Doncaster Echo - June/July 2025

Celebrating everything good in doncaster and surrounding areas

@doncasterecho

INTRODUCTION

Hello and welcome to your June/July edition of Doncaster Echo.

How are we already nearly halfway through the year? Summer is here and we cannot wait for BBQs with family and friends. If you are jetting off somewhere this summer, we hope you have a wonderful holiday.

This issue we showcase Sandall Park, which is putting together local community funfilled days with lots of free entertainment and giveaways over summer. We also showcase Armthorpe Community

Theatre who are bringing us Starrcrossed - an original musical comedy with a sci-fi twist at Doncaster Little Theatre on Friday 11th and Saturday 12th July 2025.

As always, our friendly team is just an email or phone call away to help you with all your advertisement needs and to answer any questions you may have.

We will see you again in August, but for now, sit back with a cuppa and enjoy your latest instalment of Doncaster Echo.

meet the staff

LISA WARRENER EDITOR

RACHAEL LIDDLE

DISTRIBUTION MANAGER

lisa caley sales executive

Daniella dennis sales Manager

Distribution Assistants:

Jamie Walton, Justin Newton, Mitchell Brewins, Craig Shaw and Ben Hammill

Experience community fun with Friends of Sandall Park

Local community fun-filled days with lots of free entertainment and giveaways over summer

These events are run by Friends of Sandall Park volunteers with all money raised going back into future events.

Brian Greathead, vice chairman, and Victoria Stokoe, secretary, are the main event organisers. They have built the events up to be some of the most popular events in Doncaster with footfall getting bigger year on year.

Dino Day 2025

Saturday 21st June

Sandall Park, DN2 5DZ

Following the success of Dino Day 2024 they are organising this wonderful family fun day again for 2025. With dancing dinos, lots of entertainment, bouncy castles, various street food and goodies.

Princess and Superhero Funday

Saturday 12th July

Sandall Park, DN2 5DZ

GP princesses will be doing a meet and greet as well as a sing along. Mini funfair and food stalls including Time and Plaice Fish & Chips, a large inflatables zone, KTdance, Zorbs Endeavour

Martial Arts, Stacey’s Entertainment, Doncaster Lions as well as ice-cream vans, cake and craft stalls and lots more to be confirmed.

So, why not round up the family, and keep Saturday 21st June and Saturday 12th July

free and pop down to Sandall Park to enjoy a fun day with family and friends.

ADULT EDUCATION

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• Digital • Mental Health • Nutrition • Social Care

These days most homeowners suffer from a lack of storage space. So many precious items that need to be kept – but where to store it all? That’s where Yorkshire Loft Ladders come in.

The company, based locally, offers homeowners the opportunity to maximise their storage space with a loft ladder, 50 sq ft of boarding and a light all fully fitted in less than a day from just £277 + VAT. But it’s not just the affordability of the package the company offers that makes Yorkshire Loft Ladders stand out as manager Warren Ingleson explains:

‘Our watchwords are Quality,

Integrity and Value. Quality in the materials that we use for all our installations and the fact that all our loft packages are fitted by time served tradesmen so our customers are assured of the best job. Integrity in that we will turn up at the time we say and make sure the house is spotless when we leave, and Value in that we offer our services at a price people can afford. Our business relies on referrals and we got a huge amount of our calls from people who have been referred to us by our existing customers - that simply wouldn’t happen if we didn’t adhere to our overriding principles.

lead to more happy customers is true and we work hard to make that happen for every installation we carry out!’

So, if you want to make use of your loft space, however big or

lead to more happy customers is true and we work hard to make that happen for every installation we carry out!’ So, if you want to make use of your loft space, however big or

small, call Warren on 0800 612 8359 and he’ll be happy to pop round and give you a no obligation quote so you too can make use of your loft!

At the end of the day the old adage that happy customers

FROM A POLICE PERSPECTIVE:

Reduction in shoplifting after Doncaster neighbourhood policing team launches Shop Watch scheme

This month, Doncaster Policing Team talks to us about how Thorne has seen a significant reduction in shoplifting after a neighbourhood policing team created a dedicated Shop Watch scheme, which provides a rapid information sharing response to combat retail crime

After recognising growing concerns among businesses in Thorne around an increase in retail crime, Doncaster East Neighbourhood Policing Team (NPT) launched its own Shop Watch initiative to directly tackle the issue.

