News Archive Dec 2001

Are you 50 on Feb 6
HM the Queen ascended to the throne, February 6, 1952. People who are celebrating their 50th on that date and want to attend a party at Buckingham Palace have been invited to write to the office of the Lord Lieutenant of West Sussex at County Hall, Chichester, enclosing a copy of their birth certificate and giving details of the one guest aged over 18 they would like to take with them. By the way, you should also be British.
(Argus 24 Dec 01)

• The business park up near the A27 is out,
  
• Titnore Lane should not be made main traffic route,
  
• Castle Goring area should be protected,
  
• Only 700 houses to go into the West Durrington development,
  
• The Goring Gap should be preserved,
  
• Goring Hall Hospital is free to expand in their grounds
  

Staff Hols on the Seafront
Sea Lane Cafe is closed over Christmas. Baloos is meanwhile doing good business on Christmas lunches and dinners, and then is on holday 1-18 January.

A horse called Goring
Sentinel reeports in the Argus Worthing Supplement that just recently a horse called Boring-Goring romped home second at odds of 66-1.

Newhaven Channel ferry now OK
The car and passenger ferry is now passed as safe. Says the operator: "We shall be making two passenger and freight sailings a day, leaving Newhaven at 9am and 9pm Monday to Friday, and our popular Saturday sailing from Newhaven at 9am, returning to Newhaven at 11pm, which gives day-trippers six hours in Dieppe."

Green Worthing's bronze medal
Worthing has won the bronze medal in an international environmental competition in China. The town was represented by Mayor Valerie Sutton and two council officers on a three-day trip to the Nations in Bloom final in Shenzhen last week. Hywel Griffiths, director of community services, and parks manager Chris Bradley gave lectures on the greening of Worthing's boroughs to delegations from Equador, Australia, Sweden, the United States and Canada before being awarded a certificate. First prize went to Sweden. Mayor Valerie Sutton said that they came back with a number of very useful ideas to help enhance the environment in Worthing.
(Argus 12 Dec 01)

• He wanted a see-saw for his children
• He wanted to go the pretty way
• The map-reader said turn right, too late
• The backseat passenger said "right, no left, no right"
• The driver fell asleep
• If the earth didn't move for her, the car certainly did

 
A Bin Laden cage perhaps
This high wire netting cage is being constructed at the sports ground behind the Bull Inn. You and I know of course that it is for the new cricket nets. But such a height, and with the anti-climbing fringe at the top?

Ferring Seafront Flats update
Arun council have recommended the plans be rejected. The Planning Committee meet at 6pm 18 December at the Arun Civic Centre.

Plans to demolish six houses and build 30 flats have resulted in a six-inch pile of protest letters at Arun Council. Ferring Seafront Environment Association are co-ordinating objections. Local councils and groups, and the Environment Agency are also against the plans.
(Gazette 6 Dec 01)

South Downs National Park
A colourful consultation document has been distributed widely by the Countryside Agency. As expected the park boundary extends down to include Highdown, the land west of Titnopre Lane, and the fields to the A259. If you have not seen this, perhaps at the library, I have copies here, ring 01903-248782.

The Badtrans Virus hits Goring computers
The Badtrans computer virus has caused a lot of damage to local computers. We have warned of the need for you to install anti-virus software before. It seems many of my friends have not been listening or have not updated it at least once each week.
If you are using Outlook Express you should never have the messages come up on your display immediately - just show the heading line, and then you can delete anything without a proper title, or which has a To or From address which is nonsense. In View | Layout | make sure that Preview Pane is not on.

Local School Rankings
Three local schools took GCSE exams this year. They did not take AS exams. All three average about 1% pupils absent for half a day. Worthing has 12% pupils eligible with Special Edication Needs, Durrington has 21%, Chatsworth is not recorded.

Woman attacked in Aldsworth Avenue
An 55 year-old Iranian woman was attacked at 11.30pm on Thursday night 15 Oct at the sea end of Aldsworth Avenue. A man threw pepper into her eyes and stabbed her several times in the face. We understand that the woman has been working with psychopaths and the attacker may have been a contact with a grudge. The family have offered a£10,000 reward.
(West Sussex Gazette 22 Nov 01)

Warnes Hotel public inquiry
Plans to transform a 14-year-old seafront eyesore site in Worthing went under the spotlight for two days at a public inquiry. The inquiry was ordered after council planners rejected a Worthing firm Roffey Homes' bid to build a block of 72 luxury flats on the site. Critics have described the plans for an art deco-style building on the old Warnes Hotel site as "monstrous". Developers have also angered many by refusing to contribute to affordable social housing elsewhere in the borough.
(West Sussex Gazette 22 Nov 01)

Just like the Film 'Saving Grace'
Police confiscated more than 100 plants after a suspected cannabis nursery caught fire. Firefighters discovered the plants as they tackled a blaze in a loft in St Matthews Road, Worthing, last night. Elaborate lighting, heating and watering systems were also found and the fire is thought to have been caused by an electrical fault. An 18-year-old man was arrested at the scene and was today helping police with their inquiries.

 
Recycle your Christmas Tree on 12th Night
On the weekend of 12th Night 5-6 Jan 2002 there will be a scheme for shredding and recycling your discared Christmas Tree. Presumably this will be at the Dominion Road refuse site.

West Durrington deadline extended
You still have time to register your comments and objections to the development at West Durrington. There are three aspects to this: the business park at the A27 junction, the widening of Titnore Lane to allow more traffic, but also permitting higher speeds, and the 800 houses planned for a new road called The Avenue running from Titnore Lane eastwards. Richard Waller wearing, his Goring Gap Preservation Trust hat, was on Southern Counties Radio this morning (Thursday 15 Nov) to say that there were major objections to all three of these proposals.

Do you take your parrot for walks?
We see a lot of dogs going walkies. Quite a lot of horses too. Even a fox in the days of Eric Fossleitner, the Fox Man of Goring. But to see three parrots of different types, with their brilliant plummage being taken for a walk along the sea wall is quite unusual. Of course it had to be a walk when I had not got my camera.
(10 Nov 2001)

Big hearted Bond staff raise £7,165 for charity
Staff at Bond International Software have dug deep in their pockets and raised over £7,000 for charity over the past month. Staff at Bond's UK and US offices in Gopring and Richmond, Virginia, both held fundraising events for the American Red Cross September 11 relief effort. Between them they raised £5,793.
The UK staff also raised £112 for Great Ormond Street's Jeans for Genes Day by dressing down on October 5. They then put their best feet forward in a Stride for Life walk for the Imperial Cancer Research Fund on October 28th. The event, which involved a team of six staff walking part of the Southdown's Way at Eastbourne was headed by senior Bond receptionist Rachel Kassell and raised £1,260.