Twyford

This was Wilde’s first staged play and became an instant hit in 1892, and today it still entertains audiences all over the world.

It is a period Victorian comedy, based around marriage and morals of high society London, with lots of misunderstandings and deceptions.

Lady Windermere’s Fan will be showing on 7th 8th & 9th October at Loddon Hall, Twyford.
Curtain up at 8pm.
Tickets cost from £6-£8, all have views of the stage.

Buying your tickets is easy via our box office on 0845 450 1308 or through our texting service 07563 022916.

A huge choice of books, both fiction and non-fiction, will be up for sale at Twyford Feed The Children (UK)’s big book sale on Friday 30th July.

From 10am to 2pm Feed The Children volunteers will be selling donated books at the warehouse at 2 Tavistock Industrial Estate, Ruscombe Lane, Twyford, RG10 9NJ.

Says Feed The Children volunteer Ross Fahy, “This is an ideal opportunity to get some fabulous books for your summer reading list, just right for the beach, garden or aeroplane.”

Feed The Children (UK) is first and foremost a children’s charity but it is also a humanitarian and international relief organisation. The charity works both in the UK and around the world in areas of desperate need, developing sustainable communities, providing food, clothing and meeting other life supporting requirements. Administration costs are very low compared with many other charities with 90% of the charity’s donations going towards its work.

Feed The Children ~ Twyford

Thames Valley Police in Wokingham Local Policing Area (LPA), along with the assistance of members of the Wargrave public, helped a vulnerable woman who was swimming in the river on Saturday 10 July.

At 4.35pm, police were contacted by a member of the public reporting that a woman was swimming naked in the river close to Marsh Lock in Wargrave, and there was concern for her safety.

Henley Festival was taking place, so there were a substantial number of large boats around and the situation was potentially dangerous. Initial reports from Wargrave members of the public made police believe that the female had been reported missing and was probably vulnerable.

PC Andrew Kelly, of Loddon Valley Police, who attended the Wargrave incident, said: “We had to be resourceful to deal with this incident as it happened at a busy time. Our colleagues in Henley and from other agencies were dealing with a light aircraft crash, which also meant the helicopter was unavailable to us.

“Units from Loddon Valley attended the Berkshire side of the river, which is fairly difficult to access, and I managed to enlist the services of a local rowing instructor, Will Morgan from Caversham, and his rescue launch and we began a search of the river to the north of Marsh Lock.

“PC Benjamin Roper was able to get further assistance from a couple just south of the lock in Wargrave Road and was aided by a man and his boat which meant we were able to search from the south.

“PC Roper and PC Christopher Thompson eventually located the girl walking along the riverbank at 5.15pm. She was confused and sunburnt, and it was thought she had been in the water for several hours. She was taken to Loddon Valley police station.

“Thanks to officers and members of the public she was safe. It turned out that she was a missing person from Bath who suffers from mental health problems. We really are grateful to the members of the public who helped us – without their valuable assistance I am not sure the situation would have had the same conclusion.”

Insp PJ Binns, of Loddon Valley police station, said: “Due to the prompt and resourceful actions of the officers who attended, and the willingness of the public to assist us, we were able to bring a vulnerable missing person to safety.”

Thames Valley Police ~ Wargrave

Here is the latest Twyford/Ruscombe, Sonning/Charvil/Hurst and Wargrave/Remenham neighbourhood update from Police Community Support Officer (PCSO) Nicola Shepherd:

It’s been a very hot and busy June, our neighbourhood have been busy responding to neighbourhood issues and community events.

Henley Regatta was between 30 June and 4 July; all local neighbourhood teams were supporting the event. We hope everyone enjoyed the event.

Burglaries – There have been reports of burglaries in Wargrave, Sonning and Twyford and Hurst. Now the warm weather has set in we would like to remind residents to make sure windows and doors are secure before leaving the premises, even if it’s a small window, most PVC windows will lock shut when slightly open. This will prevent un-wanted guests. Could we remind residents to keep their car keys away from the front door and out of sight as there have been reports from surrounding areas of theft of motor vehicle once the offender has broken into the property.

If you would like security advice on your property you can contact your local neighbourhood policing team via the police enquiry centre on 0845 8 505 505. We will come to inspect your home and offer security advice.

