Thames Valley Police have issued a statement regarding increased burglaries in Woodley

Several burglaries have occurred during the early hours of Sunday 20th October into Monday 21st October across the Woodley area. Please can you review your CCTV, video doorbell or dash-cam footage between 00:00 and 05:30am and if there are any persons or vehicles acting suspiciously that may assist our investigation, please report this online at www.thamesvalley.police.uk or call the police non-emergency number 101.

Follow these tips to protect your property:-

• double lock your doors
• close and lock all windows
• keep all keys including car keys upstairs if possible, hidden and away from the letterbox or cat flap as a thief could hook keys or valuables through even a small opening
• make sure any valuables are out of sight
• consider storing high value items such as jewellery, watches, passports, credit cards, computer data and identification documents in a safe
• never leave car documents or ID in obvious places such as kitchens or hallways
• set your burglar alarm
• make sure all gates, including side gates, are locked
• lock your shed or garage
• in the evening, shut the curtains and leave lights on
• if you’re out all day, then it’s advisable to use a timer device to automatically turn lights and a radio on at night

If you do not want to speak directly to the police you can contact the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or online at www.crimestoppers-uk.org

For crime prevention tips and information, please visit our website www.thamesvalley.police.uk and download our free Home Security Guide.

Please find below the Agenda for the next Woodley and North Earley Community Forum at the Oakwood Centre on Wednesday 23rd October 19.00-21.00

A G E N D A

Welcome, introduction and apologies

Minutes of the previous meeting and matters arising

Update from Neighbourhood Policing Team

Policing priorities  – Burglary, Antisocial behaviour, Speeding, Other

Forum committee – minute taker, website

Any Other Business

Date and venue of next meeting – 20.11.19

Maxwell Road, Oakwood Centre     19.00-21.00

VIP guests joined students from Woodley schools for an evening full of singing and entertainment. The Bulmershe School was filled with children from Addington School, Waingels College and Highwood Primary School for an energetic SingIN concert.

The event, held on Sunday 20 October, brought together nine to 19-year-olds. Accompanied by a fantastic live band and a community choir, 50 voices put together a spectacular show.

The project began with a launch day, where students from all schools came together to partner with their ‘buddy’ and start working on the songs. With many school day and after-school rehearsals, all efforts were focused on delivering an outstanding performance.

The main aim of the concert was to form long-lasting friendships, while enjoying signing together.

“What a wonderful event this was,” said Wokingham Borough Mayor, Cllr Bill Soane. “I champion inclusion and diversity. It’s great to see so many children learning from one another and achieving great things together.

“A truly fantastic evening was had by everyone, which is a testament to the hard work, dedication and commitment from families, teachers and support staff. I am so glad to have been able to attend.”

PIC BY STEWART TURKINGTON
www.stphotos.co.uk 

PIC BY STEWART TURKINGTON
www.stphotos.co.uk

PIC BY STEWART TURKINGTON
www.stphotos.co.uk

It is with great sadness that we announce that Cllr David Stares passed away peacefully last week losing his battle against cancer. David had been active in the community for some time and was a councillor at Woodley Town Council for almost five years. He has served as Chairman on the Leisure Services Committee and was the town’s Deputy Mayor in 2018/19. Leisure was David’s passion and he ran over 30 marathons. This developed into a particular interest and involvement in the ongoing improvements to Woodford Park Leisure Centre and associated facilities. He was an active Bowls member and when not involved in sports was a keen allotment holder, being on the Allotment Tenant’s Committee.

Council Leader, Keith Baker said: “David was a good friend and colleague and bore his illness with a degree of calmness during the several years of fighting it. Even at the end his dignity in dealing with the inevitable was second to none. The inner strength he showed, despite the pain, was what he was all about. Woodley has lost a good friend.”

Our thoughts are with his family and friends.

The Woodley and District (University of the Third Age) U3A revealed, at its recent meeting, a Woodley walking map to take in the historical and significant places of interest in Woodley.

To search for details of the walk, please click HERE.

