Archive

  • Marlborough animal cruelty case couple are sentenced

    AFTER a trial lasting 11 days at Salisbury Magistrates Court, Grafton couple Claire Strong and Paul Wilson were sentenced on animal cruelty charges today. Strong, 22, was given a three year conditional discharge and disqualified from keeping

  • Pupils dance the school day away

    SCHOOLCHILDREN were given a master-class in dance by a former professional Broadway ballet dancer recently as part of their school enrichment programme. Youngsters aged between four and seven from Redland Primary School, off Brook Street, Chippenham

  • Wanted: 100 apprentices

    The search, run by the college’s business arm Wiltshire Enterprise, was kicked off recently by vice principal Bev Flanagan at its Trowbridge campus. She released 100 balloons to symbolise each of the apprentices the campaign hopes to recruit

  • Top of the tables

    SHELDON School in Chippenham had 61 per cent of its pupils receive A* to C grades in GCSE, ranking it 14th in the county. Headteacher Gerard MacMahon said: “We are generally pleased with the GCSE results but feel we can still do better. We were

  • A purrrfect panto

    CHIPPENHAM’S Highlights were like the cats who got the cream with their new pantomime Puss in Boots, which took to the stage recently. Actors aged five to 50 starred in the classic show about about a cat who uses trickery and deceit to gain power

  • Reprieve for test centre

    Campaigners, helped by MPs Duncan Hames and Andrew Murrison, had feared the closure would lead to a backlog. They said it was unfair learner drivers would have to travel to Bristol, Swindon or Salisbury. But the shut-down, due to take place from

  • Taking command

    CHIPPENHAM’S new police inspector Steve Cox says he is keen to get started with a force that will almost quadruple the one he recently commanded in Wootton Bassett. Insp Cox, who started work at Chippenham Police Station recently, will oversee

  • Top of the class

    The school was awarded a satisfactory rating with a mark of three for its overall effectiveness and three for its capacity for sustained improvement. A score of one is outstanding, two is good, three satisfactory and four inadequate. The inspectors

  • Joy at DIY SOS

    THE mother of Jay Ryles-Jenkins has spoken of her excitement at news that her son will be returning home soon after nearly two years in hospital. Sue Jenkins said she can’t wait for the teenager, now 18, to come back to their home in Patchway

  • In perfect harmony!

    CHIPPENHAM school St Paul’s is singing its own praises as it focuses on music for its pupils. Children also have the chance to give feedback in the school council, which has led to some new directions in extracurricular activities. Headteacher

  • Lights, camera, action!

    CHIPPENHAM teenager Jesse Nash is going for gold after his film was chosen to be screened at the Cultural Olympiad during the London 2012 games. The Wiltshire College student, 18, is behind Sparking the Flame, a short film about a young athlete

  • FOOTBALL: Les Phillips Cup third round draw made

    DEVIZES Town will have to hit the road again if they progress past Odd Down in the second round of the Les Phillips Cup on Tuesday evening. Mark Love's in-form side will go to Premier Division Brislington or Hallen, if they can see off top-flight Downers

  • CHIPPENHAM TOWN: Mings' delight at Smith capture

    ADIE Mings hopes the loan capture of winger Lee Smith can hand Chippenham Town a significant play-off boost as they prepare for the Zamaretto League Premier Division run-in. Forest Green Rovers' Smith 27, has linked up with the Hardenhuish

  • CHIPPENHAM TOWN: Smith in, Edenborough out for Bluebirds

    CHIPPENHAM Town have brought Forest Green Rovers winger Lee Smith into their squad, with striker Ashley Edenborough departing Hardenhuish Park. Gloucester-born Smith, 27, arrives on loan from the Blue Square Premier side, whom he joined last summer from

  • West Overton horses seek a new home

    The carriage driving section of Riding for the Disabled is looking for new stabling for its horses and secure sheds for its carriages and tack. The charity has been based at Manor Farm at West Overton, near Marlborough, for ten years but must

  • Calne bikers' meet plea

    A desperate plea for more helpers and sponsorship has been issued by the organisers of Calne’s motorcycle meet, one of its biggest annual events. The festival of music, food and biking, run by Calne Rotary Club on July 23 this year, has been going for

  • Cherhill pupils sing up and celebrate

    Cherhill Primary School celebrated National Sing Up Day with a host of events for its pupils – and got some of the parents involved too. The school has embraced Sing Up, an initiative to get children involved in singing, and collected a silver Sing Up