Parking – There have been reports of inconsiderate parking in Byron Road, Wessex Gardens and Springfield Walk. There are still parking issues along the High street and Station Road in Wargrave. While we will enforce where necessary we will also use our discretion in how we deal with the problem i.e. by giving words of advice to the registered owner. Could I please ask all local residents and businesses to ensure that visitors to their premises please park in a considerate manner that will not cause an inconvenience to other people.

Theft From Motor Vehicles – Theft from vehicles has increased this month; this is mainly due to property left on display. Most reports have come from Remenham; this is associated with the Henley Regatta. We remind all residents and visitors to make sure you leave nothing valuable in your vehicle.

Anti-social behaviour (ASB) – We are still receiving reports of ASB involving moped at Loddon Hall, the Recreation grounds and Pennfields. We have also had reports of ASB involving young males at Twyford Station being loud and causing criminal damage. Areas still affected are The Grove, Jubilee Corner and London Road in Twyford and East Park Farm in Charvil. There was criminal damage linked to ASB in East Park Farm where a party spilled out onto the street. We continue to patrol these areas robustly and are dealing with individuals committing offences.

Partnership work – We continue to work with the Parish Council and Wokingham borough council and schools in the area. Working with the crime prevention officer from Wokingham Borough Council supporting crime prevention road-shows; we handed out crime prevention leaflets and offer advice to local residents. Working with Wokingham community wardens we have identified graffiti to be removed.

Good news stories – PCSO Chalmers held safe and sound talks at Inglewood Day nursery and Busy Bees where you will be pleased to hear that all the children were very aware of personal safety, to wear cycle helmets, seatbelts and knew to hold hands with a grown up when crossing the road. We had great fun, thank you very much to the children.

We would like to congratulate PCSO Shepherd for completing her parachute jump and raising money for a local charity, we all think she’s extremely brave.

Non priority – We attended Piggott School to assist them in marking school equipment with Smart Water.

A Have your Say meeting was held at the Cricket Pavilion in Wargrave with PCSO Shepherd where local issues were discussed.

PCSO Shepherd carried out speed indication surveys along London Road and Waltham Road in Twyford. We will be conducting more speed indication surveys in Hurst and Sonning in July. Anyone found to be travelling in excess of the speed limit will be sent a letter saying they were seen travelling over the limit.

To contact any member of the team please call 0845 8 505 505

Thames Valley Police ~ Twyford

A team of seventeen employees and friends from Hare Hatch Sheeplands plant centre near Twyford are now back at work after raising at least £4,000 for charity by successfully undertaking the 3Peaks Challenge. This involves climbing the highest mountains in Scotland, England and Wales within 24 hours.

“It is the hardest thing I have ever done in my life” exclaimed Twyford Sheeplands director Andrew Cardy who co-ordinated the project. “Without everybody supporting each other we simply couldn’t have made it. It wasn’t just the fourteen people who undertook the climbs. We also had three people to handle the driving and logistics and they played a key role in making it achievable.”

Ten of the fourteen climbers completed the three climbs within the 24 hour period with Steve Poole from Twyford the first to finish, with 45 minutes to spare.

Others who beat the deadline were Cath Silver and Simon Roberts from Twyford, Andrew Cardy and Jo Roberts from Wargrave, Kirsten A’Bear, Mark A’Bear and Richard Roberts from Charvil, Cath Gordon from Hare Hatch and 18-year-old George Scott from Ottershaw in Surrey, who limped across the line with badly blistered feet just six minutes inside the deadline. “I was so proud of George,” said Andrew “because he completed the course although he was in such pain and had to run at the end to beat the deadline.”

Rob Scott and Andrea Tandy from Twyford plus Tina Stevenson completed the course in just under 25 hours, Rob suffering from an injury received on the climb. Jane Ainslie from Henley’s Chiltern Centre for Disabled Children was suffering from a suspected virus and was restricted to completing only the last of the climbs. Jill Davison, Wendy Kailus and Bernie Leicester were the support trio.

What made the project even tougher was the fact that while most of Britain basked in a heatwave the team had to cope with torrential rain on Scafell Pike and snow at the top of Ben Nevis where they boosted morale with a snowball fight.

Sheeplands Twyford co-director Rob Scott admitted that it was tough but claimed “We all said we would never do it again at the time. But I know now that I would like to try again and I know that Jane is planning to try again next year, with some of the others in support.”

