Author: Andrew Taylor

For more details of events at the theatre ring the box office on  01342 302000

June 8 at 2pm and 7pm: BPM Dance Academy with Climb On Board.

A street dance school based in the heart of Mid Sussex  BPM specialise in authentic hip hop dance styles. They offer regular street dance classes in Cuckfield, Haywards Heath, Hassocks and Burgess Hill to children and adults, and provide workshops and after-school clubs for local schools as well as street dance birthday parties. 

BPM was launched in 2011 by professional dancers Luke Bohanna and Kat Chase.Their exciting show features 130 students ages five to 17 in a space-age themed show.

Tickets: £10/ children £7.50.

June 14: the world’s greatest Abba tribute band Voulez Vous

ON their 21^st year anniversary tour Voulez Vous still command immense audience support and appreciation.

Their new production Mad About Abba has received fantastic reviews from theatres and audiences alike with new costumes that are more glamorous than ever. Voulez Vous perform a non-stop barrage of ABBA hits, brilliantly performed and visually enhanced.

The fun starts at 7.45pm.  All tickets £16.

June 15: Winner of the National Tribute Awards 2013 and Stars in Their Eyes – Cliff

JIMMY Jemain is now firmly established as the UK’s Number 1 Cliff Richard look and sound-alike.  He’s so good people have been known to think Jimmy mimes, but every song is live in this must-see tribute concert with The Fabulous Shadows playing Apache, Wonderful Land, Kon Tiki and many more, and all Cliff’s biggest hits including  Move It, Living Doll and The Young Ones.

‘Cliff’ is on at Chequer Mead Theatre, East Grinstead at 8pm. Tickets £18.50/concessions £17.50.

June 17: Questioning Aslan by Nigel Forde

FROM the creative team that brought the award winning production of C.S. Lewis’ The Screwtape Letters to the stage, comes a new production – Questioning Aslan by Nigel Forde – which has toured the USA, Canada, New Zealand and Australia.

It’s 1958, the world is in the grip of an economic downturn and the fear and uncertainty of the Cold War is building.

But in Oxford, Professor C.S. Lewis has called a student into his study to discuss a very different dilemma. His most promising protégé is disillusioned with the world – the future seems increasingly unsure and meaninglessness has abounded in his life. Where or what can he turn to?

Agnosticism seems to hold the most plausible explanations – but will his mentor be able to shed a different light on that conclusion? This work of fiction, inspired by the life of C.S. Lewis, asks questions and finds answers that will challenge and inspire.

Questioning Aslan is on at Chequer Mead Theatre, East Grinstead at 7.30pm. Tickets £12/ concessions £10/ group discounts  – contact box office.

The following changes to the Council committees and Outside Bodies have been made for the coming year:

Changes to committees:
(C) = chairman (VC) = vice chairman

Planning Committee:
Members: Cllrs Burns, Favor, Mainstone (C), O’Brien, Osborne, Scott, Sweatman (VC), Webster and Wyan

Public services Committee:
Members : Cllrs Beckford, Bennett (C), Burns, Favor, Reeves, Saull (VC), Sillitoe, Sweatman and Whittaker

Amenities and Tourism Committee:
Members: Cllrs Beckford, Brunsdon, Favor, O’Brien, Osborne (C), Saull, Scott (VC), Sillitoe and Sweatman.

Finance and General Purposes Committee:
Members: Chairmen of the three standing committees plus Cllrs, O’Brien, Reeves, Saull, Sillitoe, Sweatman (VC), Webster and Wyan(C).

The following councillors will represent the Town Council on the Outside Bodies listed below:

• East Grinstead Town Twinning Assoc: Cllrs Scott, Hodges and Osborne
• Mid Sussex District Association of Parish Councils: Cllr Brunsdon
• Age Concern East Grinstead: Cllr Favor
• East Grinstead Music and Arts Festival: Cllr Sweatman
• Gatwick Area Conservation campaign: Cllr Wyan
• East Grinstead Access Group: Cllr Saull
• East Grinstead Town Museum: Cllr Mainstone ( who is a museum trustee)
• East Grinstead Christmas lights committee: Cllr Sillitoe
• Friends of East Grinstead Museum: Cllr Osborne
• East Grinstead in Bloom: Cllr Reeves
• East Grinstead Business Association executive committee: Cllr Whittaker
• Wallis Centre management committee: Cllr Bennett
• East Grinstead Council for Voluntary Services: Cllr Webster
• East Grinstead Christmas promotions committee: Cllr Mainstone and O’Brien
• East Grinstead Fairtrade Town Steering Group: Cllr Beckford
• East Grinstead War Memorial Ltd: Cllr Sweatman
• Mid Sussex Assoc of Town Councils – Town Mayor, Cllrs Wyan, Mainstone and Sweatman
• Greenstede Talking News for the blind: Cllr Saull
• Queen Victoria Hospital NHS Foundation Trust: Cllr Webster
• Felbridge Beef and Faggot Trust: Cllr Saull

