The right numbers have come up for children at Quadring Cowley and Brown’s Primary School with a £10,000 boost to their playtimes.

A new playground and outdoor gym equipment has been installed at the school, funded by a grant from the Big Lottery Fund.

Parents, governors and staff who form the Friends of Quadring School also contributed to the funds needed to install the new play equipment which can be used by both children and adults.

Head teacher James Kelwick said: “We wanted to improve our existing trim trail which has now been demolished as it was wooden and rotten.

“So we started investigating what we could put in its place and we found a company in Leicester called Tyre Parks which works alongside the Big Lottery Fund.

“We applied to the fund for a grant and it gave us £10,000, with the Friends of Quadring School helping as well to pay for the play equipment to be installed.”

The school has also increased the number of parking spaces for parents of pupils.

Mr Kelwick said: “Our children love the new play equipment and, as a school, we like to be very active by competing in the Boston and District Primary Schools tournaments.

“But we have a number of parents and grandparents who use the play equipment as well because it’s here for the community to use.”

Quadring church back in business

How to be that bit greener

Pupils salute St George on our national day

A share of nearly £5.5million of Government cash meant for the provision of an overtaking lane on the A17 could stay in South Holland - under the right circumstances.

Coun Martin Hill, leader of Lincolnshire County Council, gave the commitment when speaking to the Lincolnshire Free Press just two days after abandoning plans worth £2.5million for an eastbound-only overtaking lane on the A17 in Gedney.

Parish, district and county councillors, led by Coun Peter Coupland of Holbeach Rural ward, had spent months lobbying highways officers in their belief that the scheme was “flawed”.

Coun Coupland said: “I’ve done a lot of lobbying at County Hall on behalf of parish and South Holland District Councils to make sure that the scheme was thoroughly investigated and that it would good value for council tax payers.

“At the end of the day, there were one or two flaws in the scheme and I believe the leader of the county council realised that it would be best for everybody not to proceed with it.

“Now I’ll be pushing for improvements at the (Lowgate) junction in Fleet Hargate because it makes absolute sense to spend money on a dangerous junction where there is slow-moving traffic.”

Coun Chris Brewis, county councillor for The Suttons, said: “I am grateful to Coun Hill for coming to listen to genuine concerns from a large number of parish, district and county councillors.

“It was unfortunate that the consultation took place so late in the process, but I believe absolutely that dropping this strange scheme is absolutely correct.

“If the money is still available, and I understand that it may be, I think local people have an idea or two of what would really enhance that part of the A17.”

Coun Hill said: “There’s been so much local opposition to the scheme and people were very uneasy about it.

“The good news is that we’re able to use the money on other parts of the A17 but it’s all subject to government criteria.

“If we could find something that works in South Holland and can get agreement from the landowner in good time, that’s something we could do.

“But South Holland has done pretty well in the past, with the A16 from Spalding to Peterborough.”

Coun Hill’s decision to pull out of the scheme was backed by South Holland District Council leader Coun Gary Porter who said: “If the people affected don’t think that an overtaking lane on the A17 is the right use of the allocation of the money, then they have the right to say so.

“But we have to make sure that the money is used elsewhere in South Holland and my interest in the matter is through lobbying the Government to make sure that it’s spent elsewhere on the A17.

“It’s a good thing that the county council is listening to the community so that if the people who use the road think the money should be spent elsewhere, their views should be heard.”

Gedney to Long Sutton A17 overtaking lane briefing

The £2.5million road scheme no one wants

‘Flawed’ overtaking lane plans scrapped

A Gedney Drove End couple’s plan to turn a former nursing home into a “barn-style country house” has gone to an appeal.

Craig Ward and his wife had been praised by parish councillors for the “considerable amount of effort” they had put into gathering opinion on converting Onslow House Residential Home into a two-storey building for themselves. But their application was rejected by South Holland District Council in June on the grounds that there were no “special circumstances that would otherwise allow isolated homes in the countryside”, according to a decision statement.

Council planning officers went on to state the Wards’ potential new home was “not of such exceptional quality or innovative nature” to be treated as an exception.

At a meeting in June, Mr Ward said: “We have tried to design a sympathetic, but innovative, barn-style country house with some unique features that will hopefully sit nicely within the surrounding area.”