The challenge began with a sense of foreboding when the team discovered that the minibus they were due to collect in Inverness had been involved in an accident, but a replacement was soon found and the walk began at 5.30 pm on Monday.

“We made good progress on our first climb of Ben Nevis, although Kirsten A’Bear was suffering from a touch of sunstroke after umpiring netball matches in searing heat the day before. We drove on to Scafell Pike in Cumbria slightly ahead of schedule,” said Sheeplands marketing manager Andrea Tandy.

“That’s where it really began to get hard and not just because of the rain and the midges. It was 4.30 am, dark, wet and parts of Scafell are technically quite difficult to climb because there are several expanses of large boulders to negotiate. We were concerned that the rain was making them very slippery and there was a danger that someone could fall and break an ankle.

“We were behind time and I know that some considered giving up. They were tired physically and mentally, not just from the climbing but from the lack of sleep, but they were supported by others in the group.”

It was quite demoralising at that point,” added Andrew Cardy “because we lost time on Scafell and thought the challenge was slipping away from us.”
When the team arrived at Snowdon they decided to split into two groups, fast and slow, although in reality they ended up stretched out in a long line, with some of the group having to break into a painful run towards the end to complete the course inside the 24 hour target.

“It was agonising at times but there was a sense of euphoria at the end” said Andrew. “It was a real team effort and there were friendships made on those mountains that will remain forever.

“We know already that we have raised at least £4,000 to share between the Chiltern Centre for Disabled Children and Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research, but money is still coming in so we expect the total to rise.

“Of course it was all worthwhile because not only did we all feel such a wonderful sense of achievement, but with the help of those who sponsored us we have raised several thousand pounds for two very worthwhile charities.”

Hare Hatch Sheeplands, Twyford

Organisers of Saturday’s Jam and Jerusalem summer fair at Hare Hatch Sheeplands in Twyford branded the event a success with “several hundred” pounds being raised for charity.

There were nearly fifty Twyford stalls and sideshows for all the family to enjoy, including traditional summer fair activities, such as a coconut shy, skittles, splat the rat, treasure trail, tombola, hog roast, a children’s entertainer and arts and crafts traders.

Sheeplands directors Rob Scott and Andrew Cardy were among the busiest men at the Twyford fair, willingly putting their head in the stocks so that visitors could throw wet sponges at him.

Rob Scott said afterwards “I was really happy to get soaked for charity. The children had most fun because they got to stand so close they couldn’t miss me. They seemed to think it was hilarious.

“Andrew and I were also surprised to discover how many of our own staff decided it was great entertainment to pelt us with soggy sponges.

“I must thank organisations such as Twyford Scouts, Wargrave Wolves, Unicorn and Polehampton School who all played a part in making our first charity fair successful.

“Now for our really big fund-raising exercise, the 3 Peaks Challenge at the end of this month. A team of fourteen climbers, backed up by three drivers, will climb Ben Nevis on the Monday and then travel overnight to the Lake District and climb Scafell Pike in the early hours of Tuesday before driving to Wales to start the climb of Snowdon the same afternoon.”

Proceeds from the climb and from the summer fair day’s activities will be shared between The Chiltern Centre for Disabled Children and Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research.

Further information from Brian Roach on 07710 242634.

Hare Hatch Sheeplands in Twyford

Colleton Primary School, Twyford – 3rd July from 10am – 1pm.
£3.50 per person.

This Twyford roadshow will help you find out more about becoming an independent exercise teacher, keeping fit and earning at the same time.
It could be a move in the right direction for you and there are so many reasons (especially now) that people are thinking of training in this field.

To find out more contact Zoe on 01403 266000 or email training@emdp.org

Exercise, Movement & Dance Partnership ~ Twyford

Charities will benefit from a "Jam and Jerusalem" traditional summer fair being held at Hare Hatch Sheeplands plant centre in Twyford on Saturday (19th).

There’s something for all the Twyford family, including a coconut shy, apple bobbing, splat the rat, football wall, bouncy castle, children’s entertainment,beer tent and even a chance to throw wet sponges at the centre’s directors while they sit in the stocks..

The Twyford fair is open between 9 am and 4 pm and entrance and car parking is free. Proceeds from the stalls and entertainment will go to the Chiltern Centre for Disabled Children at Henley and Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research.

