Open day at Riverside

The Pershore Riverside Youth Centre is holding an open day on Saturday 12th January to celebrate it’s re-opening after the floods.

Everyone is welcome from 10am to 4pm to find out more about what’s on offer at the Riverside, with tours of the centre and car washing.

It will be a great opportunity to see what activities are on offer for young people such as Kayaking, canoeing and bell boating; music, dance, arts and drama programmes; pool, tabletennis and football. Even IT facilities and game consoles.

John Gregson, Centre Development Manager said “New members are always welcome at the Riverside and the open day is an opportunity for people to come down and see what’s on offer.”

During the floods water reached desk height in the building and some of the outside facilities including the pontoon were damaged. But the flood provided the opportunity for a complete refurbishment and the purchase of new equipment, including the latest IT facilities.

The Centre is now fully operational and has started a new youth club for young people aged between 9 and 13 meeting fortnightly on Monday evenings 6.30-8.00pm, at a cost of £1 per session.

For further information contact John Gregson, the Centre Development Manager on 02386 554713 or email john.gregson@pershoreyouth.org.uk

Wychavon has Grand Designs

Winners of Wychavon Building Design Awards 2007 were presented with plaques and certificates at an Awards Ceremony on Thursday evening, Dec 13th.

The awards recognise achievements in building design across three categories, Heritage (conservation projects) Homes and Community and reward high standards of design, sustainable construction and craftsmanship of projects within the Wychavon area and completed over the past two years.

Distinction in Building Awards were presented to:

• Judy Gardner of Eckington, for the restoration of Lower End House and the creation of the Eckington Cookery School.
• David and Emma Pearson for the design of Applewood, a contemporary new home at Kemerton in the Cotwolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty
• Throckmorton Village Trust for the development of the Throckmorton Parish Hall.

The Building Design Awards were presented by the Chairman of the Council, Councillor Don Lawley, who commented, “This is the sixth year we have made these Awards and this year we received the highest number of nominations ever. A total of 14 projects were shortlisted and the judges had a tough time choosing the winners. The benchmark for building design has certainly risen, and these projects must rank amongst the very best in the area and set the standards for others to follow.”

For more information and contact details of individual award winners contact Jim Burgin, Heritage Manager at 01386 565366

New Vehicle Licensing Rules

From 28th January 2008, private hire vehicles with less than nine seats will need to be licensed – including those that were previously exempted.. The new licensing rules mean that as well as issuing licences for vehicles and drivers, officers from Wychavon will be able to carry out safety checks on vehicles and suitability checks on their drivers.

Graham Simms, Licensing Team Leader said “This new law will mean that residents are safer than ever when they get into a hired vehicle and we’ll be working hard to make sure businesses are aware of how the new law will affect them.”

This new law means that previously exempt private hire vehicles, such as limousine hire, airport travel, chauffeur services, novelty vehicles and executive hire arrangements, and their drivers, will now be subject to the same safety and checking requirements as all other commercial private hire vehicles.

Whilst the changes in the law will not affect most car sharing schemes, Wychavon’s Licensing Team is encouraging anyone who is not certain of their position to contact them for further information.

Businesses and drivers who work whilst they are not properly licensed risk significant fines – applications for vehicle and driver licences should be made before the 28th.January.

More information is available from Wychavon District Council’s Licensing Service on 01386 565016 or by emailing licensing@wychavon.gov.uk