Gosberton Clough and Risegate School can be seen in a completely new light after pupils took up pen and paper to reflect what their classroom experiences mean to them.

Youngsters worked with South Holland artist Tony Quinton and teaching assistant Gabrielle Smith to create a mural depicting the school community in glorious colour.

The event was organised by school council members, with the best entries included in a mural which now sits proudly on a wall inside the school building. School Administrator Ann Templeman said: “The school council ran a competition FOR the children to represent our school through words and pictures, then Tony put all the designs together to make the completed piece with the help of Gabrielle and it looks magnificent.”

Pictured are pupils with Tony Quinton and Gabrielle Smith in front of the mural.

Developers of a multi-million-pound wind farm off the Norfolk coast will “breach” sea defences at Sutton Bridge to lay cables.

But Centrica is being urged to make good any long term damage after it was claimed “cracks” had appeared in the sea defence wall after it worked on the East Lincs Wind Farm.

Sutton Bridge Parish Council heard there could be as many as 90 turbines in the latest project.

Centrica’s Race Bank scheme was given the go-ahead from the Department of Energy and Climate Change in July last year, but it still has to win more consents – including planning permission from South Holland District Council and King’s Lynn and West Norfolk Borough Council – before work can start.

Kit Hawkins, on behalf of the developers, told Sutton Bridge Parish Council that the next breach in the wall will be 600 metres away from the Lincs East one and cables will be laid at a one metre depth under the marsh on a route designed to cause least damage.

Parish council chairman John Grimwood told him: “This sea defence is there to protect the land and the people in this area.

“It’s very worrying that cracks have appeared in the previous project and there is great concern that no cracks are going to appear in this.”

The council asked for a planning condition that Centrica should be obliged to maintain the wall for longer than the five years stipulated for East Lincs.

Janet Blundell, secretary of an advisory group for The Wash, understands there is one crack on the seaward side of the wall and it is being monitored – it is not considered “detrimental to the integrity of the defence”.

Many parents are putting their children at risk of slow development or even future health problems by not taking advantage of free eye tests, according to Peterborough’s leading eye expert, Scrivens Opticians.

Eye tests are free to children under the age of 16 (or 19 if in full time education) but according to recent figures, only 22 per cent of children get their eyes tested in any one year.

Branch manager, Jeanette Green and her team, who are based in The Precinct in Market Deeping, fear that parents don’t know the examination is free of charge for children and could be putting them at risk by not taking them for a regular check-up.

Jeanette said: “It is essential to protect vision in the early years of life.

“Obstacles to vision such as squints and refractive errors can lead to “lazy” eye, which unless detected and treated early could lead to irreversible visual impairment.

“Poor vision can also effect a child’s educational and social development.

“If a child cannot see the classroom board clearly or cannot see the words written on a page or computer screen comfortably, they will most likely fall behind their peers in development.”

As well as the free eye test, children who need a prescription to help their vision can also have a range of free glasses on the NHS.

Jeanette adds: “Undetected sight problems are worryingly common, with one in ten children aged 12 to 13, and one in 20, aged six to seven, having sight problems that require glasses, but do not have them.

“The Easter holidays is the perfect time to take your children to your local optician and get their eyes tested.

“We don’t want to worry parents; we simply want to raise awareness that expert services are available and are free of charge.”

To book your child’s eye test at your local Scrivens branch this Easter holidays, visit www.scrivensopticians.co.uk.

Councillors have been instructed to look again at a compensation offer to a developer at the centre of a long-running legal wrangle over a housing estate.

South Holland District Council had offered £50,000 to Nestwood Homes after accepting an Ombudsman’s report accusing it of maladministration over a planning application dating back to 2008.

But a new Ombudsman’s report suggests the sum is not reasonable and that the council has allowed financial considerations to override other more important considerations.

The saga dates back to 2008 when the district council ordered Nestwood Homes to pull down four new houses and three garages on a new development at Fleet Hargate after neighbours complained the development was built at a higher ground level than it should have been.

Nestwood Homes appealed and the planning inspectorate ruled in its favour.

