Category: News

MAYOR John Saull, pictured with Deputy Mayor Liz Bennett, turned the first turf to mark the start of the project to renovate the town’s railway station. Work will begin immediately on the tracks and platforms, which will allow 12-car carriages into East Grinstead for the first time. The second phase of the project will see the station itself upgraded with a new retail area, ticket office, retail space and passenger toilets.

Mayor John Saull said: "The station is the first place many visitors see when they come to East Grinstead and the arrival of the Bluebell Railway into town next year will significantly increase tourist numbers.

"The new station will give a very welcome facelift to the area, and a boost to the local economy."

A stunning recent production of Les Mis set the bar high when it came to expectations for the Ariel Theatre Academy’s end-of-year show, but the talented youngsters who took part proved they were up for the challenge in a varied and well-thought-out programme of music, dance and drama.

The smaller members of the Academy certainly have the “aaaah!” factor, but they didn’t rely on cuteness to carry them through a series of well-executed dance routines.

And there were some genuinely laugh-out-loud moments, when their comic timing belied their tender years in the Little Red Riding Hood sketch, which was enjoyed as much by the small actors themselves as it was by their appreciative audience.

Natalie Boyd gave a simply beautiful performance of Hallelujah, with lovely harmonies provided by Lauren Merry and Charlotte Kenward. While Beth Elliott’s heartbreakingly original rendition of Winner Takes It All wrung real pathos from the end of a love affair turned sour.

The Prospero team’s choice of a dramatic tribute to the victims of 9/11 should on paper have been a difficult one for children still of primary school age: but their youthful gravity and careful delivery brought a special poignancy and dignity to their words as they recalled the horrors of the terrorism attack on New York.

Other highlights of the evening included monologues by James Rowsell and Polly Beaumont, and Gabriel Rathbone’s sweet-voiced Who Will Buy? from Oliver!

And by the time the whole school joined in the Shake Your Tail Feather finale, there wasn’t a parent – or a grandparent – in the audience – who didn’t want to shake along.

DEPUTY Mayor Liz Bennett has visited the Advance Centre in East Grinstead which treats people born with brain damage, or who have brain injuries.

It was founded by Linda Scotson, whose son Doran, pictured with Liz, was born with cerebral palsy.

The treatment system offered at the Centre works to develop the potential of uninjured portions of the brain by enhancing patients’ respiratory and circulatory systems.

Liz said: "I taught Doran many years ago at Kingsway School and it was great to see him again. It was a fantastic day at a fantastic charity."

MAYOR John Saull cut the ribbon to mark the opening of East Grinstead’s newest business, Wok’n Rolls in the London Road.

The new restaurant and takeaway specialises in sushi, noodles and filled rolls.

Mayor John, who is pictured with owners Chris and Christine Pollard, was one of several councillors who went along to the launch to express their support for the new venture.

“The Council is always pleased to see new businesses starting in the town and we all wish Wok’n Rolls every success for the future,” said Cllr John O’Brien.

COMEDIAN Tim Brooke Taylor was guest of honour at Chequer Mead’s Greenstede Gallery last month, where artist and "Goodies" fan Jenny Doyle put on an exhibition of work celebrating the iconic TV comedy series starring Tim and his fellow Goodies Graeme Garden and Bill Oddie.

Jenny baked some special fairy cakes marked with an OBE to celebrate the recent honour given to Tim, who endured a two hour traffic jam to see her work.

"Jenny’s really captured the mood and the complete zaniness of what went on," he said.

THE Town Council is looking at ways in which the whole of East Grinstead can celebrate the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee in June next year.

There are already plenty of ideas up for discussion including flower shows, gala dinners, concerts and fun fairs, with the broad intention of holding several days’ worth of activities around East Court over the proposed long Bank Holiday weekend, with a real “something for everyone” community celebration.

A small working party of Councillors, supported by Council officers, has been set up and members are hoping to identify others within the community who would be willing to join this steering group through a public meeting.

Invitations have been sent to organisations within the town, but the Council is also extending a general public invitation to gauge interest, explore ideas, and co-opt people to the working party: and if raising funds is a goal to cover costs and support a charity, how these funds would be directed.
The public meeting will be held in the Main Hall at East Court Mansion at 7pm on Thursday 4 August.

Chairman of the Amenities and Tourism Committee Frank Osborne said: “This is intended to be ambitious – a real community event with all areas of the town contributing. Our first step is to hold the meeting to see who is prepared to step forward and help make the Jubilee celebrations something the town can really be proud of, as the whole nation celebrates.”

