Woodley Town Council is delighted that ReadiBus has won an award for pandemic service provision

ReadiBus is judged at the CT Awards to have been the best community transport service in England (and a runner-up in the entire UK) for its service provision during the pandemic.

The CT Awards in November 2021 named ReadiBus as the best community transport service in England – and a runner-up for the whole of the UK – for its service provision during the pandemic. The award was in the headline category of ‘Community Transport Provider of the Year’ and the ceremony highlighted the service provided during the last 21 months by community transport organisations throughout the length and breadth of the country.

The ReadiBus service in Woodley is funded by Woodley Town Council and Wokingham Borough Council. ReadiBus General Manager, Peter Absolon, commented: “Our grateful thanks to Woodley Town Council and Wokingham Borough Council and our other funders for the amazing support that has enabled us to keep the service available for vulnerable residents in Woodley during the pandemic.”

Woodley Town Council Leader, Cllr Keith Baker, is thrilled that ReadiBus has won the award and is very proud that the Council continues to support this vital service. 

“It is with great pride that I speak on behalf of the Council congratulating ReadiBus on winning an award acknowledging the very important service that it provides, which has been in even greater demand during the Covid 19 pandemic. The staff and volunteers have gone above and beyond in helping the elderly, disabled and clinically or extremely vulnerable people of Woodley to make essential journeys safely during the pandemic, such as for attending GP and hospital appointments, food shopping and respite. Thank you for supporting the residents of Woodley.”

Bill Freeman, Chief Executive of the Community Transport Association, which held the CT Awards, offered his “huge congratulations for the incredible work over the last year and a half”, adding, “our judges were impressed”.

Helping those most in need

Throughout the pandemic, the ReadiBus service has provided a safe means for elderly, disabled and clinically extremely vulnerable people to make essential journeys, whether this has been for food shopping, medical appointments, respite or any other reason; and ReadiBus worked side by side with the South Central Ambulance Service to enable local people to safely get to non-Covid-related hospital appointments, such as for cancer treatment and dialysis, helping people when they were most in need. 

“I am delighted that our team have received this recognition at the CT Awards”, added ReadiBus General Manager, Peter Absolon. “There are hundreds and hundreds of community transport service providers in the four nations of the UK, all doing wonderful work, and for the ReadiBus team to be recognised in this way for service provided during such a challenging time as this pandemic is quite something. ReadiBus staff showed great commitment to keep the service available and to ensure that it was safe, especially during the first lockdown. People needed a safe means of getting out, whether that was to get food, to attend a medical or hospital appointment, for respite, whatever the reason. I am so proud of what we did and what we achieved together.”

Thanks from passengers

Those who relied upon the ReadiBus during the lockdowns were also very grateful. For example, Mrs Markham from Woodley commented during the first lockdown back in May 2020: “I know I’m safe travelling with you”.

The Chief Executive of the Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust, Steve McManus, wrote in a letter to ReadiBus at the end of the first lockdown (June 2020) that ReadiBus’ support “has been truly outstanding’ and that the service ‘has been a life-line for many”.

In total, over 60,000 safe essential journeys have been made on ReadiBus across the whole operation since the start of the first lockdown, including over 2,000 journeys during that first lockdown in 2020.

Peter Absolon, further added: “In the first lockdown, journeys had to be provided one at a time, for social distancing, with a deep clean after every journey in order to keep the travelling environment safe. It was difficult to source enough PPE at the outset but the ambulance service were great and helped us with that and we always had just enough for what we needed each day. We were very strict in our procedures – our team were determined to keep the virus out and to keep safe both ourselves and everyone who needed to travel. Some staff teams rotated to get breathers but the service itself remained available every day. It was exhausting – but it was what was needed.”

As well as giving people the means and the confidence to make the essential journeys that they needed to make, the ReadiBus team also made hundreds of calls to people who were on their own who were not making journeys, to check they were OK. The comments that the team received from those contacted included, for example, “It’s so nice to talk to someone rather than myself”.

The Royal British Legion and Woodley Town Mayor thank the residents of Woodley for their generous donations to this year’s Poppy Appeal

Woodley Town Council has received a letter from The Royal British Legion thanking the Council and the residents of Woodley for raising £7522.06.

Woodley Town Mayor, Cllr Janet Sartorel, also wanted to pass on her thanks to the residents of Woodley for their generous donations.

“I would like to thank the residents of Woodley for their very generous donations to this year’s Poppy Appeal. Donations enable the Royal British Legion to help members of the Royal Navy, British Army, Royal Air Force, veterans and their families,” she said. 

For more information about The Royal British Legion, which celebrated its 100th Anniversary this year, please visit its WEBSITE.

Woodley Town Mayor helps Christmas festivities get underway in the town centre

Woodley Town Mayor, Cllr Janet Sartorel, helped to start Woodley Town Centre’s Christmas festivities by turning on the Christmas lights on Saturday 27th November, along with Christmas poster competition winners Coco Mead (8) and Jocelyn So (6).

