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FAMILY FUN
Nantwich community news and events
Aug/Sept 2017 Free
New fun zone unveiled for this year’s food festival THIS year’s Nantwich Food Festival will offer a new FunZone for families. Sponsorship by local law firm Hall Smith Whittingham has allowed organisers to create an exciting programme of activities for the anticipated 40,000 visitors between Sepember 1 and 3. The new marquee will host a range of exhibits and entertainment. Roger Mills, festival director, said: “Having another major local company provide valuable marquee space is a
huge boost for the festival. “Crewe and Nantwich businesses have shown amazing support again, and their backing allows us to improve the festival offering each year. “It’s a cliché to say that this year’s event will be the best yet, but we are all very excited and can’t wait to reveal some of the new attractions. “With a focus on children and families, the FunZone marquee will stage dance and circus workshops in conjunction with local
organisations.” Children can learn how to milk a cow and complete giant floor jigsaws that show where
farm produce comes from. KidzKitchen will introduce youngsters to delicious (cont. on p5)
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St Luke’s shop NANTWICH Mayor Penny Butterill officially opened a new charity shop for St Luke’s Hospice this month. The Nantwich Town Crier caught the attention of passers-by at the shop on Pepper Street in a successful first day of trading. Councillor Butterill said: “I have always been a great supporter of St Luke’s. “I am delighted they have regained a presence in the town and I am sure people will show their support to such a worthwhile cause.” Stocked with second hand goods, the store is urgently
appealing for more donations after a busy first few days. Sales manager Carole DeRosa said: “We’d like to thank the public for coming along and for donating items but we don’t want them to stop there, we are constantly in need of clothes, shoes, jewellery, books, bags and more. “People can pick up one of our new collection bags in store and return to any St Luke’s shop.” There are also a number of volunteering opportunities at the shop. For more details call 01606 555690.
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@wordsnmusicfest Eight week countdown to the tenth Words & Music Festival! Spread the word folks... #Nantwich #Livemusic #poetry @TheDabbers As a reminder, Nantwich are still trialling allowing plastic glasses outside so supporters can enjoy a drink while watching the match. @NantwichFB Fanatic competitors for triathlon, thanks 2 @CTC_ Healthcare for sponsorship +those who donated @NantwichPlayers Fancy an evening out in beautiful #Nantwich ? Tickets are on sale from @ NantwichCivic for our next play #TheGame
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Home sold A FORMER children’s home which lay derelict for years in Nantwich has now been sold. Cheshire East Council’s strategic property company Engine of the North, has finalised a deal to sell the former Redsands Children’s home in Willaston. Subject to planning, Richmond Care Villages will transform the site into a specialist centre of excellence in dementia care. The new facility will create 80 jobs and operate as a satellite campus to Richmond’s existing care village in Nantwich. Councillor Ainsley Arnold, said: “This is a welcome opportunity for a respected
care organisation to provide services to some of our most vulnerable residents.” Councillor Jamie Macrae, chairman of Engine of the North said: “We’re pleased to have exchanged contracts, for a development that will bring the site back into economic use and create new jobs locally.” A planning application for the new care facility has been submitted. Under the plans, Cheshire East would retain ownership of the land to the east of the former home, which includes a pond and football pitch. The existing public footpath which runs along the eastern boundary of the site will be maintained.
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NEWS 3
Picture perfect
By Jonathan White TALENTED local artist Christian Turner has captured Nantwich on canvas. Christian, aged 23, of Sandbach, has produced an oil painting of Nantwich Town Square, which is available to buy as a card. The card can be purchased from Nantwich Square News on High Street, Special Cards on Market Street and Inside Paradise on Oat Market. The young artist plans to produce more scenes of Nantwich before the end of
the year. Christian, who has autism, has also painted scenes within Sandbach, as well as birds, marine life and has started experimenting with geometric patterns. Christian has been drawing since he was a child and studied A-level Art at Sandbach School. He said: “I really enjoy my work and I hope other people will enjoy my work as I continue into the future.” For more details visit www. christianturnerart.com.
THE RSPCA is urging canal users to be aware of wildlife after a cygnet was caught in a propeller on a Nantwich canal. The injured and distressed cygnet was found by Richard Palmer with his skin ripped away on the top of his body, on the canal near to Barbridge Marina on August 2. Richard took him to the RSPCA’s Stapeley Grange Wildlife Centre. He was assessed by a vet but his injury was so serious that he was put to sleep to prevent further suffering. Centre manager Lee Stewart said: “It is likely that whoever hit the swan may have known that they had run over something and would have seen it – yet they still didn’t stop to look and help.
“This death could have been easily prevented if people paid attention to speed limits on the canal and slowed down. “Swans are agile birds and they would easily move out of the way of a boat in time. “Sadly this was not a happy ending, but at least the cygnet was not left to die in pain at the side of the canal.” Mr Palmer, who owns a boat, said: “The cygnet’s mum and dad swam away with his six siblings and I couldn’t leave him where he was. He was in no fit state. “I have seen a number of times over the years swans which have suffered as a result of getting caught in boat propellers. “People who hire boats do not necessarily realise how much force a boat can have.”