Hare Hatch Sheeplands, Twyford

9am to 2pm
Thursday
1st July

Jubilee Corner, Twyford. Opposite the London Road Car Park entrance to Waitrose

Help us raise money for Feed The Children (UK)’s important work around the World including support for Orphans and Vulnerable Children.

There will be books toiletries, jewellery, DVDs, CDs and many other items on sale.

Feed The Children (UK), 2 Tavistock Industrial Estate, Ruscombe Business Park, Twyford, Berks, RG10 9NJ. Tel. 0118 932

Here is the latest Twyford/Ruscombe, Sonning/Charvil/Hurst and Wargrave/Remenham neighbourhood update from Police Community Support Officer (PCSO) Anne Chalmers:

There has been an increase in shed break-ins and out-houses/garages in Hare Hatch and Wargrave area. On most occasions the building has been broken into and just searched but nothing stolen. This may be because something specific is being sought. Please ensure that your sheds and garages have locks on them and if you have access to your back gardens from the side of your house to make sure that your side gates are locked. You can also buy fence and wall spikes, which are long thin strips of plastic with small spikes which are designed to give maximum discomfort with minimum harm. They come in 50cm by 4.5cm strips and there are different colours to chose from (look up ‘cat spikes’ online).

The value of scrap metal is rising, this could lead to a rise in theft of scrap metal and older cars; there has been a report of theft of copper piping stolen out of an empty house in Twyford and large metal drive-way gates in Wargrave. We ask that you keep an eye on your old cars and any scrap metal that you have lying around your property, inside or out; especially if it is easily seen from the road which could attract unwanted attention to your local area.

Burglaries in dwellings has decreased with only three reports this month, two in Wargrave and one in Remenham. The popular mode of entry is still through windows by smashing the glass, usually from the back of the property. When you lock your windows and doors make sure you don’t leave the key in the lock or within eye site as this makes it much easier for someone to enter. Now the weather has started to warm up windows and doors will be being opened, please remember to shut these before you leave the house, even if it’s a small window, most PVC windows will lock shut when slightly open.

Theft of number plates has decreased this month with only one report in Crazies Hill, Wargrave. Theft from cars has also decreased with two reports, one in Waitrose car park where a bag was stolen by smashing a window and one outside the Bird in Hand in Knowl Hill where a window was smashed but nothing taken.

Railway Station Ticket machines are being targeted and broken into, this happened at Twyford Station in the early hours of Thursday 20 May and also at Henley and Marlow. If you see anyone breaking into these machines – please ring the police on 999 if it is occurring or if you have any information ring 0845 8 505 505 as we liaise with British Transport Police.

There have been two reports of fly tipping along the A4 and A321; we ask that people are vigilant to large vehicles tipping rubbish in private land or wooded areas. If you do see anything take as much detail as possible, most importantly the number plate and report it into 0845 8 505 505.

On 1 May – a 23 year-old man from Woodley was stop checked on London Road, Twyford and was found with cannabis. He was given a formal police warning for possession of cannabis.

On 4 May – a 39 year-old man from Twyford was given an Adult Restorative Disposal for common assault, no injury, which occurred in Bath Road Twyford.

On 6 May – a 65 year-old man from St Georges Avenue, Newbury was arrested by PC Harrison from Waitrose in Twyford for theft of two bottles of wine and a sandwich. Michael Morgan was remanded on 6 May and charged in court the next day.

On 6 May – a 19 year-old man from Maidenhead was detained by an off duty Metropolitan officer for stealing lead from the roof of Polehampton School. Joshua Grason-Heath was charged and will appear at court in Maidenhead on 9 June.

On 10 May – a 47 year-old woman from Yewhurst Close, Twyford was detained by staff in Waitrose for attempting to steal a trolley full of goods. Bettina Betz Portelli admitted to two other occasions where she has done the same thing. She is going to court on 28 June.

Anti-social behaviour (ASB) has been mainly concentrated within Twyford this month. Young people have been playing football and drinking in Jubilee Corner, this can be dangerous as the football can end up going across the road in front of moving traffic. We would like to reassure the residents and local businesses that we are aware of the issue and are doing our best to tackle the problem; we are liaising with the local parish council and wardens. We will continue to patrol the area; we ask that you keep ringing 0845 8 505 505 especially on Friday and Saturday nights when Operation Lion Cub is running.

