A shopkeeper claims he was snubbed three times when he offered to open a sub Post Office at Cowbit Village Stores.

The Post Office is on the brink of opening a “hosted outreach service” in the village hall.

But it will open only from 1.30pm-3.30pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays from August – subject to the outcome of a public consultation which ends next Thursday.

The sub Post Office at Thorpe’s Garage closed in January 2012.

Colin Foxwell took over the shop there a year ago and says he contacted the Post Office three times, offering to take a sub-postmaster’s course and open a sub Post Office.

He said: “So many people were asking about it that I made enquiries and they never got back to me.”

Mr Foxwell said he’s been told the Post Office only get back if they are interested in the applicant, but he says – if that’s right – it’s not a good system.

“It’s just polite to let them (applicants) know what the situation is.

“ You don’t just leave them hanging, it’s not what I call good business.”

Mr Foxwell said he’s not even been asked to comment on the consultation on the part-time Post Office.

“I know they have sent letters out to everybody about it, but they never put one through my door, which seems a bit strange,” he said.

“They seem to have a strange way of working.”

Cowbit Parish Council chairman Trevor Tyrrell said a part-time Post Office is better than nothing but he would rather have one in the village shop opening longer hours.

He said people are going to Spalding or elsewhere to draw money or send parcels and the sub Post Office was “an amenity that was sadly missed”.

A Post Office spokesman said: “The Post Office vacancy was advertised locally for some time, with no interest, and although we had discussions with a potential owner of the village shop we are unaware of any applications from Mr Foxwell.”

The spokesman apologised to customers for inconvenience caused by the temporary closure of the sub Post Office and said it had been working hard to restore a service to the community.

Margaret Kenworthy has been involved in voluntary work in her community in various capacities over the years.

The most recent, starting in 1994, is as manager of the Ruby Hunt Centre, a multi-use centre in Donington.

Started by Ruby Hunt in 1982, it was originally called the Pop in, and operated out of first one and then two portacabins.

For the past seven years, it has been held in the former doctors’ surgery and is open every morning for people to call in for a chat and a cup of tea.

Margaret says: “We have all sorts of different things going on, such as scrabble, bingo, knitting and short mat bowls. We have a computer section and a chiropodist comes in twice a month.”

As well as being let out for business meetings and parties, with catering provided if required, the hall hosts a weekly lunch club, catering for 47 people or more.

Margaret, whose husband Doug works behind the scenes, says of her award: “It’s been hard work but the feedback I have had from everyone has been amazing since I got the award. I just want to thank everybody for their good wishes because they have been so kind. I have had cards, messages, emails, you name it. It’s nice to know you are appreciated.”

The Ruby Hunt Centre operates a voluntary car scheme and more drivers are needed.

Many people know that Janet Prescott has been very instrumental in the restoration of Moulton Mill.

Fewer people know that she is or has been involved in all kinds of other restoration projects in the county, and now shares her expertise with other groups embarking on work to historic buildings.

Consequently Janet, whose husband Paul Bellamy is head miller and duty manager at Moulton, received her BEM (British Empire Medal) for services to Moulton Mill and to heritage in Lincolnshire.

Janet became involved in the Moulton scheme at the first public meeting in 1998. From secretary she swiftly became project and mill manager, able to transfer a lot of skills from her day job as manufacturing manager at Bakkavor – business planning and strategy, managing people, managing a project and delivering it on time and to budget.

Since then she has become project manager at Crowland Abbey and been involved in restoration projects at Whaplode and at Holbeach.

Janet says: “The difficulty with anything that involves restoration, especially when we started off, is that there isn’t a guide to restoring a building and it’s difficult to know how to start that process. People will ask me how we started and what we recommend and I will help people if they have a business plan to write.

“We can share some of our experience with groups, the things we have done wrong, because we didn’t always get it right, and sometimes that slows you down.

“Sometimes it’s about having the right questions to ask, asking them in the right format and the right person, so and it just helps to take away some of that pain.”

Janet has also spoken at the national conference for the UK Association of Preservation Trusts on her experiences of engaging with community groups.

Janet found the award “a shocking and humbling experience that people felt you had such an impact on what they were trying to do.”

The mill is currently looking for more volunteers.

Recent comments from both the outgoing governor of the Bank of England, Sir Mervyn King, and his replacement, Mark Carney will not be welcome news to millions of households who are worried about low growth on their savings over the coming months.

