People aged 23 and under won’t get state pensions until they’re 69, 70 or even older following an announcement in Chancellor George Osborne’s autumn statement.

Rule changes also hit people in their mid to late 20s, 30s, 40s and 50s with up to three years added to the state pension age for some.

We’ve had a flood of comments on our Facebook page, including one from Sharon Peters, who says: “I am a nurse and personally think it would be too exhausting and physically demanding to carry on nursing ‘til you are 70.”

Shoppers are also worried about coping with physically demanding work in their late 60s or when they turn 70.

Jackie Briggs (44), from Spalding, started her nurse training aged 18, when she could have expected to retire at 60, but must now wait until she’s 67 or 68 to claim her state pension.

She said: “I am only just going back to work after having my girls.

“The retirement age for women should stick at 60 – waiting until you are 67 or 68 is too long.”

Sarah Nunn (39), from Pinchbeck, also faces a state retirement age of 67 or 68 and she’s worried there’s too little money for pensioners.

She said: “I do think there should be more help for the older generation.

“My dad’s 67 and he doesn’t even get pension credits or anything like that. He gets a pension from his work, but it’s not a lot to live on.”

Daniel Skerritt (31) works at Spalding’s South Holland Centre in a physically demanding job as a technician and faces a retirement age of 68 or 69.

He said: “I would imagine people will find it a struggle, including professionals like firefighters, to still be working at that age.”

Claire Churchill (24), from Sutton Bridge, said: “If your health isn’t great, then I think you should be able to retire early – but if you still feel okay at that age, then perhaps it’s okay to carry on.

“It’s good in a way if you do want to carry on working over 65.”

Claire’s state retirement age will be 68 or 69, but she’s not certain she will be able to stay in her current role.

She said: “I am a carer and I don’t know if I could still do it at that age.”

Stephen Avery (48), from Holbeach, cannot work after being left badly injured in a violent attack, but says this country is in a mess and doesn’t look after people nearly so well as Ireland does.

He said raising the state retirement age is wrong and asked: “Why should the older people go through that?”

Leah Hurlock (43), from Holbeach, says pensions are a double-edged sword as people are living longer and it’s costing more, but not everyone is capable of working in their late 60s or at 70.

She said: “I think they should fix the age at 65 for women and 68 for men.”

Readers slammed the state pension age rises in a series of comments on our Facebook page.

Philip Cm Heinzl says: “It all depends on what job you do and one’s physical ability, but when I see zimmer frames with blues and twos, I won’t be holding my breath for any assistance.”

Daniel Manton says: “I’ll be dead before I retire. So can those of us who die before we retire ask that our state pensions which we won’t receive go to our loved ones rather than the Government?”

Beverley Flaxman-Binns says: “Seventy is too old for many jobs.”

Jacquie Western told us: “Yes it is unfair as it keeps unemployment high as the younger generation cannot get a job if those already working have to be there longer.”

Douglas Hicks said: “I hope they are going to stop NIC (national insurance contributions) if workers have to work until they drop dead.”

This is a rough guide to state retirement age as things stand now:

• Under 23s – 69, 70 or higher

• Age 23-35 – 68 or 69

• Age 36-46 – 67 or 68

• Age 46-50 – 67

• Age 54-60 – 66

Women now aged 60-plus can get a pension at 63 and men older than 60 can claim at the age of 65.

A new accident and emergency department for Spalding has taken a step forward.

The move, which could see the minor injuries unit at Johnson Community Hospital “upgraded” to a new A&E Local unit, is part of a blueprint for the future of health care in Lincolnshire.

The driving force behind it is the need to reshape services in a bid to stave off a projected £105million overspend in the next five years.

A review has been carried out by all health and care organisations, including GPs, mental health, nursing, hospital and ambulance services, as well as social care services.

The blueprint, put together by staff from all ten organisations involved, as well as the voluntary sector, carers and health watchdogs, gives some “high level options for change”.

And Lincolnshire County Council’s health and wellbeing board has now given the go ahead for the review to move to the next level.

Coun Sue Woolley, chairman of the board, said: “The board recognises that doing nothing about the current health situation is simply not an option.