The Ombudsman suggested compensation of £260,00 – made up of £214,053 plus interest for Nestwood’s costs and charges arising from the maladministration, £25,000 for loss of opportunity to achieve high sales proceeds and £25,000 to the director in respect of the stress, strain and damage to his reputation.

In July last year councillors agreed to accept the Ombudsman’s report and offer a sincere apology to Nestwoods and its director for the maladministration and loss suffered, but said because of financial pressures it would offer just £50,000, including interest.

The latest Ombudsman’s report reads: “The council does not appear to have asked itself the right questions in considering the Ombudsman’s report – namely whether, given the nature of the maladministration and the injustice caused, the amount of the recommended payment was fair and reasonable.”

Councillors will consider the report at the full council meeting in May.

Questions have been raised over whether there is a demand for new housing planned for a South Holland village.

Larkfleet Homes has been asking for public feedback on its plans to build 163 new homes on land off Wardentree Lane, Pinchbeck.

A third of the homes will be “affordable”, leaving more than 100 to be sold on the open market.

But at a meeting of Pinchbeck Parish Council on Monday, a representative of the developer was questioned over whether he believed they would be able to sell the “market value” homes in such a tough economic climate.

Coun Chris Bettinson said: “The only people I have known to move house just lately have been moving to affordable houses, so I don’t know where you are going to fill 100 houses when local wages are so low.

“I think you may need to change your expectations on the percentage of affordable homes.”

Richard Astle, for Larkfleet, said the developer was confident there was a huge demand for housing in the area.

Other concerns raised by councillors included the impact of more homes on the village school and local health services.

Traffic worries were also raised as the plans for the development currently only include one access onto the already busy Wardentree Lane.

Mr Astle said the developer had considered a second access onto Enterprise Way, but feedback showed residents were split, with some fearing it would cause the estate to become a “rat run”.

Instead he said there would possibly be a bollarded access for use by emergency vehicles.

The development would be a mixture of two, three, four and five bedroom houses and bungalows and could result in a £81,000 windfall for Pinchbeck as the developer would provide £500 for each new home to be spent for the benefit of the community.

A ground-breaking community library in Sutton Bridge could become the role model for others to follow.

The library at The Curlew Centre, in Bridge Road, is the first of its kind in Lincolnshire to be set up and run entirely by volunteers and has just celebrated its first anniversary.

It had nearly 70 visitors on its first day – 50 joined on the spot – and there have been almost 5,000 visitors since then.

County, district and parish councillor Chris Brewis helped coordinate the volunteers as they set up the library and there’s now a 20-strong team of helpers who man the desk so people can borrow books or use a computer.

Coun Brewis has now been asked to write a leaflet for Lincolnshire County Council, which will act as a blueprint for anyone setting up a similar venture.

He said: “It will be about things you should do and things you shouldn’t do, all the things to avoid if you open a volunteer library because we have probably made as many mistakes as anybody.”

The library has a collection of books on loan from the county council, rotating the stock to keep it fresh, books in large print for the elderly and a wide selection of top quality, donated books.

The search is still on to find former flower queens to take part in the final Spalding Flower Parade on Saturday, May 4.

Organisers Kenyon Communications want former queens to help celebrate the 55th Parade.

So if you have previously held the title they would love to hear from you and hope you and a guest may be able to join them for the parade luncheon and to take part in the procession on the big day.

Perhaps you know one of the former queens? If so, please let them know that Kenyon are looking for them and ask them to get in touch.

The floats will be on view from 9am at the Springfields Events Centre.

The parade will leave the arena at 2pm to make its way through the town along the historic river stretch in front of Ayscoughfee Hall, through the Market Place and along Pinchbeck Road and West Elloe Avenue to culminate back at Springfields.