• A controversial scheme to create an overtaking lane on the A17 in Gedney was scrapped just hours after parish councillors voted to oppose it, it has emerged.

The £2.5million project was halted after a meeting with parish, district and county councillors in Sutton Bridge two weeks ago.

One person who supported the scheme was Gedney Parish Council chairman, Coun Ian Field, who told colleagues at October’s meeting last Tuesday that “it was a good thing to do and it’s the way forward”.

Despite this, councillors voted five-three to support a position of collectively opposing the now-abandoned scheme.

Vice chairman Coun Andrew Parks said: “As you move eastwards on the A17 from Gedney roundabout to the junction of Lutton Garnsgate, the proposal was to make it a two-lane road.

“Then there would be a dirty red line running down the centre of the road where there would be no overtaking at all.

“The length of this overtaking facility would have been just over a kilometre, so if you work it out, where on earth is the benefit in all this?”

• A petition to repair a road behind a Gedney housing estate has received an encouraging response from South Holland District Council.

Families in Albert Avenue and Main Road have complained for months about potholes, dust and mud on a gravel roadway behind their homes that has led to a rat infestation and damage to at least three cars.

The petition, launched by mother-of-two Coral-Marie Foulsham, said: “We need the back roadways behind our houses sorting out because they are a hazard for our children with all the potholes.

“People’s cars keep getting damaged and it’s also a nightmare with all the dust and mud coming into our houses.

“We pay road tax to restore the roads.”

Gedney district councillor Jo Reynolds said: “I’ve spoken with a few residents regarding this and I’ve been advised that an assessor has undertaken a site visit with a contractor.

“I’ve requested that they provide costs for remedial works as soon as possible as it’s the responsibility of the district council, not Lincolnshire County Council.

• Gedney Parish Council has abandoned plans to draw up a blueprint of how the area might develop in the future due to a lack of “resources”.

Leaflets about creating a Parish Plan were delivered to homes during the summer.

But Coun Andrew Parks said: “I don’t think we’ve got the resources or get the community involvement needed to do it.”

• Support for Lincs and Notts Air Ambulance has been demonstrated with a £250 grant from Gedney Parish Council.

However, the cost of maiintaining playing fields and grass cutting meant that an original plan to donate £500 to the charity had to be halved.

Coun Ian Field said: “I really do think we should give them something, but we have to cut back.”

Meanwhile, A defibrillator and dementia awareness evening in Gedney Dyke proved to be a success, according to parish councillors.

LIVES First Responder Graeme Capps and council officer Karen Johnson were the speakers at Gedney Dyke Village Hall last month in response to new defibrillators being provided for the parish.

A teenager from Moulton who normally takes leaps of faith with a pole vault has put in the hard yards by running for domestic abuse victims.

Rosie Fresen (17) was motivated by the violent death last year of friend Charlotte Hart (19) and Charlotte’s mother Claire Hart to enter this year’s Scottish Half-Marathon and raise money for anti-domestic violence charity Refuge.

The 13.1 mile route from Meadowmill Sports Centre to Musselburgh Racecourse, near Edinburgh, was covered in two hours 18 minutes and 40 seconds by Rosie, who competes for Nene Valley Harriers Athletics Club.

Rosie said: “I was really nervous beforehand because it was a bit cold and looked like it was about to rain when we lined up at the start. But when I got to mile seven, I found it quite good going because that was the length of my regular training runs.

“Then between miles seven and nine, I hit a bit of a wall and that was the hardest point of the race for me. At that point, I started thinking about all the people who had supported me in my training and fundraising which was what pulled me through.”

Having set herself a target of raising £250 for Refuge, Rosie has bettered her original estimate by 25 per cent.

She said: “Once I got through ‘The Wall’, I thought to myself ‘I can do this’ and when the finish line was in sight, it was a lot easier to push myself through the pain barrier. Overall, the half-marathon was quite painful and I hadn’t realised how far it was until I’d finished it.

“The mental side of it was similar to pole vaulting because you have to fail a few times in competition before picking yourself up from the experience of finding it difficult. But the race was a good one to do and now I’d like to try and run a marathon for Refuge - a charity that means a lot to me.”