“The best way to address issues such as budget shortfalls, problems with recruitment and making sure services are of high quality, is to put changes in place to the whole system, where everyone works together to make the most of the budgets available.

“The decision means that the next stage of work can start.

“This will be a large piece of work to look at how the ‘bigger picture’ could work on the ground.

“This includes looking at the buildings, staff, facilities and IT and infrastructure that each organisation has so some realistic options can be put together, including more specific site details, that the public can be consulted on.”

One of the main principles in the blueprint is the ambition to treat less people in major hospitals, including A&E – hence the idea of creating new A&E Local departments at more settings across the county, including minor injury units such as the one at Spalding.

The idea is to treat more people in the community, near to where they live.

It has been projected that the new A&E Locals could save the NHS in Lincolnshire between £36million and £43 million.

A spokesman said: “Most people using the major A&E centres in Lincolnshire don’t need to be there, but it is convenient and available 24 hours a day.

“By providing wide-ranging, round the clock services in community ‘neighbourhood’ teams, most people could be seen in these settings.

“Patients would only use an acute hospital for high quality, specialist treatment or in a genuine emergency, for example when they need trauma or cardiac treatment.”

The ideas from the review will now be worked up in more detail over the coming months, with the promise of broader engagement with patients and community groups before a full public consultation is held during 2014.

People across South Holland and The Deepings made sure the latest firemen’s strikes passed with only one incident in the area.

A fire alarm going off in Spalding was the only callout in the area during two four-hour strikes from 6pm until 10pm on Friday and Saturday.

In total, there were eight incidents across the two days, including two vehicle fires, house and chimney fires and a suspected gas leak.

At least 400 members of the Fire Brigades Union in Lincolnshire, including about 20 in South Holland, were able to strike over pension changes planned by the Government after a union ballot last month.

The latest strikes brought the total number since September to six, with Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue able to maintain an emergency response service on each occasion.

A Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue spokesman said: “We implemented our business continuity plan to ensure we provided appropriate fire cover for Lincolnshire and there were appropriate resources in place to enable us to respond to emergency calls within the communities of the county.”

Before the strike, the county’s chief fire officer Dave Ramscar said: “The effects of any industrial action will be felt by us here as it is our firefighters who will be taking part.”

Police are looking for thieves who took catalytic converters from two vehicles in the Deepings area at the weekend.

A white Citreon Despatch van parked on a drive in Godsey Crescent, Market Deeping, was targeted overnight between Saturday and Sunday.

Meanwhile, a convertor was also stolen from a silver Seat Alhambra parked in Swift Close, Deeping St James, during the same period.

Anybody with information should call 101.

St John Ambulance is pledging to do its best to help Spalding’s family contact centre and three others in the county “in their transition to independence”.

The first aid charity is pulling the plug on the centres at the end of this year, prompting fears that families suffering break-ups will no longer have neutral settings to see their children.

The charity’s regional director, Chris Thornton, said: “We have been proud to provide the family contact centres but our charitable mission is first aid and we need to focus on reducing unnecessary deaths.

“The contact centres do excellent work and we tried to find another organisation to take them on, but the best way forward for the centres is to be independent charities.

“We will do our best to help them in their transition to independence. People who would like to help should call Paula Gale on 07770 892287.”

He says once independent, the contact centres will be able to support “far more families”.

A second time drink-driver was handed a 12 week suspended prison sentence and a four year ban by Spalding magistrates.

Alizonas Nisanovas had more than three-and-a-half times the legal limit of alcohol in breath when members of the public alerted police about him swerving the in the road and travelling the wrong way around a mini roundabout.

Nisanovas (44), of Ayscough Avenue, Spalding, pleaded guilty on November 18 to having 128 microgrammes of alcohol in breath – the legal limit is 35mcgs – when sentence was adjourned for a probation report.

At Thursday’s resumed hearing, he was given 12 weeks in prison, suspended for nine months, with nine months supervision by probation and a requirement to attend alcohol treatment for six months.

Nisanovas must also pay £85 costs and an £85 victim surcharge.