Follow the parade on Twitter (@flowerparade) and Facebook (SpaldingFlowerParade) for updates or visit www.spalding-flower-parade.org.uk

Contact Kenyon Communications on 01673 828764 or 07708 690707 or email sue@kenyon-communications.com

At this stage we have no contact details for the following:

1954 Pat Stacey, 1956 Janice Grimwood, 1957 Norma Foulsham, 1958 Janet Bray, 1959 Jill Whitehouse. 1960 Wendy Smith, 1961 Nora Woods, 1962 June Green, 1963 Rose Crunkhorn, 1965 Monica Thacker, 1966 Dawn Stockdale, 1967 Eileen Favell, 1970 Jane Hazeldene, 1971 Susan Martin, 1972 Audrey Spriggs, 1975 Elaine Packard, 1976 Kim Waters, 1979 Mandy Adcock, 1980 Valerie Whitworth, 1981 Geraldine Davis, 1982 Doreen Marray, 1984 Sharon Holmes, 1985 Helen Drake, 1987 Lisa O’Dell, 1988 Sally Atkins, 1990 Helen Walsh, 1991 Vicki Wadsworth, 2000 Alison Reed, 2001 Claire Collins, 2002 Claire Platt.

A new solar farm that will power hundreds of homes in Bourne has been hooked to the national grid – in spite of a local farmer still pondering over whether to let a cable connection run through his land.

Final testing of Lark Energy’s 20,000 5.6MWp solar panels at Limes Farm in Spalding Road, Twenty, took place on Thursday.

Managing director Jonathan Selwyn said: “We are delighted the solar farm is now producing clean energy – enough to power about 1,400 homes. It is one of the biggest in the country.

“Construction started in January and it has been a challenge completing it so quickly in such muddy conditions.”

The farm covering 30 acres has been connected to the national grid via overhead lines, with “alternative routes” under discussion.

Mr Selwyn said: “Although the panels are in place and generating power, there is still some landscaping to be done.

“The land will also be put back to agriculture as we will be re-seeding it so sheep can graze on it.”

Neville Bish farms the neighbouring Mason’s Farm and says he has been wrestling with his conscience about whether to allow cabling through his land and accept substantial compensation.

Mr Bish said: “I’ve always been against any development taking good arable land out of production. Energy farms are ruining land for a fast buck.

“There’s a world food shortage – it just doesn’t make sense. I’m just pleased I don’t have to drive past it. It looks like a load of plasma screens. The wire fencing looks like Colditz.

“It’s so alien to its natural environment. We’re never going to see birds, foxes or badgers on there again.

“So you see why it’s so hard for me to decide what to do. But if I don’t allow it they will go round, so maybe I will say yes and donate some money to charity.”

Burglars broke into a house in Pinchbeck Road, Spalding on Saturday.

The incident happened between 9am and 8pm when thieves got in through the back garden. Anyone with information should contact Lincolnshire Police on 101.

Neil Rhodes will continue as Temporary Chief Constable of Lincolnshire Police it was confirmed today.

After discussions over the weekend, the Commissioner Alan Hardwick and Temporary Chief Constable Neil Rhodes have jointly agreed that the best interests of Lincolnshire Police would be served by Neil Rhodes continuing in his role.

He would continue until the completion of the investigation into allegations about his conduct and any consequent procedures were complete.

The recruitment of a permanent Chief Constable would also be delayed pending this outcome. In reaching this agreement the importance of stability in the leadership of the force was the primary concern.

Police covering Bourne and The Deepings face a major challenge to cut the number of burglaries and thefts from vehicles in the area – although reported crime overall has dropped by ten per cent.

Figures from Lincolnshire Police for Stamford district, including Bourne and The Deepings, show that violent crime fell by just over five per cent in 2012-13 compared to the same period last year.

Serious sexual assaults were down by more than 22 per cent, other sexual offences fell by just over 27 per cent, burglaries of business premises fell by just over 19 per cent and there was a big fall of almost 70 per cent in the number of reported arson cases.

Other cases of criminal damage went down by six per cent, while fraud and forgery crime fell by almost 22 per cent.

But worryingly for the police, domestic burglaries jumped almost 28 per cent from 97 cases last year to 124 for the same period this year and a similar picture emerged for theft from vehicles which went up by 54 from 197 last year to 251 this year.

Insp Mike Burnett, local policing area inspector for Stamford district, said: “Overall, we have seen a generally good year with crime falling by around ten per cent.

“But there were a couple of obvious exceptions, particularly burglary and theft from vehicles.

“We saw a series of burglaries in April and May in the Deepings area where an offender was arrested and charged in relation to the offences.

“There was also a small series of burglaries in Bourne that remain undetected, but the main issue of the year has been the theft of goods from cars in the Bourne area.