Warning after swan death
The beautiful game
NANTWICH Players are looking to bring the roar of the crowd to their next production at the Love Lane theatre. The Game, by Harold Brighouse, is all about football, with the action taking place on Saturday afternoon. Things haven’t been going too well for Blackton Rovers, who are threatened with relegation and bankruptcy. The club’s only decent player is an item with the chairman’s daughter, but the chairman has let him go on transfer to Blackton’s deadly rivals. However, if some of the plot has familiar echoes, this is Lancashire in 1913, and The Game is a comedy of soccer and sexual politics in the age of suffragettes when the Cup Final was still played at The Crystal Palace. The play’s director Jerry Park said: “This is a fast-
moving comedy from a time when stars of football were famous for footwork rather than pay packets and lifestyle. “Harold Brighouse was one of ‘the Manchester school’ of dramatists who were writing just before the First World War. “They set their plays in the north and prided themselves on the authenticity of their characters and language. “Brighouse is probably more famous for writing Hobson’s Choice, but in many ways The Game is a sharper, funnier play.” The cast of twelve includes two members who are making their debut with the Players. Performances will be at 7.45pm from September 8 to 16. For tickets to the drama, priced at £9, call 01270 600727.
Officers tackle car blaze
FIREFIGHTERS attended a car ablaze at the Cheerbrook roundabout last month. Officers wearing breathing apparatus used a hose reel to put out the fire at around 2.15pm on July 30. The crew made the scene safe before handing the incident over to the police.
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River tales
NEWS 5
NANTWICH Mayor Penny Butterill has opened a new exhibition at Nantwich Museum. River Weaver - A meander through time charts the story of the river and how it has shaped local history. Also attending were Cheshire East Mayor Arthur Moran, local MP Laura Smith and Nick Dyer, chair of the museum trustees. Mr Dyer said: “I am sure that Nantwich folk will be fascinated by the vital part that the River Weaver has played in moulding and influencing the history and present of our town - not to mention the tales of
drownings and other goings on”. Exhibition events have included talks and a family fun day, with a riverside walk and children’s workshops to follow. Running concurrently at the museum is Drawn from the Weaver, a visual exploration of the river by local artists Pamela Field, Pauline Leaver and Celia Rowlands.
THE 18th annual Audlem Festival of Transport proved a hit with petrol heads last month. The event included a parade of over 300 cars, commercial vehicles, tractors, bikes, scooters and motorcycles. The vehicles assembled at Hankelow Green and left for
Audlem Playing Field at 11am where they stayed on display. A Channel 4 TV crew was filming for Village of the Year to be broadcast later this year. The free event was run entirely by volunteers and attracted around 4,000 visitors. • Pic by Jonathan White
NANTWICH MP Laura Smith has spoken out about growing levels of debt in the UK. The Labour politican said: “The debt charity, StepChange, warns that people are getting into debt at a younger age and renters,
in particular, are under pressure. “Car loans, credit card balances and personal loans have risen by 10% but wages have only risen by 1.5%. “I am really concerned about where this will all end.”
(cont. from front) cookery ideas, while older children can test their BBQ skills with a burger cook-off run by Clewlow Butchers. There will also be old favourites such as hook-aduck, hula-hoop, hopscotch
and other traditional games. Angela Lewis, of Hall Smith Whittingham, said: “We are delighted to be teaming up with X Academy School of Performing Arts and other groups who will be running workshops in the marquee.”
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Festival milestone NANTWICH Words and Music Festival is marking its tenth year by launching a poetry anthology. The work will feature a collection of the poems submitted to the festival’s poetry competition over the last decade. Winning poets have the chance to win tickets to see Roger McGough performing at The Crown during the festival along with cash prizes. Poetry features heavily in this year’s event with poet laureate Carol Ann Duffy reading from her collection in Nantwich’s Players’ Theatre. The anthology’s editor, Philip Williams, a former winner of the competition, said: “It seems appropriate to mark the 10th anniversary with a published collection of winning poems. “The competition has attracted entries from all over the UK and judges have included leading poets such as
Simon Armitage, Kim Moore (pictured) and Elisabeth Sennett Clough. “It would be great to see them all within a single volume for a wider audience.” This year’s competition will be judged by former Cheshire Poet Laureate John Lindley. The week-long festival runs from October 9 and features live music from Tom Robinson and band, Mark Radcliffe’s Galleon Blast and alt-rockers THERAPY?. The competition closing date is September 4. For details visit www.wordsandmusic festival.com.
CHESHIRE East Council has sealed the formal adoption of its landmark Local Plan. A planning inspector last month gave the green light to Cheshire East’s blueprint for shaping development up to 2030. It follows three years of submissions and more than 60,000 comments during 11 rounds of public consultation. The inspector said the plan provides a five-year supply of housing land to meet projected need - key to supporting
the council’s case against unwanted housing proposals. Council leader Rachel Bailey said: “It has been a long and sometimes difficult journey but we understood the importance of getting this blueprint right.” Councillor Ainsley Arnold added: “Our Local Plan has been shown to be both comprehensive and robust and will give people the best protection against unplanned and unsustainable development.”
