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Your VPRA at work reports for September 2008 

Link to object to Kube2 Millbank Lane/Martinet Road. Click Here Objections close 7th October. Please make your feelings known and tell the Inspectorate your views.

24.09.2008 Tristar

VPRA contacted by Tristar Homes to be made aware that as part of their customer service week  2008 the team from the housing office along with other tristar representatives will be making improvements to the planted areas and generally tidying up the surrounding areas of the bungalows
on the Holmes and Middlefield estates.  The invitation to work with the residents and Tristar is open
to residents throughout the area

23.09.2008 Town Council

VPRA reps present at Town Council Environment Committee to discuss Thornaby Show. Anyone wishing to be involved in next years show are invited to the first meeting 13th Nov. at 2pm in the Town Hall. Show date is September 6th 2009.

21.09.2008 Green Thumbs Awards

Green Thumbs award finalists began to get their invites to the presentation night 30/09/2008.All finalists will get their hand delivered notification during this week.

20.09.2008  Community Barge

Today was the last trip in a series of VPRA hired excursions on the Angus Ferguson. The 31/2 hour trip was from Castlegate Quay up river to Preston Park. A half hour fishing instruction session then back down river to Castlegate Quay.

Click here for full slide show from today, up river then back again.  

19.09.2008 Park Update

VPRA reps met with Tony Raine from SBC Parks and Countryside to have talks about the redevelopment in the Village Park. It is hoped the Mugga will be in place by the end of this year followed by the relaying of paths and the new Trim Trail in 2009

19.09.2008 Further Football Update

Contact with the secretary from the Langbaurgh League assures that any of their league teams using the park will abide by a strict code of conduct to ensure common decency is maintained in the park at all times.

18.09.2008 Damage to Wall Richardson Road

VPRA contacted by residents in Richardson Road, concerning the the damage caused  to the wall in the Richardson Road area by a careless JT Dove driver in July this year. According to residents Tristar Homes bricklayers were on site all day yesterday repairing the damage and tidying the scene up. This follows the VPRA and local residents contacting Tristar just after the incident took place and providing details of the vehicle involved. As a result, the cost of this job was carried by the firm responsible for the driver. Well done residents and Tristar for making the company respect

16.09.2008 Football Teams  in Park Update

Dear Sir,
I refer to your attached e-mail and apologise for the delay in responding but holidays and other pressing admin. responsibilities have overtaken me.
The Association certainly shares your views on this unacceptable behaviour by teams using Village Park and, in order to try and assist in eradicating it, I have contacted the Secretaries of the Leagues in which the offending teams compete (i.e. Langbaurgh Sunday & Stockton Sunday Leagues) and requested that they make contact with and issue warnings to them.
I can also assure you that if the Association receives a specific report (i.e. from a match official) regarding inappropriate behaviour by an individual player/club official then disciplinary action will be taken against that player/official and their club.
I trust that the respective Leagues will now ensure that their member clubs behave in a more appropriate manner when playing in Village Park. If, however, this does not prove to be the case and your organisation encounters any further problems then please do not hesitate to contact me again.
Regards,
Tom Radigan
Chief Executive
North Riding County Football Association Limited.

Mail below from VPRA Chair to North Riding FA.

I am contacting you on behalf of the Village Park Residents Association Thornaby and a football fan at heart.
We are currently working on plans to put trim trails and new pathways in the Village Park Thornaby but have had residents who live alongside the park complaining about football teams and their behaviour which now looks like putting an end to our plans.
Over the past month there have been numerous complaints about teams(Sunday Teams)  not only leaving a lot of unwanted mess around the sidelines and changing rooms area, but worse than that are the complaints about players urinating at the pitch sides and along the fence around residents gardens.
This is also in full view of the children's play park This behaviour is unacceptable and some residents have asked that the police and council stop football in the park.
This is not something we are backing at the moment as it goes against the plans for more use of the park although I have been there for two games and witnessed and photographed the mess along also with the sight of grown men urinating before going on the pitch .
Through the NRFA could I ask that you contact teams to ask them to respect our park and leave it as they find it. It is litter picked by some of our residents on a regular basis but they will not clear up the Sunday
debris anymore. If the plastic bottles etc are left around the pitch when SBC come to cut the grass  they will either cut round it or cut through its and the shards will spread everywhere and then pose a H+S problem on the pitch.
As a word of warning to teams visiting the park, there is monitored CCTV which will be used by police and enforcement officers and they intend to prosecute offenders for littering and/or public decency.  This was the outcome of a meeting with residents and police with SBC today.
 