The scheme encourages businesses in Thorne town centre and Quora Retail Park to sign up to the information sharing platform. There they can receive photos and information about known shoplifters in the area.

In 2024, there were 126 reports of shoplifting in the Thorne and Moorends area. However, there has been a noticeable drop in the number of reported offences so far in 2025.

With the help of Thorne Shop Watch, the team has managed to secure 20 charges against a number of suspected shoplifters, with one prolific offender given a criminal behaviour order (CBO) and a jail sentence.

PC John Sharp, who has been liaising with businesses in Thorne and encouraging sign-ups to the scheme, explained: “Jonathan Isle, 40, of King Street, Thorne, was identified as a persistent offender through retailers signed up to the Thorne Shop Watch scheme.

“His image was circulated among businesses so they knew to look out for him and crucially when he stole from stores, they were able to send damning CCTV evidence which meant we were able to prosecute and secure multiple charges.

“The Shop Watch scheme has enabled us to take a really proactive and joined-up approach to shoplifting.

Going forwards, PC Sharp and his NPT colleagues are keen to keep on the front foot when it comes to tackling shoplifting in Thorne.

He is keen for even more retailers to join the Shop Watch scheme so they can expand this community and continue working alongside local businesses to reduce retail crime in Thorne.

PC Sharp added: “It has been really encouraging to see so many businesses in Thorne sign up.

“We recognised and understood their concerns around retail crime and acted to introduce this initiative.

“It is important we continue to expand this network in order to protect more retail staff and customers and bring shoplifters to justice.”

Armthorpe Community Theatre brings us Starrcrossed

An

original musical comedy with a sci-fi twist at

Doncaster

Little Theatre on Friday 11th and Saturday 12th July 2025

Doncaster Echo spoke to Helen Evans, founder, member and chairperson of Armthorpe Community Theatre (ACT), to find out more.

“In 2023 I was approached by Armthorpe Parish Council with the view to putting together a community pantomime.

“I have been involved in community theatre for 30-plus years and jumped at the chance to do something in my own village. I asked my friend, Lynne, who is also an Armthorpe resident, if she would like to get involved and she agreed.

“We are both experienced performers and have a love for pantomime. After a discussion we decided we would like to stage Jack and the Beanstalk. I sourced a script, Lynne worked on props, and we began production.

“Several weeks into planning we realised that we needed to raise some funds to pay for the production. The Parish Council helped but we still needed to purchase some stage lighting, we organised a cabaret evening to raise funds.

“This was very successful and we managed to purchase the lights we needed for the pantomime.

“In January 2024 we staged the first Armthorpe community pantomime. It was a sell-out and thoroughly enjoyed by all. Lynne and I realised that we had gone from two friends putting a show on for our local village to the beginning of a community theatre group with over 30 members.

“We agreed on the name ‘Armthorpe Community Theatre’, which conveniently abbreviates to ‘ACT’ and began to develop things further. We also developed a small singing group as well as the main group.

“Throughout the next year or so things continued to develop to the point where we couldn’t manage it on our own, thus the committee was born.

“Since then ACT has gone from strength to strength and has successfully produced two family pantomimes and two cabaret evenings. The committee has secured funding both through grants and fundraising activities. We are now a formal constituted community group. I personally can’t wait to see what happens in the future.

“Our next production is called Starrcrossed - it’s a romantic musical comedy written by myself. Writing is a passion of mine, although being dyslexic does make things difficult sometimes. Below is a brief teaser of the play.”

All is quiet, the Captain is snoozing, the crew are complaining and the robot is malfunctioning, so just a normal Tuesday aboard the spaceship Supernova.

Things soon change with the arrival of Ambassador Celeste and her beautiful

daughter Starr. However tragedy is around the corner when the crew encounters a freak asteroid storm which knocks the ship off course and they come face to face with the mysterious and malevolent Estelle.

Starrcrossed will take place at Doncaster Little Theatre on Friday 11th and Saturday 12th July 2025. Tickets are available now and can be purchased here: doncasterlittletheatre.co.uk

ACT is an inclusive group who are always looking for new members. Several of their members have said that being part of the group has helped them overcome anxiety and build confidence which reflects in all parts of their lives.