FARMERS in Swindon are fearing an impending crisis after the wettest June for a century. The town, along with most of England and Wales, has been hit by regular downpours in the dampest period on record. The rain has wreaked havoc on crops, caused issues
SWINDON Council is working on costed plans to completely refurbish the exterior of the troubled Mechanics’ Institute in a bid to help find a sustainable use for the icon. The council hopes the work, estimated at £7m to £10m, will not only save
AS SWINDON Dance’s Vicki Bailey performs a series of perfectly-executed spins, I realise I’ve got a mountain to climb. I’m struggling to remember the moves amid a litany of miscues and a mambo which looks like I’m trudging into a second-hand car dealership
A PENSIONER has been trying to clean up his local community by going out on regular litter picks in Liden. Car tyres, plastic bottles and bags full of dog mess have been among the rubbish found by 76-year-old Brian Cavill. Brian, of Ridge Nether Moor
AN IMPRESSIVE response to a town plan survey for Cricklade has allowed residents to voice their opinions on traffic, crime, tourism and housing. More than 700 individuals and businesses filled out the questionnaire, which was created by local residents
A NEW app is to be launched at the Big Arts Day,thanks to digital media centre Create Studios. Young people under 25 can download the free Cultural Passport app and, as they attend arts events and gain points, they can become a different Culture
A MUM has told how she and her young son escaped from a crash that left her car a burnt-out wreck at an accident blackspot. Ellie Tanner was with four-year-old William when her vehicle collided with another about a mile south of the Science
A MAN has been taken to hospital following a light aircraft crash at Kemble Airfield. Emergency services were called to the scene at approximately 2.50pm this afternoon. Fire crews from Cirencester and Tetbury attended the scene as well as paramedics
A MAN who attacked a young woman in a residenital street in broad daylight is being sought by police. Officers were called to Kimmeridge Close at about 11.40am on Wednesday 4 July. The victim was left shaken by the assault and with a small cut to the
I am 82 years young and a disabled driver and I applied for a disabled car but was informed that to qualify I should have done so before I was 65 years of age. I was not disabled at 65 – in fact I was still grafting for Thamesdown Borough Council, now
AN employee of Royal Mail has been attacked by a dog while out on a delivery in Malmesbury. The incident happened last Friday, when the employee, who works out of the Royal Wootton Bassett delivery office, was out on a delivery. The police were informed
ANNE Dunham admits her first-ever failure to make a Paralympic dressage team came as "a surprise", but has backed the Great Britain team to maintain their unbeaten Games record at London 2012. The five-time Paralympic gold medallist was yesterday
The Swindon Guide Dogs branch is looking for brave volunteers to take part in an abseil at the County Ground later this year. The event will be held on October 7. For more information call Alan Fletcher on 01793 827589 or Rachael Lee on 01793 828126
Bas Jones, the trustee chairman of Stop Harming Our Children, is selling his photographs of Coate Water to raise money for the Swindon charity. SHOC seeks to draw attention to the hazards confronting children caused by modern lifestyles, such as dangerous
ARMY officials delivered a presentation and answered some tough questions at a mosque and Islamic community centre, in Gorse Hill, recently. The Army Engagement Team, from Sandhurst, visited the Al Habib Islamic Centre, in Chapel Street, in order to
STRATEGIC plans to extract millions of tonnes of gravel and sand from sites in Cricklade have been approved by Wiltshire Council’s full council. Swindon and Wiltshire Councils’ cabinets have approved the blueprint to guide the use of land within the
The countdown is almost over, and in 17 days the London 2012 Olympic Games will officially open. We want to hear from anyone who has tickets to the sporting events that will take place in the weeks that follow, whether they are for the Olympic or Paralympic
THE Museum of Computing has achieved full accreditation from the Arts Council England. ACE’s Museum Accreditation Scheme sets nationally agreed standards for all UK museums. To meet the requirements, the museum had to demonstrate that it complies with
LAST week’s rained-off British semi-finals at Sheffield and Rye House will not be re-staged. With the current weather conditions still unstable and under three weeks remaining before the British Final on July 30, organisers will instead seed
THE founders of Help for Heroes said every penny raised for the charity was desperately needed as they attended a fundraising ball in Swindon. Bryn and Emma Parry were among the guests at the event, held at the De Vere Village hotel in Shaw Ridge on
SCHOOLCHILDREN helped to bury a piece of history to mark their school’s first birthday. Pupils from East Wichel Primary School, at Wichelstowe, were at the Baybury Pub yesterday to place a time capsule in the grounds which they hope will be dug up in