Both governors have indicated that inflation could rise in the near term, above its May level of 2.7 per cent (CPI) and may remain above the BoE’s two per cent target for the next two years.

Yet interest rates are likely to stay low. Interest rates have remained at 0.5 per cent since March 2009. Most analysts do not expect any change in policy until the new bank governor, arrives in July. Raising interest rates could help to subdue inflation but that’s not on the incoming governor’s agenda.

In a speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos in January, Mark Carney said that he is willing to see higher inflation for longer in order to boost the economy.

Good news for borrowers perhaps but meantime savers are left to seek inflation beating returns as the gap between interest rates and the rate of inflation erodes their capital and can result in falling income for those who are hoping to supplement their income from their savings.

In Legal & General’s latest survey, around 90 per cent of people questioned about what they thought would happen to inflation in the next 12 months said they expected inflation to be higher or to stay the same. More than half (53 per cent) think it will be higher.

What is remarkable is that there are billions sitting in accounts which pay virtually no interest.

According to a survey published by Lloyds TSB in April more than £900billion is held in bank and building society deposits and National Savings accounts. Since the Bank of England started cutting the savings rate the “typical” savings rate you can get for money on deposit or in a cash ISA has plummeted.

Therefore, if savers have any money invested in cash that has a return of less than inflation then they are losing money in real terms.

So if that money is just sitting there earning little or no interest it would make sense to start making it work a little harder to avoid erosion by high inflation and perhaps to generate a little extra income.

The following decisions have been made by magistrates at court hearings. In all drink-drive cases the legal limit is 35 microgrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath, 80 milligrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood or 107 milligrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of urine. Addresses of defendants published here are taken from the legal records held by the magistrates’ courts. The details are given to the court by the defendant – but this may be some time after the original charge and they may have moved in the meantime.

Spalding Magistrates’ Court

Heidi Blades, of Knights Close, Deeping St James. Carrying on a tattooing business without being registered. £500 fine, £50 victim surcharge, £1456.94 costs.

Andrius Dumbliauskas (26), of Greenwich Avenue, Holbeach. Drink driving (Pinchbeck). £110 fine, £20 v/s, £40 costs, disqualified from driving for 18 months. No separate penalties for no insurance and driving otherwise than in accordance with a licence.

Doris Draper (69), of Ravens Drove, Holbeach Fen. Criminally damaging a motor vehicle, trailer and equine equipment. Nine-month conditional discharge, £100 compensation, £5 v/s, £85 costs.

Brian Richardson (47), of Middle Marsh road, Holbeach St Marks. No insurance (Holbeach). £250 fine, £25 v/s, £85 costs, 6pts.

Grantham Magistrates’ Court

John Campbell (72), of Mulliner Street, Coventry. Failing to produce licence for examination (Swan Street, Spalding). £55 fine, £20 v/s, £85 costs.

Timothy Elwin (41), of King’s Lynn Road, Hunstanton. Speeding (Whaplode). £60 fine, £20 v/s, 3pts.

Ewelina Fedorowicz (27), of Grafton Road, Birmingham. Speeding (Whaplode). £73 fine, £20 v/s, £85 costs, 5pts.

Kevin Hunter (31), of Willington Road, Kirton. Speeding (Wildmore). £255 fine, £20 v/s, £85 costs, 4pts.

Philip Marston (35), of North Anderson Drive, Aberdeen. Speeding (Swineshead Bridge). £60 fine, £20 v/s, £85 costs, 3pts.

Valerie Osborne (56), of High Street, Market Deeping. Speeding (Deeping St James). £100 fine, £20 v/s, £85 costs, 3pts.

James Parnell (33), of Lapwater Lane, Holbeach St Marks. No MOT (Long Sutton). £200 fine, £20 v/s, £85 costs.

Alison Sullivan (51), of Chapel Street, Titchmarsh. Speeding (Whaplode). £200 fine, £20 v/s, £85 costs, 3pts.

Claire Tocher (36), of Mallards, Southport. Speeding (Swineshead Bridge). £200 fine, £20 v/s, £85 costs, 3pts.

Kiri Walden (23), of Barnsdales Mews, Church Street, Donington. Speeding (Whaplode). £200 fine, £20 v/s, £85 costs, 3pts.