“These offences peaked in December 2012 and a total of five arrests were made in relation to this type of the crime in the area.”

Insp Burnett assured residents that his team was monitoring the problem but he also advised them to play their part in preventing crime.

He said: “Overall we have a picture of improvement, with some issues that led to an increase in certain types of crime.

“We aim to improve our performance over the next year or so and I am confident that we can reduce crime and improve our detection rates.

“We would urge the community to continue their support for our officers and report any suspicious activity in their areas in a timely fashion as this really increases our chances of making key arrests.

“The other main message is to look after your property, lock doors and windows at your home and car and never leave property on display in your vehicle.

“If people take these simple steps, they can drastically reduce their chances of becoming a victim of crime.”

Coun Sue Woolley, Lincolnshire County Council member for Bourne Abbey, said: “My initial reaction is to be pleased that overall crime has fallen by ten per cent in the area.

“Any reduction has to be good news, but I assume this is reported crime and so would always wonder how much isn’t being reported.”

Super Troupers are handing over money, money, money for the big night out of the year – Abba Arrival UK’s appearance at the ball that will be the grand finale of the Two Lips fundraising week.

Around 170 of the 300 tickets have been sold to music fans who say I do, I do, I do, I do want a great night out and the chance to raise money for local good causes.

As already reported, big business are backing the fundraising that will give a big pay day to St Barnabas (Jenny Freeman Lodge, Spalding), Spalding Swimming Clubs, Spalding Age UK and St John Ambulance.

Broadgate Homes is among the latest to wade in with an auction lot that will see a family of four holidaying in the Lake District.

The auction is part of the black tie dinner and ball with the Abba tribute band at Spalding’s Castle Sports Complex on Saturday, May 18.

Spalding Rotary Club chairman Andy Prior is keen to see the remaining tickets snapped up quickly to give the club a great chance of beating the £10,000 total raised last year.

Spalding Age UK, one of the 2013 beneficiaries, is getting into the swing of the fundraising with competitions for old folk and Johnson Community Hospital, which benefited last year, will hold a dress down day.

Andy now wants more organisations to follow their example and put on an event for Two Lips.

l To buy tickets for the ball call 01775 720607 or if you are organising an event contact John Barnes on 01775 725514.

Shops and businesses in Spalding are being called upon to make the town’s last ever flower parade one to remember.

Today, the Lincolnshire Free Press in conjunction with South Holland District Council economic development services, is launching a very special window dressing competition.

We are asking town centre staff to let their imaginations run riot to come up with a creative masterpiece on the same theme of the parade – Let’s Celebrate.

Up for grabs is a special trophy for first, second and third places, as well as cash prizes for the three winners’ charity of choice.

The winner will receive £100, second place £50 and third place £25.

Nigel Burch, at economic development services, said: “There always used to be a best dressed window competition for shops over the flower parade weekend and we thought it would be nice to bring it back for one last fling for the final flower parade.

“We have such brilliant shops in Spalding and the competition is a way of supporting that and rewarding them for their innovation and creativity.

“It’s another way of them showcasing their design talents and we hope as many as possible will enter what has, in the past, been a very popular competition.”

We are asking shops wishing to take part to nominate themselves by Monday, April 22.

Windows must be dressed by Monday, April 29, ready for our photographer to take a picture in the week running up to the flower parade on May 4.

We will then run all the pictures the week following the flower parade and the public will be asked to vote for their favourite.

To enter, fill in the form in today’s Free Press and return it to us by Monday, April 22.

A new report reveals a catalogue of blunders by East Midlands Ambulance Service, including the death of a Lincolnshire patient who sustained a head injury when an ambulance veered off the road and crashed.

The report says the ambulance that ran off the road with a patient on board was travelling at normal speed.

EMAS has owned up to its mistakes over the last year, saying it has done so because it is an “open and honest organisation which proactively encourages and supports staff to report serious incidents and near misses”.

Another patient, who was vomiting blood, was taken first to a hospital that could not admit him and stopped breathing on the way to the next hospital. A paramedic was suspended from active duties pending an investigation.

There were 53 incidents in all, but six were downgraded following investigation and six were reported as near miss and no harm done.