Last case is filed by retired detective Helen

Our father was a ‘terrorist and a tyrant’

Murder was final act of abuse and control

A heart test screening weekend at The Deepings School in memory of a former student may have proved a lifesaver, based on the findings.

Five per cent of the 204 people aged between 14 and 35 who were tested have either been referred to their GP, a heart specialist or are to be retested in a year’s time.

The two-day screenings at The Deepings School last month were funded through the Lucy Adena Jessop Memorial Fund, named after a student who died from a sudden heart attack in February 2015, aged just 18.

At the time of the screenings, Lucy’s mother Tracey Jessop-Thompson, said: “We’ve seen quite a diverse group of people at the school, including current students who knew Lucy through their older brothers and sisters.

“It’s nice to know they are coming to be checked and that Lucy hasn’t been forgotten.”

The screenings were done by the charity Cardiac Risk in the Young (CRY), whose spokesman said: “Out of 204 people screened, there were nine referrals for further investigation which is about par and a reasonable amount.

“There are occasions when something can be so obvious that we call those tested immediately.

“But these cases are for very specific abnormalities which need to be seen by a registered cardiologist urgently.

“A letter will also be sent to the patient’s GP, recommending that further tests need to be done.

“The public are right behind our screenings and they like to see results, although no one wants to see someone diagnosed with a heart condition.

“But it does show that nothing has been missed and that CRY is saving lives by finding abnormalities which could otherwise go undetected.”

Modified car group in CRY run for ex-Deepings student Lucy

WEEKEND WEB: Patients are urged to know their numbers

TUESDAY TALK: How Lucy Jessop is at the heart of the matter

People who have been impacted by crime in South Holland and the Deepings are being asked to help improve the services available to them.

A new Victims’ Strategy is being drawn up by Lincolnshire Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) Marc Jones as part of his overall Community Safety, Policing and Criminal Justice Plan for the next four years.

The Victims’ Strategy will be based on an analysis of the results of a survey, which only takes about 10 minutes to complete, aimed at people who have been the victims of a crime in the last five years.

Mr Jones said: “I am absolutely committed to ensuring that anyone who is affected by crime in Lincolnshire receives the support they need, regardless of whether they choose to report the crime to the police or not.

“The way our residents live their lives and do business is constantly evolving and so is crime, which means we must ensure that we provide the services which will support and help the victims of crime in new, innovative and effective ways.

“I am determined that we meet these new challenges to support our communities in the best way possible and a new strategy is one positive step in that journey, with this survey forming a crucial part of that process.”

The survey will be sent directly to approximately 800 victims of crime and distributed by victim services organisations in Lincolnshire, including Women’s Aid South Holland, Refuge and Shelter.

In addition, the PCC’s staff will be carrying out surveys amongst young people, the elderly, victims of domestic abuse, sexual violence, and cyber-crime.

Questions in the survey cover subjects ranging from how the crime impacted the victim, how they would prefer to make contact with support services and what help they most needed.

Feedback from the consultation will help the PCC understand the kind of services the public most need and want which will form a crucial part of creating the Victim Strategy.

The Victims’ Strategy survey can now be viewed online at https://www.snapsurveys.com/wh/s.asp?k=150705054347

New rural crime unit on call ‘all year round’ for Lincolnshire

New online system to report ‘low-level’ crime over county

Pledge on £2.5m overhaul of police system at Crowland crime meeting

A mini-digger like the one pictured above was stolen from Sutton St James on Monday night.

If you saw any suspicious large vehicles near Old Fendyke overnight on Monday/Tuesday please tell the police by dialling 101.

The cause of a fire outside a property in Spalding last night (Tuesday) is under investigation.

Firefighters from Spalding attended the property in Holbeach Road at 10.42pm and found a small fire outside on arrival.

They used a hose reel jet and thermal imaging camera during the operation to extinguish the fire.

This fly-tip was found in New Road, Deeping St Nicholas.

Anyone with information can call 01775 761161 or visit www.sholland.gov.uk

Emergency services are on the scene of a crash between a car and a motorbike in Spalding.

The accident happened on Commercial Road, near to its junction with Albert Street, at about 1.40pm.