Robert Walker (49), of Delgate Avenue, Weston. Speeding (Spalding). £400 fine, £40 v/s, £85 costs, 5pts. Not wearing a seat belt. £200 fine.

Nathan Lake (23), of Baulkins Drove, Sutton St James. No insurance (Whaplode). £600 fine, £60 v/s, £85 costs, disqualified from driving for 12 months. No valid licence. £200 fine. No separate penalties for failing to produce insurance and failing to produce licence.

Damian Przybylo (25), of Cocketts Drive, Wisbech. Speeding (Tydd Gote). £265 fine, £27 v/s, £85 costs, 6pts.

Audrius Zupsnis (27), of Wilberforce Road, Wisbech. Speeding (Whaplode). £200 fine, £20 v/s, £85 costs, disqualified from driving for six months.

Adam Walker (33), of Marlborough Avenue, Spalding. Speeding (Whaplode). £60 fine, £20 v/s, £85 costs, 3pts.

Marie Wooldridge (51), of Allen Road, Peterborough. Failing to comply with red traffic light (Baston). £105 fine, £20 v/s, £85 costs, 3pts.

Romell Yearwood (37), of Pentland Drive, Sleaford. Speeding (Swineshead Bridge). £37 fine, £20 v/s, £85 costs, 3pts.

Marilyn Kelly (46), of Summerson Close, Donington. Speeding (Spalding). £60 fine, £15 v/s, 3pts.

Sabrina Keirle (35), of Great Northern Gardens, Bourne. Drunk and disorderly and failing to answer to bail. £50 costs. To be detained in courthouse; detention deemed served by reason of time already spent in custody.

Sarah Reddin (35), of Hall Lane, Moulton Seas End. Speeding (Moulton Seas End). £175 fine, £20 v/s, £85 costs, 6pts.

Linas Urbonas (39), of Irby Street, Boston. Speeding (Swineshead Bridge). £150 fine, £20 v/s, £85 costs, disqualified from driving for 28 days.

Graham Burrell (63), of Boston Road, Kirton. No insurance (Boston). £600 fine, £60 v/s, £85 costs, 6pts.

Michael Clark (40), of Windleston Drive, Middlesborough. Speeding (Fleet Hargate). £200 fine, £20 v/s, £85 costs, 3pts.

Alan Croft (57), of Portman Square, London. Speeding (Pinchbeck). £400 fine, £40 v/s, £85 costs, 5pts.

Arturs Mellis (26), of Windsor Bank, Boston. Speeding (Whaplode). £200 fine, £20 v/s, £85 costs, 3pts.

Christian Rimmington (21), of The Crescent, Morton. Speeding (Welby). £400 fine, £40 v/s, £85 costs, 6pts.

Jaqueline Ryan (55), of Stradbroke Close, Sheffield. Speeding (Deeping St James). £400 fine, £40 v/s, £85 costs, 4pts.

Matloob Hussain (38), of Exmoor Street, Halifax. Speeding (Swineshead Bridge). £55 fine, £15 v/s, £85 costs, 3pts.

Stephen Bradley (52), of Chapel Street, Eastwood, Nottingham. Speeding (Whaplode). £35 fine, £20 v/s, £50 costs, disqualified from driving for six months.

Ramunas Bruzaitis (24), of Lilac Close, Wisbech. Defective tyre (Fleet). £400 fine, £40 v/s, £85 costs, 3pts. Failing to give driving ID. £600 fine, £60 v/s, £85 costs, 6pts.

Scott Davis (26), of London Road, Spalding. Failing to give driving ID. £600 fine, £60 v/s, £85 costs, 6pts.

Ashlea Wells (21), of Haven Close, Fleet. Illegal number plate. £60 fine, £20 v/s, £85 costs.

Sonya Wyles (33), of Newgate Road, Tydd St Giles. No insurance (Long Sutton). £600 fine, £20 v/s, £85 costs, 6pts.

Mark Chivers (50), of Camcauseway, Cambridge. Speeding (Shepeau Stow). £75 fine, £20 v/s, £40 costs, disqualified for driving for seven days.

Arunas Rocys (22), of Pennygate, Spalding. Permitting someone to drive without insurance (Spalding). £270 fine, £15 v/s, £85 costs, disqualified for driving for six months. No separate penalty for using a vehicle without insurance.

Terrence Freeman (70, of Barholm Road, Tallington. Speeding (Deeping St James). £40 fine, £20 v/s, £43 costs, 3pts.