When asked to comment on the offence, Nisanovas told magistrates: “What can I say? I am guilty.”

Paul Wood, prosecuting, said Nisanovas had a previous drink-drive conviction in September 2010.

Any past drink-drive conviction within ten years triggers an automatic three year ban, but magistrates extended the ban to four years because the latest reading was so high.

Nisanovas committed his latest offence in Spalding on Sunday, November 17.

Police suspect a vehicle parked outside a house in Bourne may be linked to a series of burglaries across south Lincolnshire.

A woman found a light blue MPV on the driveway outside her home in Sandown Drive on Saturday and a man in the vehicle drove off when challenged. Anyone with information should call police on 101.

Vandals smashed the back windows of two vehicles parked outside the Deepings Community Centre, Market Deeping, although nothing was taken.

The vehicles were parked in Douglas Road when vandals attacked them some time on Saturday and anyone with information should call 101.

Three people have been arrested in connection with two burglaries in Spalding and Donington during the weekend.

Tony Benge of Donington was due to appear before magistrates this morning after being charged with burgling a house in Gleed Avenue, Donington, yesterday.

Meanwhile, two people have been released on police bail after they were arrested in connection with a burglary at a house in The Raceground, Spalding, which happened overninght on Friday and Saturday.

Both people were interviewed and released while police enquiries continue.

County highways engineers today (Monday) closed the public footpath at the Spalding end of Barrier Bank because it’s no longer considered safe for pedestrians.

The council says the bank is subsiding and officers are now exploring alternatives, including building a new footpath on the opposite side of Barrier Bank next summer.

Senior highways officer Maxine Stukins said: “I’m afraid this footpath isn’t safe to use any more so we’ve had to close it. Over the next few months we’ll look at what options are available to us to either repair the path or replace it entirely.”

Residents in Spalding are being urged to check charities are legitimate before donating.

Lincolnshire Trading Standards issued the warning after a leaflet drop asking for donations last week and said people should read any leaflets carefully.

Make sure the charity is actually specified and the contact details given are correct.

To report a bogus charity collector or a suspicious trader, please contact Trading Standards via the Citizens’ Advice Consumer Service on 08454 04 05 06.

A sports and remedial massage therapist who has worked with the likes of the Saracens and London Wasps rugby clubs is hoping to score a try of his own after relocating his established business to Spalding.

Stan Rechcigl has launched Impact Massage at Definitions Health and Fitness Gym in Cradge Bank after moving to the town with his family.

The 38-year-old, who trained at the North London School of Sports Massage, specialises in deep tissue sports and remedial massage to not only treat a wide range of ailments and injuries, but help prevent them as well.

His massage techniques can release stress and muscle tension and restore balance to the musculo-skeletal system, and is not just limited to athletes and sports professionals.

“Sports massage is for everyone, not just sporty people,” he said. “It can help relieve many day-to-day problems that everyone experiences, whether you enjoy working out in the gym, have a physically demanding job or work in an office. It can also help treat health issues such as sciatica and help people recover following an operation.”

Stan’s clients have included a number of professional sports people, including rugby union players, fitness instructors and dancers, as well as those undertaking marathons and triathlons.

Impact Massage will be open on Mondays, Tuesdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays by appointment, with home visits also available for those unable to get into the clinic.

Stan also runs a chair massage service, offering quick and convenient massages to people in the workplace and at a number of indoor and outdoor events such as festivals and weddings.

To celebrate the launch of the business, Stan is now offering clients £10 off any treatment. It has to be booked in December but can be redeemed at any time until the end of March. Anyone who books will also get a free gold day pass to try out the leisure facilities at Definitions.

l For more information, contact Stan on 07903 646579 or email: info@impact-massage.co.uk

An overhaul of Carter’s Park in Holbeach is in the pipeline after parish councillors branded it a “disgrace” and an “eyesore.”

The claims were made at a meeting on Monday when vice chairman John Spencer confirmed he would be discussing the problem with South Holland District Council’s conservation team next week.

Holbeach in Bloom volunteers won silver at this year’s East Midlands in Bloom (EMiB) Awards but it now wants to “smarten up” the park in time for next year’s competition.