Cases on the list include:

nA patient with a suspected broken neck falling off the ambulance stretcher;

nA four-hour delay in reaching a woman who took a drug overdose – she later died;

nA ten-hour delay in allocating an ambulance to an 89-year-old man who had fallen at home.

Police were called when codeine tablets went missing from two ambulance stations in Lincolnshire, Skegness and Louth, and morphine went missing from ambulances elsewhere.

Sutton Bridge has had a catalogue of late ambulance arrivals and councillor Chris Brewis said the report shows the depth of the crisis for EMAS.

He said: “It really is pretty bad.”

EMAS is bottom of the country’s 12 ambulance services for poor response times, but claims a radical shake-up will improve that.

But Coun Brewis says: “They are just shifting the deck chairs around on the Titanic”.

An ambulance paramedic spoke out against the reorganisation, claiming people will die and “suffer unnecessarily”.

The trust plans to shut many of its 66 ambulance stations, including Spalding, and replace them with nine hubs, 19 ambulance stations and 108 community posts. The nearest ambulance station to Spalding will be at Market Deeping, with hubs at Boston and Grantham where ambulances will be maintained and cleaned. Community ambulance posts will be sited at Surfleet, Holbeach and Spalding.

A bored toddler’s mum couldn’t believe her eyes when an assistant in a Spalding high street store smacked her daughter’s bum for knocking some items off a shelf.

Angela Cropley said she had gone into Boots in the Market Hall with her eight-month-old son and three-year-old daughter and needed help finding some soya formula.

She said: “I had just found out my son was lactose intolerant and usually the staff are very helpful.

“I went to the pharmacy counter and spoke to a lady there. She seemed to know what she was talking about and managed to find what I needed as I had no clue.

“While we were talking, my daughter started to get fed up and was playing with things on the shelf and knocked a couple of items off.

“I went over to pick them up and while I was bent down, the woman smacked my daughter’s bum and told her she was naughty. I didn’t believe what I saw and just said that I would pay for anything that was broken and left.”

On the way home, Angela said her daughter asked why the lady smacked her. She said: “I told her that was wrong.

“When I got home I asked everyone what to do and they said I should go back and speak to the woman privately to find out why she felt she could smack my daughter.”

Angela said she went back the next day and the assistant “got upset” when she spotted her. She said: “I told her I wanted to see her manager. After being left waiting for 20 minutes, the manager came over and spoke to me. I told him what happened and he said he would get back to me in a few days.

“Later he phoned saying the staff member said it was a tap not a smack and he wouldn’t be taking it any further. I said, ‘I don’t care what she called what she did, I never gave her permission to lay a hand on my daughter.’

“From the moment I met the manager, he treated me like I was after some financial reward, when all I wanted was an apology.”

On Wednesday, Angela received a letter signed by the staff member and the manager, claiming the actions “were only a gesture of empathy for your daughter”.

A spokesman for Boots said: “Our customers are of the utmost importance to us and we pride ourselves on providing great customer service. As soon as we found out about this incident, we conducted a thorough investigation and reported it through the correct procedures.

“We have reminded our colleagues of the high level of customer service that we have become well known for. We would like to apologise for any distress caused to Angela Cropley and her daughter.”

Tuesday 12pm: Police say a scooter rider involved in a road crash at Cowbit yesterday sustained only a minor injury.

The 19-year-old man, who comes from Cowbit, was taken to Boston’s Pilgrim Hospital to be checked over for leg pain.

Monday, 4.50pm: A scooter rider has been taken to hospital after leaving the road at Cowbit this afternoon (Monday).

Emergency services were called to the A16 at its junction with Barrier Bank at about 4.20pm.

The male rider was taken to Boston’s Pilgrim Hospital.

A spokesman for the police said it had no information on the extent of his injuries.

Police in Spalding are trying to trace a silver Peugeot 207, which was stolen after a burglar grabbed the car keys in a raid on a house.

The offender smashed a window at the home in Cathedral Drive, Spalding, and then stole an E-Machine laptop, a Nokia mobile phone and several sets of car keys.

He then used one set of keys to take the Peugeot, registration number D20 CLB, off the drive.