16.09.2008

VPRA Contacted by Mr Jamie McCann, head of Care For Your AREA to congratulate the group and all the residents who worked to bring about the "Outstanding" award from Britain in Bloom. Mr McCann also reaffirmed the strong working relationship between the VPRA and the CFYA team, without much of our good work would be virtually impossible.

WATCH THIS SPACE FOR NEWS OF THE 2008 BULB PLANTING DAY...

 

16.09.2008

VPRA contacted by Gregg Brown of Thrive concerning the visit to our town of the Minister for Welfare Reform Steven Timms MP. Gregg reports that the meeting heard some powerful stories from local people here in Thornaby and Stockton.  These stories are not isolated cases, but rather deliberately hand-picked from Thrive research as being representative of large groups of people, presently out of work,who face different barriers to employment and getting by.

14.09.2008 Motorbikes

VPRA rep witnessed and tried to stop youths riding motorbikes on the green. 3 youths on two bikes seen near St Peters Church, when challenged rode off up the green and Basselton Lane. Reported to the police along with the picture below.

13.09.2008 Battle Of Britain

VPRA rep attended the Thornaby Town Council Battle of Britain service at the Airman’s statue and then laying of crosses on the Servicemen’s graves at Thornaby Cemetery. Click here for full set of pictures

13.09.2008 VPRA Gardener

The early doors gardener was out first thing this morning making an emergency trip to tidy up the rose beds at the Airman Statue before today’s Battle of Britain Service.

13.09.2008 Traffic Calming

VPRA contacted by Mark Gillson of SBC Traffic Management to be told that following a successful drive by the VPRA to have an extra and final traffic hump placed in Laburnum Avenue, the locals have been contacted and told of plans to begin work in the area. This extra hump was sought for by residents living on and around the junction between Laburnum Ave and Park Road, due to a belief that the gap between existing humps was too great. Indeed, it was suggested that would be racers had been speeding up between the two humps. This extra hump had been made possible through VPRA involvement with the Eastern Area Transport Strategy Committee.  

12.09.2008 Healthy Eating

 VPRA contacted by our friends at Tristar Homes concerning the work of the North East Food Chain. Tristar Homes are working in partnership with the Newtown Community Centre and the North East Food Chain to provide local fresh fruit and vegetables straight from the farmers market direct to the  community centre's door.

This initiative has been running successfully since April 2007 and lots of regular customers young and older are ordering their fruit and vegetables in this way each week. This project was originally set up to promote healthy eating on a budget which in this day and age is a great help for those of us with lower incomes!

Customers can order bags of fruit, vegetable and salad for £2.80. The bag's contents are seasonal and so will vary from week to week.

If you want to volunteer to lead on this kind of healthy eating project where you live please contact Fiona McCulloch on 01642 527777.

11.09.2008 Tristar ROAP

Latest meeting of the Reaching Out Area Panels (ROAP), facilitated by Tristar Homes, took place tonight.
The meeting discussed a number of different small and large scale projects which could be finded by Tristar to the benefit of our area. These included further community gardens, security improvements for pensioners homes and a number of different measures to improve the area. The ROAP meetings see residents reps(from among Tristar Tenants) working to increase the level involvement in decision making and  discussing ways to improve services and the areas managed by Tristar.

More details will be made available as the minutes for these meetings are approved and "e" copies made available.

