Local Schools Consultation

This is to flag up a forthcoming consultation on schooling in our area. Wantage and Grove residents are being urged to have their say on plans for new schools to accommodate an expanding population in the coming years.   Two public events are being held to seek local views on the future of primary and secondary education in the area, which is earmarked for significant housing growth.

Wantage and Grove are expected to see up to 5,000 new homes by 2029, with sites including Grove Airfield, Crab Hill (north-east of Wantage) and Monk’s Farm (north of Grove) identified for housing development by Vale of White Horse District Council.   The county council has developed a number of possible options for the number and location of new schools, based on anticipated housing growth, which will be available to view from 3 June at the county website here

Anyone visiting the site – or attending the public events - can submit their views on these options, as well as giving their own suggestions as to what would work best. The consultation runs from 3 June to 15 July.
Drop-in sessions to discuss views directly with council staff are as follows:

5 June from 2pm to 4pm at Grove Village Hall, Main St, Grove

11 June from 6pm to 8pm at Wantage Civic Hall, Portway, Wantage

New Toddler Computer in Grove Library

I called in at Grove Library yesterday to see the brand new Toddler/Children's Computer which has now been installed ready to use (see photo above).  This was all made possible by the funding received from my County Councillor Community budget allocation.  The Friends of Grove Library applied for £750 which paid for the computer, mouse, fun keyboard, table and chair and some learning software to go onto it.  This will be a very welcome addition to our local library and a first in Oxfordshire!  I am looking forward to seeing it in use soon and I am sure many young children will enjoy having their turn.  There is to be an inaugural ceremony on 14th June to which I have been invited to attend.

Cow Lane Resurfaced

I took a walk down Cow Lane this afternoon in the sunshine and was delighted to see what an excellent job has been done to resurface this by-way with money from my Area Stewardship Fund.  I met several cyclists, dog walkers and pedetrians who stopped to say how much they appreciate this excellent new surface.  There was no need for wellingtons, and indeed, one lady was walking in flip-flops!  This new surface makes the route so much more enjoyable and easier for everyone.  The route past the bridge will need to be looked at in the future, once the work has been done on the footbridge due to the electification of the railway which is planned.

New Floor at Grovelands Park Playgroup

Today, I went along to the Fun Day at Grovelands Park Pre-School Playgroup. This was a good opportunity to see the new floor that I contributed to from my County Councillor Community Budget fund.  The new floor is much more serviceable for young children (especially when they have lunch) and replaces a carpeted area. You can see me standing on it in the middle photo and where the floor meets a remaining carpeted section in the right photo. I remember going along to see the opening of the new building at the Grand Launch two years ago - see previous blog post here.  Since then, it has come on in leaps and bounds.

It was lovely to see so many families all enjoying the day and browsing the stalls on offer. This is an excellent facility for Grove and provides much needed play opportunities for our young pre-school children.

New Banner for Wantage ATC 1861 Squadron

Last night Jenny Hannaby and I attended the Annual General Meeting of the Wantage Air Training Corps 1861 Squadron to present their new banner which we had contributed to from our County Councillor Community Budget.  The cadets had won a Thames Valley Wing Banner drill and came second in the Regional Final (South West) and their old banner was in need of replacement.  The £700 we put towards this meant that this splendid new ceremonial standard (see photo above) will now be on parade on many occasions in the future.

Last night they had their annual inspection and passed with flying colours.  It was a lovely sunny evening and parents, cadets and their officers all enjoyed the event.  Their drills were very impressive and the exciting programme of events to come means they have a lot to look forward to.  Jenny and I were delighted to be at this wonderful occasion supporting our young people.

Election Thanks

Many thanks to all who voted for me and Jenny Hannaby in the Oxfordshire County Council elections on Thursday. The count was held on Friday morning and I am happy to report that we successfully retained our seats for Grove and Wantage. We look forward to continuing our work with the local community for the next four years.

The full results are available from here and here.