FORMER councillor Andy Harrison has been cleared of the allegations that he advised a resident to break the law to deal with anti-social behaviour from youngsters in Penhill. Andy Harrison, who was a Lib Dem member for Penhill at the time, was
HUNDREDS of pupils missed classes at Swindon schools and academies over the last academic year – including more than 90 who failed to show up for three weeks. A total of 310 pupils were registered by the council as Children Missing Education (CME
SWINDON Council has established a cross-party review into the troubled firm Digital City UK, which failed to roll out wi-fi internet access across Swindon. The council invested about £400,000 in the firm, which was headed by businessman Rikki Hunt
SEAN Hughes brings one of his funniest and most poignant shows to the Arts Centre in Swindon tomorrow. Called Life Becomes Noises, it focuses on the death of Sean’s father and its aftermath, and is billed as an insight into the lighter side of dying
STUDENTS with severe learning difficulties will be gaining hands-on experience in the workplace after a charity shop opened its doors yesterday. All 120 pupils at Uplands School, who suffer from severe or profound and multiple learning difficulties,
IN TWO weeks or less, a couple of friends from Swindon are to launch what they describe as a virtual car boot sale. Ashley Clack and Peter Kidd, who already run a Facebook group called For Sale: Free And Wanted In Swindon, are setting up www.forsalefreeandwanted.co.uk
Swindon Children’s Scrapstore is holding a charity craft fair today at its building in West Swindon from 10am to 4pm. The group has more than 40 stalls booked selling all kinds of products such as Christmas hampers, cupcakes, flowers, wedding stationery
The British Red Cross is asking people aged between 15 and 25 in Wiltshire to come up with creative ideas for fundraising projects that could turn £100 into hundreds more for the humanitarian charity. The ‘Hundred 2 Hundreds’ challenge invites young
SAINSBURY’S supermarket in Royal Wootton Bassett is giving customers the chance to help create a wall of messages in support of British Armed Forces, past and present, and their families, in the run up to Remembrance Day. The store, situated in Borough
TALENTED youngsters from Swindon’s oldest performing arts school are currently rehearsing for an extravaganza of song and dance. Tanwood Performing Arts will present the Best Of British, featuring more than 200 students from the school, plus England
COUNCILLORS for Walcot and Park North say they have secured major road repairs to two potholed roads in their ward. The councillors, who are all Labour, have allocated funds for the repair of Eastern Avenue and Frobisher Drive after running a campaign
RANK-AND-FILE officers in Wiltshire are going to be offered the chance to vote in a ballot on whether police should be allowed go on strike. In a landmark decision the Police Federation of England and Wales announced this week it will ballot its members
SHOPPERS got a surprise on Saturday when a flash mob from Swindon Youth Theatre turned up. Youngsters from the Wyvern Theatre-based SYT broke away from the crowds in the town centre to stage a two-minute flash mob. They performed to contemporary music
Wiltshire Police are warning the public after an increase in burglaries in North Swindon, mainly in the Abbey Meads, St Andrews Ridge and Greenmeadow areas. Police say there are simple measures you can put in place to reduce the chance of becoming a
Wiltshire Fire and Rescue has issued a warning after a homeowner left a grill pan unattended, setting off the fire alarm. The incident happened at the end of last week when a fire crew from Westlea attended the house in Shelfinch, west Swindon and checked
HAYDON Wick Parish Council’s plans to simplify part of its boundary has been rejected by a cross party group at Swindon Council. The council is conducting a review of parish boundaries and Haydon Wick Parish Council proposed to change some of its boundaries
AGE wasn’t going to stop fearless Bob Williams jumping out of a plane at the weekend. But the 83-year-old’s daredevil stunt was put on hold, thanks to the British weather. Snow fell across the town on Sunday morning, just hours before Bob, a former
: The For Sale, Free Or Wanted Swindon Facebook page will launch as its own new website this month to appeal to a wider user base, including those who do not use social media. Swindon-based Network Rail manager Ashley Clack has attracted 25,000 registered
THIS week is National Adoption week. As Councillor Bluh is away from the office for a few days, it is fitting that as Cabinet member for Children’s Services that I have an opportunity to encourage people to come forward as adopters. One of the
WILTSHIRE Police are investigating an unprovoked attack on a young man in Swindon which left him with serious injuries. The 23-year-old victime was walking alone up Victoria Road in the direction of Old Town at about 6.25am on Saturday when the
A SPOOKY night lies ahead for film fans in Cricklade on Tuesday. The latest in the Cricklade Cinema community screenings is the chilling ghost story The Woman In Black, which is based on the novel by Susan Hill, and also the successful stage play. The
SWINDON North MP Justin Tomlinson believes Nadine Dorries return to face her constituents will be much worse than anything she faces in the Australian jungle. Yesterday it was announced Ms Dorries, who is MP for Mid-Befordshire, will be appearing
The Christmas Care shelter for homeless and lonely people will run this year from noon on Christmas Eve to the morning of December 28 at Queen’s Drive Methodist Church. Volunteers are needed to help out with four-hour shifts, and meetings will be held
The Ridgeway Breast Care Support Group is to hold a Christmas Fair at the Ridgeway Hospital in Wroughton on Sunday, December 2. It is a self-funding support group for both men and women in Wiltshire, Oxfordshire, Gloucestershire and Berkshire, offering
POLICE are appealing for information after an indecent exposure in Swindon. The incident occurred on October 24 shortly after 8pm in the Ferndale Road area. A man exposed himself to a group of teenage girls before cycling away. The man is described
HILLIER Bereavement Care Service has said its most recent Remembrance and Thanksgiving Service was one of the most popular in its 16-year history. The service last month had one of the biggest attendances yet. A retiring collection brought in more than
TICKETS have gone on sale for the Kentwood Christmas Cracker and musical director Sheila Harrod is warning audiences to snap them up before they are all gone. The popular annual show, which takes place on November 25 at the Wyvern Theatre, always sells
A WHEELCHAIR-bound man is to face trial by judge and jury accused of raping a young girl and sexually abusing a boy. Steven Copestick, who is recovering from a brain tumour, is said to have committed the offences against the two children in the 1980s
Local beat officers will be holding a series of community meetings this week. North Swindon Neighbourhood officers will stage a community meeting on Thursday from 10am to 11am at Castle Eaton Village Hall, followed by two further meetings on Saturday
COMMUNITY groups and neighbourhoods are being invited to apply for a party fund to help the get into the festive spirit. As the Christmas party season approaches, The Co-operative Food is setting up a £10,000 party fund for 100 parties nationwide. Local
BUSHWACKERS is once again offering a reader and five friends the chance to meet an X Factor contestant tomorrow night. The club, which is being paid a visit by every X Factor contestant as they are voted off each Thursday until Christmas, is welcoming
TWO PUPILS from a town secondary school have been named in the list of finalists in a national search to find the country’s next top cooking talent. Zach Field and Phoebe Hillyard, from Nova Hreod School, have made it to the final of the Red Tractor
Police are investigating an arson attack at the entrance to an apartment block on Halloween. Firefighters and police officers were called to Aylesbury House in Aylesbury Street after the fire was spotted by a resident at about 7.15pm on October 31.