Lee Hilton(25), of Bicker Road, Donington. No insurance (Donington). £80 fine, £20 v/s, £43 costs, 6pts.

Olivia Lyon (19), of Chandlers Reach, Church Street, Spalding. No insurance (Spalding). £80 fine, £20 v/s, £20 costs, 6pts.

David Maker (29), of Pintail Road, Stowmarket. Speeding (Whaplode). £40 fine, £20 v/s, 3pts.

Andris Pirags (57), of Oxford Gardens, Holbeach. Speeding (Whaplode). £40 fine, £20 v/s, £43 costs, 3pts.

Paul Stanley (33), of Farrow Avenue, Holbeach. Speeding (Spalding). £40 fine, £20 v/s, £43 costs, 3pts.

Anthony Storer-Hamm (49), of Gretton Close, Botolph Green, Peterborough. Speeding (Deeping St James). £40 fine, £20 v/s, £43 costs, 3pts.

Alan Birt (32), of Lancaster Street, Walton. Speeding (Swineshead Bridge). £50 fine, £20 v/s, £25 costs, 3pts.

An extra £2million of funding has been allocated to spend on road maintenance.

Lincolnshire County Council underspent its budget in the previous financial year and councillors have chosen to spend part of the surplus on filling more potholes.

Several harsh winters have taken their toll on the county’s roads, and a record number of potholes have been reported in 2013.

The council’s highways team has already carried out 500,000 more square metres of surface patching compared to the previous year, and the additional investment will mean that the maintenance programme is able to continue.

Coun Richard Davies, executive member for highways and transportation, said: “As a result of strong financial management, we ended the last financial year with a small underspend.

“We have decided to inject £2million of this surplus into road maintenance – specifically to repair potholes.

“This extra funding will help maintain this intensity and allow us to make improvements to a large part of Lincolnshire’s road network.”

Sections of the busy A17 will be closed over several nights while essential resurfacing works are carried out.

Work will begin on Monday, July 29, and last until Thursday, August 8 – weather permitting.

It will take place between 8pm and 6am at Long Sutton, Swineshead, Sutton Bridge, Fosdyke and Hoffleet Stow and involve ten overnight road closures:

L A17 Long Sutton, from the B1190 roundabout to the A1101 roundabout between July 29 and 31 and August 3 and 4.

A17 Swineshead, from the A1211 to East Heckington on July 29 to 31 and August 4;

A17 Sutton Bridge, from the A1101 roundabout at Wisbech to Tydd Road between July 30 and August 1, and August 5 and 6;

l A17 Fosdyke, between Sutterton roudabout and Fosdyke village on July 31, August 1, 6 and 7;

l A17 between Bicker Bar and Wigtoft on July 31, August 2, 3 and 7.

On Wednesday, July 31, only three sections will be closed at one time. The roadSwineshead and Hoffleet Stow will not be closed at the same time.

Martyn Allen, network and development manager, said: “We appreciate that the A17 is a very busy road, so we will improve the road surface at these locations overnight simultaneously to avoid us having to revisit the road in the near future and ensure that we cause the minimum amount of disruption to motorists.”

A motorist accused of causing the death of a 27-year-old cyclist by dangerous driving appeared before Lincoln Crown Court on Thursday.

Paul Walken (42), of Chapel Lane, Folkingham, was charged following the death of Timothy Osborn on September 14 last year.

During the hearing Walken spoke only to confirm his name and no plea was taken.

Judge Sean Morris granted him bail to appear back in court on 11 October.

Timothy Osborn, who lived in Pode Hole, failed to return home after setting off to cycle home from work. His body was found alongside the A151 Bourne Road, Spalding.

A man accused of having cocaine with intent to supply the class A drug to others will be tried at Lincoln Crown Court.

Wayne Taylor (23), of Counter Drain Drove, Tongue End, was granted bail by Spalding magistrates.

Ellen Cook’s first encounter with homeopathy occurred when her five-year-old daughter developed some health problems that her GP couldn’t get to the bottom of.

Her treatment with the homeopath was successful and her daughter made a good recovery.

During her daughter’s treatment Ellen’s interest in homeopathy grew and she began to gather more information about homeopathy and how it worked.

After commencing some treatment successfully for herself she enrolled on a four year homeopathic practitioner course at the Homeopathic College of East Anglia.