A long-time Woodley resident herself, Cllr Sartorel told the crowd that the lights switch-on and carol concert always marks the beginning of Christmas for her. 

Christmas Fayre – 25th Anniversary

The following weekend (Sunday 5th December), Woodley Town Mayor, Cllr Janet Sartorel opened the 25th Woodley Christmas Fayre, which had been cancelled last year due to the Covid restrictions.

Cllr Sartorel was joined by MP for Reading East, Matt Rodda, MP for Maidenhead, Teresa May and Leader of Woodley Council and Wokingham Borough Mayor, Cllr Keith Baker.

Matt Rodda praised Woodley for being a “fantastic, vibrant place” and told the crowd to “enjoy Christmas, spend lots of money and support local businesses”.

Teresa May wished everyone a Merry Christmas and hoped they enjoyed the Fayre.

While, Cllr Keith Baker thanked Woodley Town Centre manager, Brian Fennelly for his hard work to get the event together, particularly praising the street entertainers.

Cllr Sartorel was delighted with the turnout at the Fayre and thanked the crowd for coming and supporting the fantastic community of Woodley on the Fayre’s 25th Anniversary.

Cllr Sartorel wished everyone a wonderful day and hoped that they purchased some special Christmas gifts before declaring the Christmas Fayre officially open.

 There were many stalls at the Fayre, including a range of charities and craft stalls. Entertainers included the Starlet Dance School, Pauly Zarb, Anything Goes Theatre, Steppin Out Stars of Tomorrow, the Rock Choir and Woodley’s songstress Charis-Anne. Circus Scene entertainers, Sister Ruth on her motorised piano and R&R Fisher wandered around entertaining the town.

There was also a guest appearance of Santa in his sleigh!

Community Grants awarded at recent Council Meeting

At the recent Strategy & Resources Committee meeting, held on 23^rd November, the following community grants were awarded:

Kick Twist Cheerleading

£250 – To purchase air track equipment to aid the teaching of beginners’ teams.

Woodley Adopt a Street Project (WASP)

£250 – To purchase additional street cleaning equipment for volunteers.

Wokingham Job Centre Support

£250 – To help towards the cost of providing internet access and training / support on how to find and apply for jobs.

Berkshire MS Therapy

£250 – To help fund exercise sessions for members.

Berkshire Vision

£250 – To help fund a monthly programme of activities for members.

Woodley United FC

£250 – To contribute towards the hire cost of additional training facilities.

About the grants

Community grants are available to community organisations based in Woodley, which act for the local good of the town or those that can demonstrate how they serve Woodley residents and whose membership is open to Woodley residents.

Grants of up to £250 are available for one-off costs such as equipment, materials or building alterations or a youth (under 21) team/group attendance at county, regional, national or international level primarily within a sporting or cultural activity. 

For more information, or to apply, please click HERE or email: [email protected].

Woodley Town Council is delighted to list its halls, Coronation Hall and Chapel Hall, in the village hall Domesday Book.

Action with Communities in Rural England (ACRE), a national charity representing and supporting rural communities, has created a virtual ‘Domesday Book’ for village halls to record the work they are doing in 2021. 

ACRE hopes the record will help make the case for sustained funding and support for village halls, particularly with the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

Lord Gardiner of Kimble, Former Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Minister for Rural Affairs and Biosecurity) said of the venture:

“Village halls have been a crucial part of rural life for the past century. They provide a space for activities and events that bring people together, create a sense of community, reduce loneliness and support local businesses. 

At a time when many village halls are closed because of coronavirus, it is especially important to recognise and celebrate the work they do. As such, I wholeheartedly encourage anyone involved with a village hall to sign this ‘Domesday Book’ and help create a record demonstrating how important these buildings are, and what is needed to make sure they survive in the future.”

There are now over 380 village hall entries in the ‘Domesday Book’, including Coronation Hall and Chapel Hall.

Please click HERE to view the records.

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We are delighted to have hired a living, pot grown Christmas tree from the Festive Tree Hire for the Oakwood Centre as part of our commitment to reduce our carbon footprint.

The specially selected tree will return to the Festive Tree ‘family’ in January, to continue to grow and be nurtured, ready for us to hire next Christmas.

We’ve decorated the Christmas tree with the same baubles we have used for several years and it is lit using LED lights for that carbon-conscious Christmas sparkle. 

We are aware that the tree is leaning slightly to one side but we think it adds to its charm and beauty of being a real, sustainably sourced living tree. 

We hope the Christmas tree brings you some sparkle and joy during the festive season! 

Merry Christmas to all of our residents. 

Tree recycling tip! 

If you have a real Christmas tree this year that cannot be replanted or grown, this should be recycled. 

If you are registered with the garden waste scheme or have purchased garden waste bags, please chop your tree up and pop it in there for collection. Alternatively, take it along to one of our recycling centres.

If you’d like to take the hassle out of recycling your tree, while supporting a good cause, you could use Just Helping’s Christmas Treecycling scheme, who will collect and recycle your tree in return for a minimum £10.50 donation to a local hospice.