Thea Gilmore’s song London was used on BBC coverage of the London 2012 Olympics montage of team GB medal winners. The folk, jazz, rock and Americana songbird has also proved herself a champion - in her music. She is heading for Swindon’s Arts Centre
HAVING seen Chicago performed on the stage on numerous occassions (six to be exact, making this my seventh) I definitely knew what to expect as I took my seat in the auditorium. And as always, I was left enthralled by the performance - and more
EVERY weekday on the Adver's social networking site we run a lunchtime debate inviting readers to have their say on a chosen topic. Today's discussion off the back of the announcement that sitting MP Nadine Dorries is jetting off to the jungle
THERE were plenty of ‘oohs’ and ‘aahs’ when families descended on Ruskin Junior School for bonfire night festivities. More than 800 people from Ruskin, Beechcroft Infant School and the Stratton community enjoyed fireworks in the school field on
A RUSH to snap up Christmas presents online has led Royal Mail to open a dedicated parcel sorting centre in Swindon for the festive season. The popularity of websites such as Amazon and eBay has led to the town being chosen as the location for
A MOTORIST was taken to hospital after his car flipped on its roof following a collision with another vehicle in Haydon Wick. The male driver needed treatment for injuries not described as serious after his blue Ford Focus was left upturned in the road
A PETITION calling for justice for murdered Becky Godden-Edwards has gone live. The e-petition calls for the Home Office to carry out an urgent review of the application of Code C of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984. To add your signature
TV ANTIQUES experts Charles Hanson and Charlie Ross visited traders at a specialist emporium in Lechlade’s High street to film a show for BBC2. The pair went to Lechlade Antiques Arcade to pick up some items to go under the hammer as part of The Antiques
TWO boys aged just 11 and 12 have been forced to write grovelling apologies to another youngster they shot with a BB gun. A group of youths were reportedly firing at passers-by as well as other targets in broad daylight at St Marks Recreation Gorund
A NEWSAGENT has warned her shop is being hit by illicit tobacco sales in Swindon, which are being made worse by constant Government tax hikes. Rosemary Earle, the co-owner of MI Earle in Newport Street, Old Town, also believes a proposal to introduce
A GIRL accused of being the ringleader of a gang which carried out a violent Halloween robbery on four teenage boys has appeared in court. The teenager, who sat next to her mother, allegedly brandished a knife during the attack on October 31 and
X Factor sensation Jahmene Douglas has already won the votes of JLS, Nicole Scherzinger and Yoko Ono – in words of praise, at least. Now the 21-year-old’s former colleagues at Asda will give his prospects a big push this weekend after the supermarket
A MASKED raider who confronted a 72-year-old as he slept in the dead of night after breaking into the caravan he lived in, has been jailed for 16 months. But Sean Drayton won’t have to serve an extra day behind bars because he is currently serving
A GRANDMOTHER suffered a heart attack in Swindon town centre when a dog seized her puppy in its jaws while she was holding it in her arms. Christine Kowalkowski-Cowling was holding the three-month-old Yorkshire terrier, called Pippa, when a pitbull-type
SWINDON Town ground out a gritty point with League One’s new leaders on a physical night at the County Ground. Sheffield United came to Wiltshire boasting an unbeaten record and the Blades used all their bulk and muscle to protect it. In contrast
SWINDON Town chairman Sir William Patey has revealed the club could bring in new faces on loan as soon as this weekend, after announcing the Robins have emerged from embargo. Majority shareholder Andrew Black has pumped in the equity necessary
SWINDON defied yet another sluggish start to snatch a 23-22 victory at home to Witney on Saturday with a last-gasp penalty from Adam Westall. The Greenbridge Road side have made a habit of offering their opposition a head start in recent weeks,
Walcot’S young boxers endured a night they would rather forget when they attended Far Cotton’s boxing event in Northampton last Friday, writes Dave Veysey. Delays due to heavy traffic meant the 65-mile journey took two and a half hours, then the
SUPERMARINE boss Dave Webb will take nothing for granted when they host basement boys Yate this evening - insisting they occupy a false position at the foot of the table. The Gloucestershire side have only won once in Division One South and