During the meeting, Coun Carol Rudkin said: “Carter’s Park is the people’s park but at the moment it looks a disgrace and it needs smartening up.

“I’m sure the ratepayers won’t mind if we did this as we need to look after the town and improve it.”

In their report, EMiB judges said: “Holbeach is moving forward with a new purpose and the town’s In Bloom team is making progress in the right direction.

“Their efforts can be seen to good effect throughout the town and the hard work of all those involved is fantastic.”

Holbeach in Bloom chairman Coun Graham Rudkin said: “The judges commented on certain things about Carter’s Park such as some of the weeds that are smothering a number of trees in the park.

“The hedge alongside the footpath is in a bit of a state and we’re looking to put a new fence in after an accident last month when a car crashed through the fence.

“Carter’s Park is used a lot by people in Holbeach and we want to start improving it to make it a better place for everybody.”

Coun Spencer said: “Carter’s Park is an eyesore and if we don’t do something about it soon, EMiB judges will come next year and see that it looks the same as it does now.

“But the plan is to give it an overhaul in various places to make it more attractive and presentable.”

A new task group is to look at ways a Spalding playing field could be used for “general recreation”.

South Holland District Council members, who are the trustees of Sir Halley Stewart Playing Field, met to discuss the facility’s future at a special meeting on Wednesday.

Part of the meeting was to have been held behind closed doors but as no members of the public attended, in spite of a last-ditch plea by Spalding Community Campaign for residents to press for public access, discussions were held openly.

The main aim of the meeting was to agree changes to the wording of the booking form.

The trustees had been advised by their legal team to make it clearer that “individuals” could hire the facility.

A “robust letter” will now be winging its way to the Charity Commission from the trustees’ counsel informing them of their decision.

The Charity Commission became involved in the long-running dispute over use of the sports field, home to Spalding United, after being contacted by Bill Johnson of the Spalding Community Campaign.

Campaigners claim the field was left to the whole community and the gates should not be locked to keep the public out.

In September, the campaigners were furious about council plans to open the King’s Road gates to allow public access to a small area of land – currently used as the football training pitch – for the public to use for informal recreation.

Mr Johnson said: “They were just offering us part of it.

“It would also give one organisation (the football club) the chance to take over the Sir Halley Stewart Field, which would be against the Charity Commission guidelines because they say that no one organisation should dominate the field.”

However, there could still be greater access.

Coun Nick Worth, deputy leader of the council and portfolio holder for Localism and Big Society, said: “Trustees have agreed to set up a task group to look at options for the field and explore whether changes could be made to include general recreation.

“They will also have to look at what the cost implications of this would be on the Spalding taxpayer.”

Task group members could call on members of the public, such as Mr Johnson, for their opinion.

Following the latest development, Mr Johnson said: “We will have to await the decision of the Charity Commission.”

A man with an anger management problem hurled swear words and insults at Spalding probation staff the day he was late for an appointment.

Wayne Mitchell had an existing community order and was also due to be seen for a pre-sentence report after being convicted of assaulting his partner, Jade Williams.

Mitchell (24), of St Andrew’s Road, Spalding, rang the office to explain why he would be late, spoke to reception and was “continually shouting and swearing”.

Probation officer Kiran Patel said the call was terminated by reception because of Mitchell’s behaviour, but he appeared at the office and shouted insults such as “fat ugly slag bitch” and told a woman probation officer to write a report and send him to prison.

He said Mitchell could not be reasoned with and was given an appointment with a male probation officer at Grantham, which he attended without incident.

Paul Wood, prosecuting, said Ms Williams made a 999 call on July 11, saying Mitchell had refused to leave her St Andrew’s Road home and had pushed her.

She had a grazed left forearm and a cut to her right hand, which she alleged had been caused by Mitchell.

Mr Wood said Mitchell also slapped Ms Williams face.

Solicitor Mike Alexander, mitigating, said Mitchell has an anger management problem and has not yet started his “better building relationships programme” with probation.

Mitchell was late for his appointment because he had to collect a sick child from school, but didn’t feel that was treated sympathetically when he phoned to explain.