The break-in happened shortly after midnight on Easter Sunday.

Witnesses are asked to contact DC Nicola Stafford at Spalding Police Station on 101.

Information can also be reported anonymously to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

St Barnabas Hospice has launched a drive to recruit volunteers in South Holland who can help care for people with life-limiting conditions and their families.

The charity is looking for people willing to lend a listening ear, serve tea and coffee to residents and help them with art and craft activities designed to help them cope with their condition.

Volunteers are need for the hospice’s day therapy service on Wednesdays which operates from five centres, including Wygate Park in Spalding.

Hospice spokeswoman Lisa Gibson said: “We need host volunteers to welcome patients and family members to the centre, give them something to drink and make sure they are comfortable.

“It can be quite daunting for patients when they first come into the building, so we’re looking for volunteers to help patients who come in for day therapy where they are individually assessed and have a lifestyle plan drawn up for them.

“The idea is to help patients remain independent, rather than depending on our services, and they are offered support from the point of diagnosis right through their journey.”

Volunteers are given an induction where they learn about the hospice’s work and receive training in health and safety techniques.

For more details, call 01522 518232 or log onto www.stbarnabashospice.co.uk

There seems to be a recurring theme running through A Touch of Drama theatre group based at Silverwood Garden Centre in Long Sutton.

A number of its members have turned real disadvantage or possible disaster into positive opportunity and personal development.

Take Zoe Marie Sheldon (34) of Gedney who has shrugged off the limitations of dyslexia to become one of the theatre group’s trainee workshop leaders.

She said: “When I was at school, the teachers thought I was thick because I couldn’t remember my lines in plays.

“I knew in myself that I could act but when you have an adult saying ‘no you can’t,’ you tend to believe it.”

Zoe Marie finally discovered her acting talents whilst working for a family-run entertainment business in Portugal and she now runs her own firm, Party Angels, that organises children’s parties and school discos.

“Someone from A Touch of Drama posted a flyer through my letterbox and I told myself that I’d love to be part of it,” Zoe Marie said.

“I had experience in entertaining people and some proper training as a drama teacher but, above all, I’ve always wanted to be a performer.

“Just being with like-minded people who love to be on stage gives me such a buzz and I know that anyone who comes along to have a look at our group will want to come back.”

A Touch of Drama is run by Brett Moore (52) from Surfleet who set up his own theatre company after surviving a motorbike accident near his home on the A16 four years ago.

Brett said: “It was pretty serious because I was knocked unconcious and the accident left me on crutches for six months.

“But it was an event that made me change what I wanted to do, so I went to university and studied performing arts with an emphasis on bringing theatre into communities.

“A Touch of Drama is about taking drama to places where people don’t get a chance to do it or can’t afford to go to other theatre groups in South Holland.

“We did a bit of research about the Long Sutton area and found out that there were a lot of kids who didn’t have the opportunity to go to Spalding and join theatre groups there.

“We haven’t had any negative comments about the group so far and things are going pretty well.”

The group is currently rehearsing for a guest slot at the Peterborough Motorhome Show later this month and workshop co-ordinator Laura Scott hopes it will be the start of big things for A Touch of Drama.

She said: “We don’t want the group to die but to have it run by the community for the community.”

A former death row inmate who spent 8,057 days in solitary confinement is rebuilding his life – with a new love in Moulton.

Nick Yarris at first faced the electric chair and later lethal injection after he was wrongly convicted in 1982 of the rape and murder of a young woman.

In 2004 he finally walked free after DNA evidence eventually cleared him, and he is now hoping to marry and start a family with Spalding girl Jessica Stubley, who contacted him in 2010 after reading a book about his life.

Nick (51) has paid tribute to the beautiful and brave young woman who “risked having her life blown apart” for daring to fall in love with a man – more than twice her age – who refused to be beaten by those who called him a rapist 
and murderer.

Nick, who still bears the physical and mental scars of his years inside, says the love and acceptance he has found in south Lincolnshire has helped him find peace after his years of hell.

Speaking to the Lincolnshire Free Press, Nick said: “When I was first set free I didn’t know where home was going to be, but now I know it’s where people love you and I’ve found that here.”