  • Wiltshire HQ staff take over old school

    Council officers have moved out of the County Hall in Trowbridge as part of a £24m redevelopment of the site. Despite huge cuts in government grants to Wiltshire Council, the redevelopment is still going ahead. More than 400 staff have moved

  • Hope for Malmesbury drivers on parking

    Relief for motorists in Malmesbury facing a hike in parking charges may come in the form of a season ticket at a cost of £6.27 a week. Volunteers and low-paid shop assistants had expressed concern that they may be forced to quit their jobs

  • Farewell to Calne's little star

    The coffin of teenage cancer victim Emily Paxford arrived in a carriage drawn by horses bedecked with pink plumes as hundreds of people gathered to say farewell to the girl who touched many people’s lives. Pride of place inside the church

  • Price of success for Marlborough

    House prices in Marlborough could be set to soar as families keen to get their children a free public school education flock to the town. It follows a deal that has been struck between St John’s and Marlborough College which allows some of the comprehensive

  • Rebirth of Bluez night out at Chippenham

    Youth disco Bluez’N’Zuz returns to Chippenham after a two-year break on February 25 – and it’s looking for plenty of support. A neon-themed party will start in the Neeld Hall at 7pm and finish at 9pm, and all 11 to 16-year-olds in the Chippenham area

  • First class chance at Marlborough

    The ten St John’s School sixth formers who have become students at elite Marlborough College for their final two years of studies, say they love being involved in the unique link between the two schools. They say they don’t even mind the

  • Suspect flees in Devizes in his pyjamas

    A suspected burglar wearing only his pyjamas jumped from the window of a house in Devizes when police arrived to arrest him. Officers from Calne went to the house on Friday morning after a vintage 1970s Suzuki Stinger motorbike was stolen from a property

  • This is too intrusive for Wiltshire

    Wiltshire Council has been criticised for spening £22,000 on a questionnaire that asks personal questions about people’s sexuality and level of debt. Campaign group Privacy International and opposition councillors at Wiltshire Council have condemned

  • £99m axe on council services

    A massive cut of £99 million will be made over the next four years to Wiltshire Council’s base budget, it has been announced. Wiltshire councillors have revealed their plans for 2011’s budget with 12 per cent cuts to every service area to fill the black

  • Hullavington hero among five soldiers brought home

    The families of five British soldiers who died in Afghanistan within a week of each other, including one based at Hullavington, placed flowers on their hearses yesterday as their bodies were repatriated to the UK. Darkness had fallen as the procession

  • Chippenham cashier is a raid hero

    A woman cashier at a Chippenham bookmakers stopped robbers fleeing with cash from Coral in the first of two attacks on town bookies. She managed to hold on to the money after two men tricked her into opening a cash machine. The attempted theft at Coral

  • Ex-RAF workers from Wiltshire reunite

    Former RAF serviceman Gerwyn Thomas is trying to locate his former comrade Stuart Prout, from Urchfont near Devizes. Mr Thomas has organised a reunion for former 221 entry craft apprentices who have not seen each other for several decades. The reunion

  • Cyclists get free B and B in Roundway

    Teenage charity cyclists Karl Hitchcock and Stacey Fincham spent the night free of charge at a bed and breakfast in Roundway village. The couple, aged 17 and 18, cycled from their home in Bridgwater to London to raise money for St Margaret’s Hospice.

  • Shop smash drama at Chippenham

    The owner of A4 Stationers in Chippenham Market Place has spoken about the moment a car ploughed into the front of her shop. Jenny Donkin, who owns the store with husband Phil, was working facing the window when a Rover 213se rammed through

  • Fears for safety after Chippenham crash

    The family of a woman who was pinned against a wall after an elderly man lost control of his car in a pedestrian area of Chippenham Market Place believe she is lucky to be alive. Nicola Brown, 37, of Sherington Mead, Chippenham, was struck

  • Chippenham dads wound up by test

    Pupils at St Paul’s School in Chippenham took part in their own scrapheap challenge last Saturday, building and racing home-made tanks powered only by an elastic band. Thirty-one families took part in the day, organised by family learning project the

  • Devizes town centre manager axed

    The loss of Devizes’ town centre manager has been described as a disaster for the town. Mitch Roberts, who has held the post since April 2008, learned this week that his contract is not to be renewed as Wiltshire Council is not prepared to