She successfully completed the course and became fully registered with the Society of Homeopaths in May 2013.

She is now running a homeopathic clinic from Tonic Health in Spalding on Wednesdays.

What is homeopathy?

Homeopathy was discovered by Dr Samuel Hahnemann 200 years ago. It’s a holistic treatment which helps a person on physical mental and emotional levels. Homeopathy can be used to help all manner of illnesses. It can also be used alongside conventional treatment, medications and alternative therapies. Homeopathy can be used on people of all ages

The homeopathic consultation.

An initial consultation can take up to an hour and a half. Some of the questions asked may seem irrelevant to your illness but this information will help to build a comprehensive picture in which to prescribe on. Any information you give, will be treated in strictest confidence. Follow up consultations take around 45 minutes

Homeopathic remedies.

Homeopathic remedies are non-toxic and suitable from birth through to any stage of life. The remedies are made from natural substances from the animal, vegetable and mineral kingdoms.

How long will the treatment take?

The duration of your treatment depends on the nature of the illness and how long you have felt unwell for. Most people feel a sense of wellbeing a short time after taking a remedy

If you would like more information about homeopathy email Ellen at ellen.homeopathy@gmail.com or visit www.tonic-health.co.uk.

If you would like to book an appointment call Tonic Health on 01775 725059

Moulton Parish Council is looking for another new member after the resignation of Andrew Miller due to work commitments.

His decision to step down was confirmed by letter at a meeting on Tuesday where members were also told of Coun John Crossland’s intention to resign from representing Moulton Seas End ward.

Members agreed that Coun Crossland should confirm his wish by letter.

Anti race-hate campaigners met secretly in Spalding on Wednesday night to avoid being gate-crashed by far right group the English Defence League (EDL).

Meeting organisers Hope Note Hate published screen grabs of alleged racist posts on Facebook pages of three UKIP county councillors in May – including Spalding South Ward member Alan Jesson.

At that time, Hope Not Hate said it would hold a public meeting in Spalding on July 3 – keeping the venue under wraps until the last minute to avoid disruption from the EDL and British National Party (BNP).

Speaking before the meeting, Hope Not Hate boss Nick Wells defended his group’s private gathering for a dozen people in a local family’s house, saying the EDL were trying to find out where it was being held.

He said the EDL has turned up at six or seven of its meetings and in one case they had “20 people turn up trying to have a fight”.

Reporters were also barred from Hope Not Hate’s secret meeting in Spalding.

Nick Wells, the organisation’s director, said: “It’s actually something just for our supporters really.

“It’s at someone’s house. We have spoken to them and they are really concerned about having journalists there.

“It’s a private chat about trying to do something positive with our supporters.

“I have got to accept the wishes of the people who are hosting the event.

“This was a meeting asked for by local people who were keen for some help and some discussion about how they can do something positive.”

He said the Spalding meeting was listed after UKIP councillors were first elected to Lincolnshire County Council but that was not the sole reason.

“There’s been an increase in vocalising negative attitudes towards migrants – people are saying not everyone feels like that,” Mr Wells said.

Hope Not Hate was formed to oppose “the politics of hate” advocated by the EDL and BNP and Mr Wells says UKIP is not one of its targets.

It published comments on the three UKIP councillors’ Facebook pages after a story appeared in The Sunday Mirror.

Lincolnshire Police then started “information gathering” and appointed a detective inspector to look into the case.

Coun Alan Jesson claimed he and fellow UKIP councillors had their Facebook accounts hacked and the offensive comments were not theirs.

UKIP’s national leader, Nigel Farage, said then that some people had been trying to label his party as racist, but “it has never ever stuck and it won’t stick”.

A gang who ram raided a bank stealing £34,190, have been jailed for a total of 20 years.

Ivan Hutchinson, Ebby Hall, Kevin Smith and Richard Clues hatched a scheme to steal vehicles, disguise them with fake number plates, then carry out a smash and grab operation using a stolen JCB at a bank in Kimbolton.

After ramming through the wall of Barclays Bank in the JCB at 1.27am on September 27, the ATM was ripped out and loaded onto a Ford Focus which had been stolen from Bedfordshire, nine days earlier.

A Land Rover which had been stolen from Crowland on September 24 was seen nearby and a BMW, which had been stolen in Norfolk in July 2012, was spotted being driven at 125mph along the A605 by a man in a balaclava shortly afterwards.