Police are not able to release details of injuries at this stage.

The incident has caused traffic to back-up with motorists stuck in queues.

We have already beaten last year’s fantastic effort towards the Rotary Christmas Shoebox Scheme.

Earlier this month, we asked you to fill up a shoebox with everyday essentials and little luxuries to bring Christmas joy to some of the poorest people in eastern Europe.

And after just a couple of weeks, we’ve had 50 boxes collected from our offices in The Crescent and yesterday editor Jeremy Ransome visited Spalding Academy, where he was delighted to receive 158 boxes.

All you need to do to help is pick up a flat pack shoebox from our office at Priory House, The Crescent, Spalding, and fill it with little items that most of us take for granted.

Shoeboxes go to children of all ages, teenagers and adults in countries such as Belarus, Ukraine, Romania, Bulgaria and Moldova.

Thanks to our generous readers and local schools, more than 200 shoeboxes were filled last year.

Rotary Club of South Holland president-elect David Spenceley has also delivered boxes to St John’s School and we have a new stack in our reception for our readers to fill.

There are three types of shoebox: items for young children; teenage items for boys and girls up to 18 years old; and household items for families and elderly people.

Items like a scarf, hat and gloves are perfect for each of the boxes.

Children love to receive toys, teddy bears and jigsaw puzzles, items for teenagers could include writing materials, toiletries and playing cards, while the household boxes could include items like antiseptic cream and bandages, candles, scissors and sewing kits. Please do not include perishable goods or food.

Only Rotary shoeboxes are accepted, not ordinary shoeboxes.

Boxes can be decorated, provided the top of the box, stating the type and its contents, is visible – wrapping the boxes is not allowed.

Please return filled boxes to us by midday on Monday, November 6 to meet the deadline for Christmas delivery. Please include a £2 donation taped to the top of the shoebox to offset transport costs.

This is your chance to put a smile on the faces of people who otherwise have little to celebrate.

A pervert who is serving an eight-year prison sentence for abusing a young girl failed in a Court of Appeal bid to clear his name yesterday (Wednesday).

Dean Edwards (44) was accused of subjecting the youngster to a string of serious sex attacks, blighting her young life.

However, he denied any wrongdoing, claiming he was the victim of “malicious lies” in court.

The deviant was convicted of found guilty of seven counts of sexually assaulting a child aged under 13 at Peterborough Crown Court and jailed for eight years in February last year.

Yesterday, his case reached the Court of Appeal, where his lawyers suggested his case could be a “gross injustice”.

But the appeal was rejected when Lord Justice McCombe said Edwards had no grounds for arguing that the guilty verdicts were wrong.

And the eight-year sentence he received was justified for offending which had seriously affected his young victim.

The London court heard the offences came to light when the girl told a friend at school.

Police were called by school staff and she gave a harrowing account of attacks by Edwards, of Long Lane, Gedney Hill.

He was arrested the same day and denied all the offences.

On Wednesday, his barrister Roger Harrison argued before appeal judges that his convictions were unsafe, citing a series of complaints about the trial.

Medical evidence had been unavailable, the judge had not properly explained matters to the jury, and police interviews of the victim breached guidelines, he said.

The jury could also have been swayed against Edwards when a “hostile” witness “blurted out” inadmissible evidence during the trial, he claimed.

But Lord Justice McCombe said none of Edwards’ grounds of appeal stood any chance of overturning his convictions.

“We consider that the judge did all that was necessary, in a lengthy case with many issues, to put before the jury the salient matters,” he said.

“Having studied the materials, the judge can be seen to have conducted the trial entirely fairly.”

Rejecting a challenge to Edwards’ sentence, Mr Justice Stewart-Smith, sitting today with Lord Justice McCombe and Mr Justice Lewis, said it was fair.

The abuse had had a traumatic effect on the victim, who was not even 13 when the attacks happened, he told the court.

“A sentence of eight years was a substantial one, but cannot be described as manifestly excessive,” he said.

Landlords are being urged to be aware of new energy efficiency laws which are coming into effect next year.

From April private non-domestic (and domestic) landlords must ensure that properties they rent reach at least an Energy Performance Certificate rating of E before granting a tenancy to new or existing tenants.