11.09.2008 Green Thumbs

Closing date for late entries for our green thumb awards is 20th September. If you think your garden or your friends and neighbours are worth an award then nominate them today by mail to Green Thumbs

09.09.2008 Northumbria in Bloom

Official press release from NIB published today, click here

Stockton Council Website listing for their awards. click here

08.09.2008 Northumbria In Bloom

VPRA(In Bloom) reps attended the Northumbria in Bloom awards ceremony in Gateshead today. A packed hall with officials, gardeners and civic dignitaries  from all over the region saw the Stockton Borough entries come away with 20 awards and several overall trophies.

The VPRA was awarded the Outstanding Achievement Award in the RHS Britain in Bloom Neighbourhood Awards category.

Well done to all concerned and lets hope to add a few more next year.                       

08.09.2008 Planning Apps

VPRA contacted Thornaby Town Council about 08/2713/FUL, and concerning the development planned for the "Rocket", situated to the rear of Thornaby Town Hall
(The development of student accommodation and bar)

07.09.2008 Battle of Britain  Saturday 13th Sept details are

Meet 11 am Airman's Statue, parade starts at 11.30 am from Martinet Road/opposite Odd Fellows pub Service at Airman's Statue 12 pm, followed by wreath and cross laying on war graves Thornaby Cemetery Then on to the Ex-Servicemen club for refreshments. Details courtesy Of Cllr. Geoff Green TTC.

05.09.2008   Kube 2 Ltd.

VPRA members received notification 05.09.2008 that Kube have appealed against the rejected plans by SBC.(Planning Report)

 Now is the time for residents to stand by the folk in Millbank Lane and object to the appeal. There is now the chance to comment online so support the residents of Millbank Lane and voice your opinions. Click Here

Volunteers from the Village Park Residents Association (VPRA) in Thornaby and the Estate Caretakers from Tristar Homes were up at the crack of dawn on Tuesday to retrieve the famous "Propeller of the Wapiti",which has been hung in Thornaby Library for more than forty years. The VPRA contacted Tristar Homes and asked if they could help the group remove this heavy piece of kit from the wall of the library. The rapidly advancing work on the town centre includes a whole new look for the library and this would involve a great deal of building work.

There was no way the Propeller, an heirloom of the Thornaby residents could be left on site.
 The propeller along with a commemorative plaque  was presented to his Worship the Mayor of Thornaby Coun.W.S. Wood by Officers and Cadets of the Thornaby Squadron of the Air Training Corps, in proud memory of No.608(North Riding of Yorkshire) Squadron Royal  Auxiliary Air Force, which had been formed at Thornaby 17^th march 1930.Thus, the VPRA  were asked to assist in facilitating the removal of the propeller to safe keeping in Thornaby Town Hall, they in turn sought the help of Tristar Homes and their Estate Caretakers.

As a result, volunteers from the VPRA and Tristar Homes Estate Caretakers, the Wapiti's propeller was removed and transported safely to Thornaby Town Hall, where it was received by Vice Chair of Thornaby Town Council Mr Geoff Green, who thanked all concerned for their efforts. The propeller will be stored here until it's inclusion in a proposed Thornaby heritage centre .

Photograph Tristar Homes Estate Caretakers are pictured handing the propeller of the Wapiti, to Geoff Green outside Thornaby Town Hall.

02.09.2008 Thornaby Library

The VPRA volunteers and Tristar Homes Estate Caretakers, are to remove the "Propellor of the Wapiti", from Thornaby Central Library, for safe keeping during the refurbishing of the building. The propeller, was presented to his Worship the Mayor of Thornaby Coun. W.S.Wood by Officers and Cadets of the Thornaby Squadron of the Air Training Corps.memory of No.608 (North Riding of Yorkshire) Squadron Royal Auxiliary Air Force "Formed at Thornaby 17^th March 1930". It will now be stored in Thornaby Town Hall, until it takes pride of place in the planned Heritage Centre.

01.09.2008 Northumbria In Bloom

VPRA invited to attend the Northumbria in Bloom awards ceremony in Gateshead next week. This follows on from the judges visit last week.

01/09/2008 Thornaby Police

VPRA contacted by Thornaby Police to help promote a new drive to try and stamp out motorcycles destroying the area. They will be providing digitised versions of a new poster detailing who to contact and leaflets to go out with the VPRA mail shot.

Neighbourhood Police

Phone 302930