Police followed the vehicle to the Norwood Road traveller site in Peterborough, where the driver reversed, ramming the police car several times before eventually stopping and the occupants ran off. Officers chased them and Hall was arrested nearby.

An angle grinder and fake number plates were discovered in the boot.

The Land Rover, Ford Focus and ATM were all found burned out the following day in Keyston.

A total of £34,190 had been taken from the ATM, while repairs to the building and replacing the ATM cost a further £34,000.

Forensic tests linked Hall to the JCB. Phone records then linked Hall with Smith and the burglary in which the Focus was stolen in Wootton. They also linked Hutchinson with the conspiracy.

Smith was arrested on December 13, and £1,500 in cash was discovered hidden at his home in Spalding.

Hutchinson and Clues were also arrested and officers discovered a number of registration plates which Clues had made up in the garage of his home in Risby, Bretton, Peterborough.

Hall (45), of White Post Road South, Eye, and Smith, (28), of Clay Lake, Spalding, admitted conspiracy to steal motor vehicles and conspiracy to burgle.

Clues (60), of Risby, Bretton, denied conspiracy to steal vehicles but admitted converting/disguising criminal property in relation to making number plates.

Hutchinson (29), of Brington Road, Brington, Huntingdon, had initially denied any involvement. However, his plea changed on the day of trial last month when it emerged that one of the key contacts within the phones was his wife. He pleaded guilty to conspiracy to steal motor vehicles and conspiracy to burgle.

All four men were sentenced at Peterborough Crown Court yesterday.

Hutchinson was jailed for seven years and two months, Hall and Smith were both sentenced to five years and three months, with Hall given a further ten months to run consecutively for breaching a suspended sentence. Clues was jailed for 18 months.

DCI Kevin Vanterpool, who led the investigation, said: “This was a sophisticated conspiracy to steal ATMs from banks.

“While the method of ripping out the cash machine appears relatively crude, an exceptional amount of pre-planning went into identifying and acquiring the vehicles to be used in the offence and subsequent getaway, hiding their identity through false plates, destroying evidence and hiding the money.

“All of those convicted played crucial roles in the plot and the sentences passed by the court reflect that.

“A huge amount of work went in to bringing this gang to justice and it is the conclusion of months of meticulous investigation.

“We will not tolerate this type of organised crime and no-one is above the law. We will pursue whatever lines of enquiry are necessary to bring those committing crime in Cambridgeshire to justice.”

Spalding police will continue their battle against street drinking in the town, although there are no “quick wins”.

The vow has come from community patrol Inspector Jim Tyner, in reaction to a social media video of foreign nationals drinking outside the Free Press offices.

The video, featuring four drinkers, was originally published on Polish language website Spalding 24 and then a link was pasted onto this newspaper’s site – spaldingtoday.co.uk

One website viewer asked: “We now have a video clip posted showing street drinkers. Would you not only use this clip to show your readers how bad things are, but also pass this on to the police too.”

After seeing the clip, Insp Tyner responded: “Most people watching this video would agree that street-drinking is unpleasant and not what they want to see.

“Operation Trunk has officers dedicated to tackling anti-social behaviour linked to street-drinking. This video confirms my view that, despite increased demand for resources elsewhere, I am right to continue tackling this issue.

“In June my officers dealt with 85 street drinkers, while there were 18 calls from the public. Most of these calls were about the riverbank at the rear of the South Holland Centre.

“Our critics may say that as there are still street drinkers, then what we are doing isn’t working. All in all, I hope people feel reassured by the action we are taking under the limitations of the current law.

“Street drinking is a complex social issue with no quick wins. People are still drinking in the town centre, although they have mostly moved out of view of the public. The fact that, compared to last year, we are receiving significantly less calls about street-drinking would suggest street drinkers are having less impact on people.

“I was told market traders are returning to Spalding since Operation Trunk has cleared the shopping areas of drinkers. This tells me that what we are doing is contributing to town centre improvement.”

To view the story visit the link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NOaH4b-syX8&feature=youtu.be

Police are looking for thieves who stole a catalytic converter from a car in Bourne this week.

A Peugeot 406 parked in Essex Way was targeted some time between Tuesday and Wednesday, possibly during the early hours of the morning.

Anyone with information should call police on 101, quoting incident number 228 of July 4th.