The councillors for Gorse Hill and Pinehurst have revealed the dates for their surgeries for the next three months. Couns Rochelle Russell, John Ballman and Ray Ballman, will be at Pinetrees Community Centre, off The Circle, from 4pm to 5.30pm, then
PURTON-based events company Planet Pursuits has just released its first global-based App. iTreasure is a mobile phone application that allows users to create a treasure hunt using an iPhone and then invite friends to join and play. The company’s research
Anti-social behaviour made for the bulk of crime reported across central Swindon in May. Figures collected by the Home Office showed a drop of 68 offences on the month before. In total there were 693 crimes in an area stretching from Lawns Park in
A CONTROVERSIAL plan to store spent Tarmac planings at an existing highways maintenance depot, in Blunsdon, will be decided by Swindon Council’s planning committee today. Gibbs Surfacing Ltd wants to use part of the land, off Turnpike Road, to store
TWINS may be known to run in families, but Pinehurst Netball Club have found they also run in teams after four sets were born in just one year. Goalkeeper Eleanor Williams, goalkeeper and goal defence Charlotte Sunderland, and centre Hayley Reeve, have
A VIBRANT piece of art used for the Royal International Air Tattoo’s official branding has been signed by almost 300 pilots, aircrew and VIPs. The poster, by Swindon artist Dave Bent, will be auctioned for the RAF’s Charitable Trust Enterprise at next
A HOLOCAUST survivor relived his harrowing experiences with a group of school pupils yesterday. Year 10 pupils from The Commonweal School were given a talk by Professor Ladislaus Löb as part of a visit organised by the Holocaust Educational
MINI plant workers in Swindon could soon produce up to four more models of the popular car thanks to a share of a £250m investment. BMW Group yesterday announced the cash injection for its UK Mini manufacturing operations by the end of 2015, including
A ‘BAD boy’ dog lover who was flown to Australia to take part in a BBC programme had been selling heroin on the streets just weeks earlier. Mishak Guichard-Foster was himself addicted to the drug when he was taken Down Under for an episode of BBC3 show
A MAN has been arrested after police found about £160,000 worth of cannabis plants in a town centre home. Officers swooped on the terraced property, in Durham Street, close to Queens Park, on Sunday night after a tip-off from the community. About 400
AS the Government seeks to cut 20,000 Army jobs by 2020, the Territorial Army is seeking volunteer recruits in Swindon and Wiltshire. Last week, defence secretary, Philip Hammond, announced cuts which will see 17 Army units disbanded across the country
THERE have been calls for action after yet another lorry struck the railway bridge on Wootton Bassett Road at Mannington. Police closed the road in both directions for at least two hours yesterday after an artic carrying a cherrypicker hit the structure
A TRUSTEE at a Swindon homeless charity is facing calls to quit after calling one of its members a “pompous arse” in an email. David Price accidentally copied in Chris Page to a message intended for fellow members of Threshold Housing Link’s board.
SIMON Ferry has revealed how Swindon Town’s players are beating the boredom during the long breaks between training sessions out in Italy – Football Manager. Town’s players are restricted to their rooms between lunch, at 12.45pm, and their evening training
I’VE spent a week watching the day-to-day happenings at Town’s base on the banks of Lake Garda and I thought now would be an apt time to give my take on what’s been going on out here. Watching training sessions on a daily basis has been eye-opening
DESPITE a stint wearing the skipper’s armband recently, Simon Ferry has concluded that it will take something and someone special to steal the captaincy from Paul Caddis any time soon. Ferry, who took on the role for the second half of Swindon’s 9-1
THE continued commitment of Swindon Town’s players under the fierce Lake Garda sun was the perfect present for Paolo Di Canio on the occasion of his 44th birthday yesterday. For the Italian it was an emotionally charged day, his first birthday since
KEELEIGH Chapman missed out on a medal by just half a second at the English Schools’ Track & Field Championships at the weekend. Competing in the inter girls category in the rarely-run 300m hurdles at Gateshead, the 15-year-old stormed into the final
SWINDON speedway team manager Alun Rossiter got back on the bike on Sunday as the third round of the British Dirt Track Championships arrived at the Abbey Stadium. Rossiter’s return to the Blunsdon shale was part of an action-packed programme of 50 races
PAOLO Di Canio will sit down with Swindon Town’s hierarchy at the club’s training camp on the banks of Lake Garda today to discuss their plans for the remainder of the summer. Interim chairman Jeremy Wray and Di Canio’s agent Phil Spencer were set to
Well done to Tomi Fry, who has now completed his filming with John Hannah & Rupert Everett. Tomi, aged 9 of Abbey Meads in Swindon has been filming for a new two-part mini series THE OTHER WIFE. Tomi plays the character Jared, the son of John Hannah’s