In partnership with Woodley Town Council, Woodley and Reading Central Libraries, Berkshire Record Office and the Museum of Berkshire Aviation, the team from the Woodley and District U3A plan to research Woodley’s history and there is currently a small display on shopping in Woodley at the Oakwood Centre, which dates back to 1854.

To read more about this please click HERE.

‘What’s on?’ at Woodley’s Centre Stage in October

FREE HIRE for non-commercial use!

Do you have any ideas to help Wokingham Borough Council save the world?

Wokingham Borough Council is asking residents for their ideas on reducing the council’s carbon footprint in a survey that launched on 26 September.

The survey, which will run to 31 December, asks residents if they have any eco-friendly tips from their personal lives that they are willing to share with other residents, as well as any ideas they have that would help the council on its way to being carbon neutral.

Wokingham Borough Council declared a climate emergency in July and pledged to make the council carbon neutral by 2030. The council is writing an action plan to achieve carbon neutrality and is asking residents for their help.

“We’ve committed as a council to become carbon neutral by 2030, but we can’t do it alone. We need our residents, businesses, charities and schools to work with us to help emissions, address climate change and secure the future of our planet,” said Cllr Gregor Murray, executive member for climate emergency.

“We have a lot of very smart residents in the borough who are already trying to reduce their carbon footprint and we want to tap into their knowledge and expertise. Even if you think someone else might have already submitted an idea, don’t let that stop you. If we get lots of people submitting the same idea, that tells us how important it is.”

To participate in the survey and submit ideas, visit the council website and search consultations.

The best ideas will be shared in a future edition of the Borough News.

Grand opening of new facilities at Addington School

PIC BY STEWART TURKINGTON
www.stphotos.co.uk

A host of new facilities have been officially opened as part of the £4.4million expansion of Addington School. Two new multi-use games areas, a new sensory path and expanded car park were all unveiled at the Ofsted-rated outstanding school in Wokingham borough.

Wokingham Borough Mayor Cllr Bill Soane and executive member for children’s services Cllr UllaKarin Clark cut the ribbon on the new facilities on Monday [30 September]. They were joined by the Woodley school’s headteacher Sara Attra, as well as representatives from contractors Reds10 and HLM Architects.

Brooke Chaplen and Grace Moloney from top-tier women’s football club Reading FC also assisted with the opening and stayed to enjoy the facilities with the students. Pupils have been enjoying the new facilities since the start of term after works were completed during the summer holidays.

PIC BY STEWART TURKINGTON
www.stphotos.co.uk

“It was a pleasure to be on site at Addington to cut the ribbon for the school’s new facilities,” said Borough Mayor Cllr Bill Soane. “I thoroughly enjoyed meeting the pupils and seeing them make the most of the new sports areas. I can’t wait to come back and see the school once this exciting expansion project has been completed.”

Further expansion

The expansion, which will enable more children with special educational needs to attend the school in Woodlands Avenue, will now move onto the main construction phase.

Modular construction specialists Reds10 will complete the project, with 60 to 70 per cent of the work being completed offsite to reduce disruption to the school and its students. The new single-storey block will include four classrooms, a café and social/breakout areas.

The expansion will boost the school’s capacity to more than 250 students due to the extra space, allowing more local children with special educational needs and disabilities to be educated closer to home. All work is being done within the current site boundary.

It will make more children and their families’ lives easier thanks to shorter journeys to school, as well as reducing travel costs for Wokingham Borough Council.

“This is just the first stage in this important project which will allow us to increase the number of young people accessing the excellent specialist education offered at Addington School,” Cllr UllaKarin Clark, executive member for children’s services.

“These changes will make real difference to the lives of these young people and their families, who will be able to go to school near where they live and receive a fantastic education. I am excited to see the progress on the construction of the new building in the coming months.”

Works on the single-storey block will begin this Autumn, with it opening for the start of the new school year in September 2020.

PIC BY STEWART TURKINGTON
www.stphotos.co.uk

PIC BY STEWART TURKINGTON
www.stphotos.co.uk

PIC BY STEWART TURKINGTON
www.stphotos.co.uk