Mr Alexander said there had been some aggression on both sides on the day of the assault – Ms Williams spat in Mitchell’s face and he slapped her face.

He continued: “He needs help, fundamentally he needs to be able to control his anger.”

Mr Alexander said the case would have been in a lower sentencing category had it not been domestic violence.

“There was a push and a slap – that’s what we’ve got,” he said.

Mitchell was given 20 hours’ unpaid work for breaching his existing community order and a new, year-long community order with 80 hours’ unpaid work for assault.

He must pay £100 prosecution costs, £50 costs for the probation case and a £60 victim surcharge.

In 1993, Peter Stell left the peace of the Fens for the din and smell of what was then Europe’s busiest prison.

It was Liverpool prison, where inmates on some wings were still slopping out in an environment resembling a Victorian penal institution.

Peter went there as CofE chaplain, a role that has taken him to a number of prisons since, ending up at North Sea Camp near Boston.

At North Sea Camp, his job was enlarged to include the role of community chaplain, forging links with community groups that could both visit prisoners and give them support on release.

That took him full circle from his time as assistant priest at St John’s Church in Spalding and at the parish of Deeping St Nicholas, when, as far as Peter knows, he created the first community chaplaincy in the UK.

It was the late 1980s and a time when people with mental health problems were being taken out of institutions and having to learn to live independently in the community. A community chaplaincy was established involving Churches Together in Spalding & District together with the local health authority and agencies like Mind and Mencap to offer support to those people.

Interestingly, when Peter was working to establish the community chaplaincy at North Sea Camp, among the first people to visit on a regular basis was the Rev Peter Garland and some of the parishioners from St John’s Church in Spalding.

Peter says: “The idea of community chaplaincy was born in my head and my heart in Spalding in the late 1980s-early 1990s and was re-born in 2005-6 when I had the idea of engaging the community with the prison and the prison with the community.”

The importance of community support for people with mental health issues or prisoners preparing to enter society again are obvious.

Peter says: “Community chaplaincy brings communities together; it forges links and creates opportunities for people to be of service to people in need.”

After 20 years as a prison service chaplain, Peter has just taken on a new role as lead hospice chaplain with Sue Ryder at Thorpe Hall in Peterborough, an organisation that is already embedded in the hearts of many people in Spalding and district.

Peter’s job, apart from supporting the 60 per cent of patients who go there for respite care and the 40 per cent who go for end of life care, is also to support their families and – just as important – the staff of Thorpe Hall.

Peter says: “The foundation stones for hospital, prison, community and now hospice chaplaincy were laid down in Spalding. My days of ministry in Spalding, centring on St John’s Church and St Nicholas Parish Church were among the best days of my life.”

Thorpe Hall Hospice at Peterborough cares for patients at the end of life and provides ongoing support for their loved ones for as long as it is needed.

It cares for and supports around 1,500 people every year as inpatients, through the Day Service Centre and through family support – and all the services are free to users.

Those people come from across the region, including south Lincolnshire.

Spalding has two Sue Ryder charity shops and currently all the money raised is going towards the Thorpe Hall Capital Appeal. The charity needs £6million to build a new hospice at Thorpe Hall that will become a centre of excellence in palliative care.

The Rev Peter Stell, who lives in Spalding and works as hospice chaplain, says there is a strong desire for him to develop a community chaplaincy to be up and running when the new hospice is completed.

He said: “We are looking at multi-faith and letting the community become more involved in Thorpe Hall. What we want in place is community chaplaincy so we have local people connected to it on the spiritual as well as the physical side.”

Detectives are hunting intruders who broke into a Long Sutton store overnight after trying to smash through its front shutters.

Police were called to Co-op on West Street where an alarm was raised just before 5am this morning and found that intruders had got into the store through a front window.

It appears nothing was taken but anyone with information should call 101, stating incident 31 of December 17.

Flushed with the success of its recent batch of hot hatches, Ford has once again decided that a Mountune badge would look rather nice on the rump of its hot Focus and Fiesta ST models.