From this date it will become unlawful to arrange new lets and lease renewals for energy inefficient properties; from April 2020 the Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards will also apply to existing tenancies.

For most landlords this will mean that they will no longer be able to rent out a property with a rating of F or G, so they should begin preparing now.

Commercial landlords in need of support concerning the regulations can contact South Holland District Council’s Building Consultancy on 01775 764616 or by emailing rwilliams@sholland.gov.uk Landlords of residential properties should contact South Holland District Council’s Housing Team on 01775 761161.

Plans are afoot to create a new school on the site of the former Post 16 Centre in Spalding.

Springwell Academy Spalding would cater for 63 “challenging or vulnerable children and young people who are not in school for a variety of reasons”.

If planning permission is granted, the Academy will open in May 2018, with students aged from five- to 16-years-old studying the normal curriculums.

The students would include those who are unable to remain in mainstream education and those who are at risk of not being able to stay.

The ‘Alternative Provision Free School’ would be part of one large 250-pupil academy which would also have sites in Mablethorpe, Grantham and Lincoln, all opening in January 2019.

The new school would be based at a refurbished Post-16 Centre in Matmore Gate.

Springwell comes under the umbrella of the Wellspring Academy Trust, which already runs 15 academies in northern England.

Wellspring regional projects officer Adam McDermott said there will not be a lot of work required to make the Spalding site fit for purpose.

Springwell says it will offer “a caring, nurturing and developmental environment for young people who are unable to remain in mainstream education”.

They say they are determined that, after receiving support at the academy, students will move on to their next destination having felt known, valued, understood and educated.

Springwell is holding a public consultation from October 27 until December 15 before applying for planning permission.

Open evenings, where the public can find out more information about the planned academy, are in Sleaford on Wednesday, November 8 and Mablethorpe on Wednesday, November 15, both from 5pm to 7pm.

The Sleaford event is at the council offices in Eastgate (NG347EB) and the Mablethorpe one at Springwell’s offices in Seaholme Road (LN122DF).

There is no event in Spalding, with Springwell saying Sleaford was central for the non-Mablethorpe sites, but you can also email Springwell at info@wellspringacademies.org.uk and let them know what you think or you can complete on online questionnaire at www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/XRZJDQ3

• What do you think? Email jeremy.ransome@iliffepublishing.co.uk

Previously...

Post-16 centre officially open in Spalding

Spalding Academy to launch A-levels while Post 16 Centre could face the axe

The benefits switch to universal credit has impacted on claimant figures that previously counted only jobless people claiming jobseeker’s allowance.

South Holland’s claimant total for September was up by 45 to 650 compared to September 2016, while the count for Spalding was up by 60 to 640.

Stuart Roberts, from Boston Jobcentre, says the switch to the new benefit means the Jobcentre is actually helping more people.

He said nationally, the latest figures show 317,000 more people are in work, again compared to September last year, and the national employment rate of 75.1 per cent – with more than 32million people in work – is the lowest since 1975.

Mr Roberts said training is being offered locally for SIA (Security Industry Authority) licences through the Jobcentre and soon there will be an HGV course for aspiring lorry drivers to take up.

Workshops are also held to help people with writing their CVs.

He said there are job opportunities with companies like Bakkavor and more jobs are coming on stream in the run-up to Christmas.

“We are looking to support national and local employers with their seasonal recruitment so you can imagine how busy that’s going to be,” he said.

From our website today ...

New school is planned for Spalding’s former Post-16 Centre site

Fly tipping in Deeping St Nicholas

Mini-digger stolen from Sutton St James

The family of 67 year-old Guy Salmon, who died in a collision on the A15 at Rippingale on October 11 have issued a tribute.

The tribute read: “Guy was born in Germany but spent his childhood in Loughborough before moving to the North-East.

Whilst living there he trained to become a teacher and was hugely involved in the local scouts groups.

It was during this time that he would meet and marry his wife Sarah. Sarah and Guy had three daughters; Laura, Amy and Bronwen.

In 1987 the family moved to Bourne and Guy started teaching at St George’s Primary School, in Stamford.

He would teach there, teaching mainly Year 6, for over 20 years. Guy immensely enjoyed his time teaching there.