AROUND 300 competitors took part in the first leg of the Sussex Living Mid Sussex Marathon which was hosted by East Grinstead on Saturday 4 May. Competitors tackled a gruelling ten-mile, mostly cross-country, course and the winner finished in a record time of one hour three minutes, despite the lashing rain which came down as  Olympian Richard Leman fired the starting horn.

The second and third legs were run over the succeeding days in Haywards Heath and Burgess Hill. Although not quite as muddy as the inaugural run last year, the hilly ten miles route around East Grinstead proved challenging for runners who also battled strong winds, and tourism officer Dawn Spalding said special thanks were due to the  “fantastic volunteers” who braved the cold and rain to marshal the course, and without whom the race would not have been such a success.

Photo credit Julie Holden

THE new East Grinstead Town Mayor is Cllr Margaret Belsey who has chosen Macmillan nurses as the charity for her year in office.

The mayor-making was also an opportunity for newly-elected Councillor Adam Reeves to meet his council colleagues.

The new Deputy Town Mayor is Cllr  Nick Hodges, and Cllr Peter Wyan is the new Council Leader.

The former Town Mayor Liz Bennett raised £6,400 for her chosen charity, the Advance Centre.

A pre-consultation exhibition for the parts of the Neighbourhood Plan concerning development /transport, and the High Street, will be open to the public at the times and places listed below.

A final questionnaire will also be available at the exhibition, which will mainly be manned by Councillors who can help with any queries or clarification.

The questionnaire will also be available electronically on www.eastgrinsteadplan.org.uk.

16 and 17 May at East Court (main hall)
9am to 5pm

18 May and 1 June street surgery (Town Council surgery in pop-up tent in the High Street outside Broadley Brothers)
10am to 11.30am

23 and 24 May at Chequer Mead (foyer)
9.30am to 4pm
6.30pm-8.30pm (24 May only)

6, 7, and 8 June at the South of England Show (East Grinstead Town Council tent on 2nd Avenue)
9am to 6pm

Mid Sussex residents are being encouraged to add extra security to their garden this spring by snapping up a low cost shed alarm.

With unseasonably cold weather in March and early April this year, it’s easy to forget that the warmer temperatures of spring and summer are just around the corner. As the weather heats up, opportunities for thieves can also increase with open windows, insecure sheds and gardening tools left out.

The Mid Sussex Community Safety Partnership is keen to help residents protect their property and is giving local people the opportunity to purchase affordable shed alarms as part of a spring crime prevention campaign.

Residents are being offered the chance to purchase shed alarms at a reduced rate of £7.00, which is £8 cheaper than the normal retail price of £15.00. This relatively inexpensive item will help residents to protect their belongings and keep crime levels low in the District. The discounted shed alarms are available to buy from Town Council Help Points in Burgess Hill, East Grinstead and Haywards Heath.

Residents are also being encouraged to take a few simple steps that will help to keep their shed safe and secure;

• Use a good quality padlock or mortice lock on the door of your shed
• Protect the boundary and access to your garden with fences, walls and lockable gates
• Make sure the door panel on your shed is strong enough
• Put up security lighting around your shed
• Lock valuable items together to prevent them being removed easily
• Help to track your property by registering it for FREE at www.immobilise.com

“Mid Sussex is a low crime area and if we all work together to prevent crime then we can help to ensure it stays that way,” said Councillor Christopher Snowling, Cabinet Member for Health and Community. “These low cost shed alarms are a quick and easy way to add a little extra protection against thieves. Making life hard for opportunist crooks goes a long way towards keeping our crime levels low and making sure Mid Sussex continues to be one of the safest places in the country to live.”

For more information about crime prevention in Mid Sussex, contact the Mid Sussex District Council Community Safety team on 01444 477550 or email communitysafety@midsussex.gov.uk.

Declaration of Result of Poll – Town South