy start to the year for the children and staff at Oliver’s Battery Pre School. Topics this term include Chinese New Year, spring growth, Mother’s Day and Easter. For the topic of growth the children will be growing cress, beans and sunflowers and will end the term with the annual Easter Egg Hunt in the primary school grounds.

Parish and Government News

• Badger Farm Parish Council report on anti-social behaviour in the parish, especially the particular group of youths that are causing problems around the Central Play Area. If you can give a description or names, please contact the clerk on 01425 656010 or 07463 760801. They also discuss the new Planning Committee, commuter parking and dog mess in the area.
• Oliver’s Battery Parish Council continue to progress the actions identified in the Oliver’s Battery Plan. There is a plan to form a Bus Group for Oliver’s Battery to lobby for improvements to the bus service in the parish. As a result of the Council’s work with Fields in Trust, Centenary Field will be protected as a living remembrance to those who lost their lives in World War 1.
• Councillor Jan Warwick writes that “Planning is an emotive issue, with conflicting views between those who wish to maximise property value, extend their home and those trying to protect the uniqueness of the area or their own privacy.” She goes on to explain how the planning process in Winchester works.
• Winchester City Council report again on the status of problem properties in Harrow Down and Texas Drive. They also discuss various traffic concerns in the area and welcome the new Chat-Tea Café to the Community Centre. Councillors Brian Laming and Deputy Mayor Eleanor Bell were pleased to attend the café and give their full support to what is a really important project for the community.
• MP Steve Brine reports on major funding received by the Royal Hampshire County Hospital for big improvements including an extended emergency department creating space for additional rapid assessment and treatment areas, as well as a new paediatric assessment unit. Additional funding will be used to make improvements to the pharmacy and orthopaedic departments. There is a marked increase of late in unhappy travellers, seemingly in direct correlation to the drop in performance of the rail service. Last month Steve held the latest of his ASK public meetings, ASKSWR, which gave constituents the chance to put their question directly to those running our trains.

News from Local Organisations and Clubs

• Oliver’s Battery WI have made a good start to 2019 with a talk from Mrs Hannah Williams on ‘Reducing our use of Plastics’, a high-profile global topic and one which we all need to address as individuals. They will continue to enjoy a programme of monthly speakers this year. Future dates are 18th March and 15th April, 20th May and 17th June 2019. Please do come if you are interested. A warm welcome awaits you.
• In their meetings at the Community Centre this spring, Winchester Local Group Hampshire and IOW Wildlife Trust will enjoy a talk about Hampshire Swifts and will ask “Are There ‘Dragons’ in Your Garden?”
• Winchester Horticultural Society are getting busy in the garden but will allow themselves the odd evening off to enjoy talks on “The Story of Highbridge Community Farm”, “What makes a woodland?” and the rose gardens at Mottisfont Abbey.
• Our local Neighbourhood Watch representative, Sandie Vining, warns us about two scams: fake tax email warning for students and fake TV licencing emails. She also tells us how to identify your phone if it’s stolen and points us towards the Safe4Me website (run by Hampshire Constabulary) – a great resource to promote to parents, professionals, young people and teachers to learn more about helping young people to stay safe online.
• The Hampshire Ostomates Support Group is aimed at anyone of all ages, whether you have a stoma, care for someone living with a stoma or just wish to know more information about the surgery and how a stoma affects our daily living. It is fun, lively and full of character, where we share our stories, our ups and downs, have a good natter or just a cuppa and piece of cake.

General News

• In his Beacon of Positivity, Simon Lever tells us that “Negativity does not solve anything. Positivity is the ‘can-do’ of human attitude.”
• Winchester Hospice have a plan in place to refurbish an historic building, Burrell House, on the site of the Royal Hampshire County Hospital in Winchester into a dedicated hospice.
• Chelsea Duke of Winchester Bereavement Support encourages us to “Be brave – why your New Year’s Resolution should be to talk about death”.
• Ann has rebranded her column from Computer Corner to Tech Talk. Why? To reflect how computers have evolved from “the PC sitting on your desk” to “the tech you carry around all day”. She explains that the key to this is The Cloud. “The Cloud” still has an air of mystery but is just a short way of saying “software and services that run on the Internet, instead of locally on your computer”. Using the Cloud means that, whichever device you have to hand, you can carry on exactly where you left off. In other words, “Cloud is about how you do computing, not where you do computing.”
• In her Nature Notes, Norma tells us about the London Plane Tree, “the perfect tree to line the city’s main thoroughfares in the days of smog, fog and industrial grime.” There have been sightings of starling murmurations at Fishlake Meadows in Romsey, a place to see winter wildfowl, visiting marsh harriers, ospreys, bitterns and, in spring, cuckoos, sedge warblers and other migrants as well as resident birds. You might also be lucky to spot an otter or a water vole.