He genuinely loved helping children grasp new ideas and learn new things and he made some fantastic friends in the colleagues he worked with. Guy retired from teaching in 2008 but he still had a very busy life.

Guy was hugely involved in Sleaford New Life Church where he worked as a visitation pastor, giving encouragement and providing company to those who were unwell or in need of a friend.

He was also ordained in 2012 in the order of St Leonard.

Guy and Sarah moved to Northorpe in 2005, where Guy served on the Thurlby Parish Council for a number of years. He and Sarah also attended the weekly communion service at St Firmin’s Church in Thurlby.

In recent years, Guy volunteered at Nene Valley Railway helping in their catering and education section.

He often spoke of the joy of being able to impart his extensive knowledge to children on all things regarding trains, a life-long passion of his, along with cars and motorbikes.

Guy also had two grandchildren, Luca and and Alba, who kept him very busy too.

Guy was very much a family man with a great sense of humour and he will be greatly missed.”

Residents are being asked to keep an eye out for a vehicle which may have been used by hare coursers this morning (Thursday October 19).

The Lincs rural crime team would like to trace a green Suzuki Vitara V410HDW, which was spotted in Holbeach St Johns.

Reports of hare coursing have also been received in Quadring, Spalding, Long Sutton and Moulton Seas End, the Operation Galileo team has reported.

If you see hare coursing taking place, dial 999. If you have heard reports, call the police on the non-emergency number, 101.

Spalding-based health and wellbeing charity Tonic Health has been handed a cash boost to expand both its dementia and mental health services.

Funded through the NHS Managed Care Network, Tonic Health was successful with both projects, receiving almost £45,000.

The first project builds on two years of dementia service delivery from Tonic Health and further expands the services the charity is able to offer.

The popular weekly Dementia Café, Movement 4Memory, will continue to run every Wednesday from 1.30pm to 3.30pm and will offer gentle exercise, stimulating activities and refreshments and is available to people with dementia and their carer/family members.

The FOCUS project, which runs on a fortnightly basis on Tuesdays, from 10am to 4pm, is for people with early onset dementia or those who have recently been diagnosed – and this project is just for this person – allowing the carer some valuable time off.

The group has been full, with a waiting list, for some time, but this funding has given Tonic Health the opportunity to form a second group which will run alternate Tuesdays to the first group.

The funding will also pay for Joy Hallam to become the Tonic Health dementia care in Spalding project co-ordinator.

One of her tasks will be to work towards Spalding becoming a dementia friendly town, like local neighbours Bourne.

The second project to be funded is the Safe Places Mental Health initiative. Having started just one year ago, the project has grown from strength to strength and surpassed the funding targets set at inception by almost 300 per cent.

The Tuesday afternoon group will continue to meet from 4.30pm to 6pm, and the business awareness training sessions in mental health and suicide awareness will also continue to run throughout the year.

An addition to these initiatives is the one-to-one peer support sessions which will allow people to book an appointment and speak to a person on a one-to-one basis who has experience of living with a mental health condition.

This is not a replacement for NHS front line services but an additional support network for those who need some advice/guidance/someone to speak to, which they can access within a couple of days of getting in touch, rather than a long waiting list.

There is a team of peer support workers who will deliver this service, allowing people to chose which one they feel would be more appropriate for their situation.

To register your place on any of the above projects, or to find out more, call Tonic Health on 01775 725059 or visit www.tonic-health.co.uk

Traffic is at a standstill on the A17 near Sutton Bridge following an accident.

Emergency vehicles are at the scene. which is betweeen Cross Keys Bridge and the Norfolk border.

Drivers are advised to avoid the area if possible.

More details to follow...

Police are appealing for witnesses to an assault in Deeping St James yesterday afternoon (Wednesday October 18).

The attack took place in Laxton Close, just before 4pm.

The offender was a large, bald white male with stubble, 30-40 years old, wearing a dirty grey tracksuit.

The man and accomplice left in a white Transit-type van with a roof rack which had a plumbing pipe carrier attached.

If you have any information or to report suspicious activity in the area, contact Lincolnshire Police on 101 quoting incident no 332 of 18/10/17 or contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.