Meanwhile, a car parked in Stephenson Way, Bourne was damaged in an attempted break-in although nothing was stolen.

Police are urging motorists to be vigilant and anyone with information should call them, quoting incident number 65 of July 3rd.

Police are looking for two boys who swore at children in a Billingborough park before one of them rode off with a bike.

It happened at about 7.15pm last Saturday when the boys aged between 12 and 13 walked into the park before shouting and swearing at children who then ran off.

One of them left behind a red and blue kayak children’s bike which one of the boys police want to speak to then rode off on.

The bike is still missing and anyone with information should call police on 101, quoting incident number 428 of June 29th.

A motorist denied causing serious injury to motorcyclist Michael Spraggs by dangerous driving on the A1101 at Long Sutton on February 25.

Adrian Burrell (56), of Boston Road, Kirton, also denies failing to report the accident. Spalding magistrates sent Burrell to Lincoln Crown Court for a preliminary hearing there on October 31.

Holbeach pensioner David Burton (68) has denied assaulting PC Matthew Breathwick on June 17.

Burton, of Washway Road, had his case adjourned by Spalding magistrates on Thursday for a trial at the court on November 14.

A public consultation on controversial plans to reduce library services is to go ahead.

Lincolnshire County Council executive decided to push ahead with the consultation, despite fierce opposition, at its meeting earlier this week.

The consultation will ask members of the public to have their say on county council plans to save up to £2million by slashing its council-run libraries from 47 to 15.

Spalding library is one of ten “Tier 1” libraries that will be kept by the council and remain open up to 50 hours a week.

Libraries in Crowland and Long Sutton are also safe in “Tier 2”, and should remain open at least 25 hours a week.

The council will also continue to provide a range of online services such as e-books and audio books.

At the same time,local communities are being given the opportunity to take over their local library or create their own, with professional support from the council.

Coun Nick Worth, executive member for libraries, said: “The way in which libraries are used is changing. In Lincolnshire, 82 per cent of the population are not active borrowers and book stock issued in the county in the last ten years has dropped from five million to under three million.

“Our vision for the future of the service is a comprehensive one, but one that remains both affordable and efficient.

“Despite the need for change, our ambition is to keep all of Lincolnshire’s libraries open.

“However, this is only going to work with the support of local communities.

“We will support residents and organisations that step forward and lend a hand.

“And, by getting them more involved, we think we can actually create a library service that’s better tailored to each community’s individual needs.

“A consultation will help us gauge whether that appetite is there.”

The council will also continue to provide up to 126 mobile library stops.

Those that are discontinued will be replaced by a home library service for those unable to visit the nearest alternative because of disability, age, ill health or caring responsibilities.

For further details on the proposals and to take part in the consultation, go to www.lincolnshire.gov.uk/librariesconsultation, call 01522 782010 or pick up a copy of the questionnaire in any library.

The consultation runs until Monday, September 30.

South Holland families are facing a growing nightmare of rising costs, wage freezes and benefit cuts, according to a new report.

Consumer groups and church organisations are studying the findings of a report from anti-poverty group the Joseph Rowntree Foundation which show that living costs have risen by almost 25 per cent in the last five years.

The report, A Minimum Income Standard for the UK in 2013, also revealed that a single person needs to earn at least £16,850 a year before 
tax to have a “minimum acceptable living standard” while a couple with two children needs to earn at least £19,400 each.

Groups such as South Holland Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB) and Agape Care Foodbank are already dealing with a rising tide of requests for help because of the Government’s welfare reforms and rising energy costs.

John Willoughby, strategic manager for South Holland CAB, said: “In the last financial year (April 2012 to March 2013), about 41 per cent of all our enquiries related to the welfare reforms and quite a few of those were about the changes that came in on April 1.

“We’re definitely running at about 40 per cent in the first quarter of this year and the results of the Rowntree report are likely to have an impact on the number of clients that may need to consider seeing us in the future.”

Both the report and welfare changes announced by the Government last week, including a proposed seven-day waiting period before people can start claiming benefits, will be discussed by the Social Issues in South Lincolnshire group at an event in Long Sutton later this year.

Father Jonathan Sibley, the group’s co-ordinator, said: “As the report says, the cost of living has placed an unprecedented burden on everyone in our community, together with the cuts in services.

“The area of south Lincolnshire is acknowledged to have distinct problems because of its rural nature.”