THE East Grinstead International Arts Festival comes to town at various venues including Chequer Mead, several cafes and Saint Hill, from the 6 – 13 August.

It will open with a fun day in the High Street and a belly-dancing workshop at Chequer Mead where the Mona Lisa will be recreated in cup cakes.

James O’Connor, a talented 12-year-old pupil at Sackville School who has been awarded the festival’s Most Promising Young Artist of the Year award, will display his paintings at Chequer Mead throughout the week. Work by students attending classes in the town and in Forest Row will also be on display.

 

There will be a lunch-time piano recital at Chequer Mead on Monday 8 August when international concert pianist Gabriel Arnold will play Chopin, Brahms and Beethoven.

Tickets are £10 and seating is limited.

DEPUTY Mayor Liz Bennett lent her support to a car-washing fundraiser in aid of Meridian FM, the town radio station, by giving their outside broadcast van, nicknamed Twiggy, a wash.

The station, which costs around £1,000 a week to run, has appealed for £50,000 to keep it going over the coming year.

“Meridian FM does a really important job within the community so I was very pleased to take part in the Car Wash which raised £180,” said Liz.

Later in the day she helped raise a further £900 in the Meridian FM Mighty Quiz.

“This was a brilliant effort by all the presenters and members at Meridian FM,” said Liz, “and its success shows the support the station has from the town community it serves.

“Everyone has rallied together at a crucial time in the future of the station, and the efforts being put into saving it show people appreciate the Meridian FM team who work as volunteers for the good of our community.”

Liz added that she was “very proud” of the station and the work it does, and appealed to everyone within its audience area to be generous in helping to secure Meridian FM’s future.

ACTING Sergeant Graeme Prentice has been newly appointed to the East Grinstead police team.

Before joining Sussex Police, Graeme gained a BSc(Hons) degree in Business Management and then worked in a customer service related role for four years.

But he had always harboured an ambition to join the police force in the footsteps of his uncle, an officer in the City of London Police, and in January 2006 he started with Sussex Police at their Ashford training school.

Graeme subsequently spent three and a half years as a PC on the Neighbourhood response team (NRT) based at Crawley Police Station and then moved to the Neighbourhood Policing Team (NPT) where he managed the Ifield and Gossops Green areas of Crawley for just under a year.

In 2010 he passed his Sergeants exam and gained a category 1 pass in his Sergeants Interview Board.

He worked as Acting Sergeant for three and a half months with the Crawley Neighbourhood Response Team before moving to the East Grinstead Response team in the same rank for 6 months.

He returned to Crawley for a short period last April before taking up his appointment as the Neighbourhood Policing Sergeant based in East Grinstead in June. He is currently awaiting full promotion to the rank of Sergeant.

"I have enjoyed my first 6 weeks at East Grinstead and already have organised warrants, plain clothes operations and an initiative to combat mobile phone thefts within East Grinstead town centre.

"I currently have three police officers and four police community support officers on my team who cover East Grinstead and its outer areas.

"I hope I can cement my position within the East Grinstead NPT and make a positive impact on the community."

THE newly-elected East Grinstead Town Council has agreed to the setting up of a neighbourhood plan working group to start putting together a formal Town Plan.

This is in response to changes outlined in the coalition Government’s Localism Bill, first published in December 2010, which sets out the framework and key principles for a system of neighbourhood planning in England. It seeks to create new planning tools to help empower communities to shape and manage development in their local areas.

Chairman of the working group Cllr Heidi Brunsdon said: "This fundamental change to the planning system has a significant local impact. With neighbourhood plans, communities such as East Grinstead will have real choice about the issue of growth. We will have the opportunity to develop our own planning policies and ensure that those neighbourhoods which choose to grow feel the benefits of that decision. Our aim is to give people real choice, and real influence. Localism and neighbourhood plans firmly put decisions for such change back in the hands of those who know what’s best for this town – our residents."

The working party’s next steps are to revisit earlier plans and research, and to consider ideas drawn from a recent strategy-day to develop some formal proposals: these will then be subject to public consultation before being fed into the planning authority, Mid Sussex District Council, to include in the overall District Plan.

Throughout the project local residents, organisations and businesses will be invited to contribute their views and thoughts. These consultations are intended to be a mix of informal and formal including a public meeting to present emerging ideas towards the end of the year.