ASB is rising at Twyford Rail Station, this could be linked to the ASB in Twyford High Street as the reports involve young people playing football and being abusive towards the taxi drivers. Racial abuse will not be tolerated and is an arrestable offence. If you are seen playing in an anti-social manner with a football in this area your ball will be confiscated, a train station is not a sensible place to play football.

We have had many reports of motorbikes and quad bikes being ridden on private property, across growing crops and near to people’s houses. The areas mostly affected are Wargrave and Twyford. This can be noisy, dangerous and intimidating. We ask that if you hear or spot any of these vehicles and they are being anti-social or riding on private property to try to take as much detail down as possible. We realise that they are fast but if you can record the number plate for us it can be very useful. We also ask that you call this into 0845 8 505 505 number as soon as possible so that we deal with the situation quickly. These vehicles can be hard to find as they can go down small path ways and across fields when we cannot.

There has been a report of ASB outside the shops on Longfield Road in Pennfields where mopeds have been riding around the private car park round the back of the shops and the riders have been abusive towards the local residents.

There have been numerous reports of ASB involving cars in the last month, the areas most affected are Wargrave and East Park Farm, Charvil. There have been two reports of cars driving in a dangerous manner in the car park of the Old Devil Inn, where they have been doing handbrake turns. Reports on dangerous driving down Braybrooke Road in the chalk pit. Those that have good music systems in their car; can you please be more considerate to your neighbours when playing your music. Your car is not an extension of your bedroom, not everyone will enjoy the same music taste, please keep the volume down and don’t play it late into the night.

Responding to to our neighbourhood priorites we continue to patrol Pennfields estate, Hurst, Wargrave and East Farm Park, Charvil addressing young people involved in ASB. We continue patrol areas in which criminal activity or ASB has taken place, which include the A4 corridor car parks, Sonning Cricket and Hokey club.

PCSO Anne Chalmers attended the local Sonning Parish Council meeting where she gave a police update and information on ASB and Op Lion Cub, she also attended the Ruscombe Parish Council meeting and the Hurst Parish Council meeting. PCSO Chalmers also attended the Sonning Neighbourhood Watch meeting.

PCSO Chalmers visited Sunrise to give a safety talk which was well received. A safe and sound talk was also given by PCSO Nicola Shepherd and PCSO Chalmers for the Hurst Air Scouts and Charvil Brownies which we enjoyed greatly.

A street briefing was held in Wessex Gardens with PC Terry Neblett, PCSO Shepherd and PCSO Chalmers. The main issue brought up was the problem with parking. We would like to remind people who use this area to park and commute using the train to park considerately. Don’t park too near another car or directly opposite, there needs to be enough room for emergency services to get through as this is a no through road.

A walkabout was held in Highfield Park, Wargrave, those who attended were; PC Neblett, PCSO Chalmers along with housing officers from Wokingham district council Anne Siobhan and the senior housing officer, environmental officers and 15 local residents. Areas of concern were graffiti in an ally way which was removed whilst there and a large hedge which needs cutting back.

A Have your Say Police Surgery was held at the Cricket Pavilion in Wargrave with PC Neblett, where local issues were discussed.

There will be a Have Your Say meeting on 12 June in Twyford Library from 10.30am-11.30am. There will also be one in Remenham Parish Hall on 14 June 7pm-8pm.

PCSO Shepherd will be holding a street briefing in Byron Road, Twyford on 20 of June at 3pm.

PCSO Nicola Shepherd carried out speed indication work out along the London Road in Twyford. A number of cars were seen driving over the speed limit; the owners will be sent a letter warning them of their speed. We are hoping to do more speeding enforcement and more Speed indication device work within the Northern Parish.

We are still working hard to patrol as often as possible in Station Road, The Grove and Wargrave, issuing fixed penalty notices to cars that do not hold a residents parking permit and have stayed over the time limit or to any parked on double yellow lines.

We have had recent reports of parking issues in Byron Road, Twyford where commuters park their cars obstructively blocking pavements. We have been giving out fixed penalty notices and reassuring the local residents that we will do all we can to help ease the problem.

We are aware of the concerns over parking during school drop off and pick up times. These concerns are raised by residents and parents. We will patrol during these times as regularly as possible. If you have any concerns or want to talk to one of the neighbourhood team please ring 0845 8 505 505 and ask to be put through to the Twyford police office.

You can contact your neighbourhood policing team by calling 0845 8 505 505

Thames Valley Police ~ Twyford