Grove Library Welcomes Volunteers

Last night I had the pleasure of welcoming over twenty volunteers who have come forward to help keep our library open in Grove following the proposals made by the County Council three years ago to close all but the 'core' libraries in Oxfordshire.  Many will remember the outcry by residents and the public meeting in Grove where the Friends of Grove Library group (FROGs) threw themselves back on the campaign trail.  The group was reformed and began the process of trying to save this valuable service to our community.  See the press story here.

Thankfully, the county backtracked on their proposals and came up with a 'community model' which meant that our branch libraries could stay open with the help of trained volunteers.   We were designated a 'Community Plus' Library which meant that there would always be a member of staff on duty with every volunteer. Thankfully, in Grove, we were fortunate to have many people put themselves forward to help, and last night was a 'training event' which  gave all volunteers a chance to meet one another and learn all aspects of helping in the library.

The event was a huge success and a very enjoyable occasion, as everyone was very excited about this new opportunity.  We have an excellent support team of staff at the County Council who are committed to making this work, offering help and advice all along the way.  Also, our active FROGs team are co-ordinating the rotas, if anyone else would like to get involved.   I think this shows the community spirit we have in Grove which makes us all proud!

Cinema Comes Back to Wantage

On Friday, I had an enjoyable evening at Wantage Civic Hall watching the showing of 'Gravity' on the big screen which had been set up with the support of the Vale of White Horse District Council and the Friends of Wantage Cinema Fund.   

It was in 2005 when the old Regent Cinema closed in the town and despite best efforts to keep it open, it was eventually converted into the Shush nightclub.  It has taken a long time, but finally, although not a replacement commercial cinema, we can hope that at least this venture of showing films once a month will succeed.

There is another Friday evening show on 14th February at 7pm to see 'Philomena' with a Saturday morning session for a children's film on 15th February at 10am.

To find out more, visit the Wantage.com website here and make sure you get your tickets early for the next showings to make sure you are not disappointed! 

A338 Closure at Frilford and Tubney

This is to alert residents that there is a temporary road closure coming up for 1 week from 3rd February 2014 on the A338 from Frilford to Tubney to enable carriageway maintenance works to be carried out.   The alternative route is via the A415 and the A420 and vice versa. 

Exemptions are included for police, fire and ambulance services and for vehicular access to adjacent premises. 

When I travelled through the route today, I noticed that the signs which have been erected there say the closure will only take 5 days, so hopefully not too much disruption.  The road surface in that area has been breaking up for some time, with the frequent temporary patching never lasting too long, so I expect something more substantial is being done.

Public Exhibition on Proposed Solar Park in Grove

There is a public exhibition for a proposed solar park at Elms Farm in Grove coming up on Tuesday 21 January 2014 in the St John the Baptist Church Hall in Grove.  The exhibition will run from 4pm to 7.30pm so do go along to see what is planned. 

Have Your Say On The Buses!

I have had many complaints from residents about the lack of services from Thames Travel since they decommissioned their route to Grove.  This has caused an enormous amount of inconvenience to families who had previously used their buses not just for local services, but to Didcot, Milton Park and beyond.

There have also been problems with unreliability of their current services running from Wantage, with children arriving late for school and employees late for work. So, there will be an opportunity to have your say at a drop in session being held in Didcot on THURSDAY 23RD JANUARY from 10am until 3.30pm at the open-air Amphitheatre by Sainsburys at The Orchard Shopping Centre.  I hope that people can go along and ensure their voice is heard!

A338 Closure for Six Months Rejected

I am pleased to report that the request from Network Rail to close the A338 for six months from February has been turned down by the County Council.  As many residents will recall, just before Christmas, Grove Parish Council called a meeting in the parish church to discuss the proposals which had been put forward by Network Rail.  Many people were angered by that meeting, because no firm answers were given to the questions posed, and there were no decisions taken.   I have continued to try to emphasise that there are no firm dates and times yet agreed for this road closure, but unfortunately this message is difficult to get across as the press keep publishing the initial request for a road closure!  All temporary road closure requests have a length of time attributed to them to allow the work to be done WITHIN that time frame, it does NOT mean that the road closure will last for that full amount of time.

I have also said many times both to the media and to those who have contacted me, that I have been calling for a temporary bridge to be installed during the duration of the work, and this has NOT been ruled out.  Indeed, the county council is continuing to have ongoing discussions with Network Rail about how to deal with the essential works needed to be done to the bridge by the Volunteer to allow the electrification works to go ahead.  However, county officers have told me that they have not seen any plans so far, and they cannot agree to any road closure until those plans have been agreed.  As soon as I have further information I shall post it here.

It was my first surgery of the year in Grove Library this morning and a couple of people turned up with some local issues.  My next surgery will be held on Saturday 8th February at Grove Library at the usual time.

Police Commissioner Coming to Wantage

The Thames Valley Police and Crime Commissioner is coming to Wantage Civic Hall on Monday 13th January from 7 - 9pm to hear what the public have to say.  This will be an opportunity for local residents to give their views on the work of the police and their chance to ask questions of their elected representative. 

Some of you may recall the poor election turnout in November 2012 when many people complained that they did not have enough information on how to vote.  Anthony Stansfeld, the Conservative candidate was duly elected, so now it is over a year since he has been in the job.  Refer to my blog post here for my report on that event.   As a local member of the Wantage West Neighbourhood Action Group I shall be attending to find out what issues will be discussed. 

Flooding Alerts & Road Closures

Above are some local photographs I took on Friday when I walked around the village to check on the state of the Letcombe Brook and the balancing ponds by the Old Mill Hall.  We were predicted a weekend of rain and winds which have taken their toll on the local roads (see below).  I visited some residents in Kingfishers and Cane Lane who had contacted me because they were concerned about the possibilities of future flooding after they had been previously hit in July 2007.

The situation remains the same today, though the brook forms one of the many tributaries into the River Thames which remains on flood alert.  However, there is a flood warning in place for the main river in Abingdon, Culham and further afield where much of this water ends up! You can see full details on the Environment Agency Website here or you can ring the Floodline 0845 988 1188 if you are concerned.

Full details of road closures are to be found at the County Council website where there is other useful information available and this is being frequently updated.  The A417 is closed locally at Mellors Garage at Challow due to flooding and as you can see from the photo below, there is flooding on the A338 Grove Road near to MacDermid just before the turn to Charlton.  Cars are however still driving through this (some at speed) as I was delightfully splashed as I took this photo!  This is caused by run-off from the local fields and I have been trying to get this sorted by having the gullies cleared.  However, despite this having been done last year, the situation returns!

Happy New Year 2014!

Just a quick post to share the highlights of the firework display which I went to see this year in London from Horseguards Parade.  The weather did mostly hold out, with some fine rain just before the start, but this eased off.  It was a spectacular display as you will see, and makes a change from watching it on TV!

May I take this opportunity of wishing all residents a healthy and prosperous New Year and I look forward to the challenges ahead.  My next surgery date will be on Saturday 11th January at Grove Library from 10.30am - 11.30am as usual.