FIREFIGHTERS have rescued a man from an overturned lorry in Faddiley. The incident happened at around 7.45am on August 8 on Woodhey Hall Lane near Nantwich. Fire crews from Nantwich, Winsford and Crewe rescued the casualty from the top of the overturned goods vehicle. The casualty, who was the driver of the vehicle, was safely removed from the lorry on a spinal board using height safety lines and a ladder. The driver was then taken to hospital.
TWO fire engines attended the scene of a blaze at an address at Birchin Lane in Nantwich. Firefighters from Nantwich and Crewe were called out to the scene at 6.45pm on July 29. Officers found and an LPG cylinder was on fire in the front garden of the property. Firefighters, wearing breathing apparatus, used a hose reel jet to put out the fire and cool the cylinder down. The temperature was then monitored using a thermal imaging camera.
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Mission for Manchester
Local plan adopted
Man rescued Cylinder fire
MEMBERS of Crewe and Nantwich RUFC completed an 86-mile challenge this month to raise funds for the club and the ‘We Love Manchester’ fund. Some 13 players and coaches took on a cycle and walking mission that started in Carlisle and ended across the country at Heddon-on-thewall, near Newcastle. The challenge was completed inside 24-hours, with those taking part cycling, then walking, before returning to the bikes for the final miles. Club chairman Jon Cockburn said: “We have completed numerous challenges of over the years, including the Three
Peaks, Lyke Wake Walk, Coast-to-Coast and the Great Lakes. “This year’s route took us across country and onto Hadrian’s Wall, so there was history as well as fitness and fundraising involved. “The rugby club relies on donations and sponsorship, so the money we raise will help to upkeep vital facilities that all ages can use. “With the recent Manchester tragedy fresh in everyone’s mind, we will also be making a donation to the We Love Manchester fund.” Money is still being collected, but over £2700 has already been raised.
ANIMAL experts at Nantwich’s RSPCA wildlife centre have issued advice after admitting a record number of hedgehogs. Since the start of the year, 375 have came into the care of Stapeley Grange - an average of 12 a week. Lee Stewart, manager at the London Road centre, said: “Since we opened in 1994 we have seen a steady increase in the number of hedgehogs coming into our care. “This tells us that more people are looking out for wildlife, and we think that’s great. “However, we do get some hedgehogs brought into us which aren’t injured and don’t necessarily need bringing in.
“As a rule of thumb if you see a hedgehog out during the day then it’s likely there is something wrong, as hedgehogs are nocturnal creatures. “On occasions you may find an adult hedgehog out at dusk and dawn – this may be a restless female about to give birth or a female with hoglets searching for additional food. “But if they appear active and there is nothing obviously wrong – for example the hedgehog is injured, circling or staggering or in immediate danger – they should be left alone. “If in doubt though, seek advice from the RSPCA or your local wildlife rehabilitator.”
FOLLOWING a sell-out show earlier in the year, local band California Blue make a welcome return to Nantwich Civic Hall on Friday September 15. The band promises to take people back in time with a range of classic rock covers, including hits from the Beatles, Eagles, Elvis Presley,
Beach Boys, Roy Orbison and many more. Tickets for the event are £10. Doors open at 7.30pm, with the show starting at 8.30pm. Money raised will go towards the Mayor’s charities Leighton Hospital Prostate Cancer Support Group and Target Ovarian Cancer. For tickets call 628633.
Help for spiky friends
Charity concert at the Civic
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Dabbers grab their first point of the new season DABBERS boss Dave Cooke took positives from the side’s 1-1 draw with Altrincham. The draw was an improvement on Nantwich’s stuttering start to the new season with an away defeat 1-0 to Stalybridge Celtic. Nantwich took the lead on 35 minutes during the evening clash at home to Altricham, now mananged by former Nantwich boss Phil Parkinson. A Harry Clayton back heel sent Dave Forbes through on goal and he took the chance emphatically. The visitors suffered a second blow minutes later when Tom Hannigan received his second yellow card. But the ten men battled hard after the break and earned a controversial spotkick
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from Johnston’s darting run into the the box in the 86th minute. Johnston took the penalty himself and just about beat Fabian Spiess despite the Nantwich keeper getting a hand to the ball. Some 11 minutes of added time were played following a late injury to Spiess, who had to be substituted, but neither side could break the deadlock. Dave Cooke (pictured) admitted his side were ‘overcautious’ in their opening day defeat but was proud of their latest home performance. He said: “Obviously the lads are disappointed because we’ve been leading one-nil for most of the game. And when you concede at the end it does feel like a defeat. “But I’ve just told them in the dressing room that I’m
proud of every one of them for how they’ve battled hard tonight. “Its a new team coming together with a lot of young players, but we’ve played against a team that’s one the favourites to win the league and we’ve given as good as we got.
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