In case you didn’t know, Ford’s association with Mountune goes back to the previous generation Focus and Fiesta. Critically acclaimed for offering more bang for your buck than anything else for the same respective prices, it also opened the eyes of many to the underlying potential of the cars. In short, they were easily a match for whatever else was flavour of the month.

Fast forward to today and, concentrating on the Fiesta, the prospect of a 215 horsepower supermini for less than £20,000 is a distinct possibility.

For a few hundred pounds you can lift the Fiesta ST’s already ample 182 horsepower tally to the heady heights of 215. Crucially, torque is another beneficiary of the upgrade, with 236lb ft of the stuff instead of the regular car’s 214lb ft figure.

Mountune works its magic by installing a remodeled airbox and high-flow filter plus some clever electronic calibration to squeeze more out the car’s 1.6-litre turbo motor.

It’s well known that the current base Fiesta ST is a little special, even by Ford’s own high standards. However, with the Mountune kit the diminutive hatch is transformed. Although already a feisty machine in a straight line, in Mountune guise there’s a noticeable extra shove in the back when you accelerate with conviction.

True to form, the ST stops, steers and goes with all the aplomb of something a lot more expensive.

At a time when fancy electronics and flappy paddle gearshifts are taking over, the Fiesta’s simplicity shouldn’t be dismissed. The car’s direct, weighty steering and slick manual gearchange would impress even the most tech savvy young driver.

Everything else about the car is classic Fiesta, which means a comfortable cabin and good level of standard kit.

It might be a hot hatch but the Fiesta ST’s compliant ride and high levels of cabin refinement allow you to relax when going to the shops. For a car with so much potential, and so many horses under its bonnet, it behaves like the proverbial pussy cat around town.

With Ford getting so much right with the Fiesta and Mountune finding the car’s performance sweet spot with its simple and low cost upgrade, you’d be forgiven for thinking there must be a catch.

The good news is there isn’t one, which means if you can spare the funds it would be criminal not to take advantage of this upgrade.

MP John Hayes is fighting on to save Market Deeping Library from the county council axe.

The library is one of 32 that will either close or be shoved into private hands as the council slashes £2million from its budgets.

Around 180 posts will be lost, including some that are vacant, and more than 100 staff will go.

The council will keep 15 libraries, including Spalding, but many will have cuts in opening hours.

The South Holland and The Deepings MP is seeking talks with Coun Nick Worth, the county’s executive member for libraries, and council leader Martin Hill to press them to keep Deepings Library open.

The MP said: “I will in essence say that we are not closed-minded about a solution for Deepings Library – the only thing I have got a closed mind about is its closure. It must be saved.”

He says the library plays a pivotal role in community life and it’s not feasible for residents to travel by public transport to Stamford Library.

Mr Hayes wants “some continuing, professional county council staffing” to remain at the library, but says that could be bolstered by volunteers.

He said: “We are not saying the status quo is the only answer. We are simply saying at the moment we have not got this right and we need to get it right.”

Labour county councillor Phil Dilks said if the library closes, the 18,000-strong population will be left with a mobile library visiting for just two hours a month.

He said the Save Deepings Library Campaign is inviting people to a meeting in January to decide the best way forward.

“That doesn’t commit us into putting in a bid, but that’s one of the considerations we will look at,” said Coun Dilks.

He will also ask South Kesteven District Council to consider running Deepings Library as it runs the library in Bourne.

Independent councillor Judy Stevens has invited residents to join Friends of Deepings Library group to see if there would be enough interest from volunteers to run a sustainable service.

Coun Nick Worth says the move would solve the problem in The Deepings because the county council can’t afford to staff Deepings Library and he’s unwilling to budge from that as Mr Hayes suggests.

Coun Worth said: “What I would say to him (Mr Hayes) is clearly he doesn’t understand the amount of funding cuts we are having to make because of the reduction in funding from central Government, of which he is a part, and we have to make some difficult decisions.”

He said it costs £55,000 to run Deepings Library, but about £40,000 of that goes on staffing – charities and CICs also get a reduction in rates that councils cannot claim – and overall it could be “very affordable” if volunteers step in.