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 Lace those boots and practise your skills as the Faraday Road pitch is opening on Sunday 19 November! After months of hard work, the pitch is ready for communities and groups to use the ground for their leisure, with new temporary changing facilities and football goals for both children and adults.
Join us as we come together to celebrate community, sportsmanship, and the spirit of competition with two 5-a-side football games between AFC Newbury Boys and Girls FC and CSA 07 FC, as well as a fun penalty shootout. Refreshments will also be available.
We look forward to welcoming you as we see in a new era of community and sporting excellence at Faraday Road!
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Volunteers needed for Community Speedwatch |
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 Vehicles being driven too fast are a major factor in preventing people from enjoying where they choose to live, work and relax. Excess vehicle speed also contributes to the severity of any road traffic collision and impacts negatively on communities.
Our Road Safety team, along with many parish and town councils, are working with Thames Valley Police on a new scheme to reduce community concerns and tackle neighbourhood speed priorities.
There are currently 16 Community SpeedWatch (CSW) groups in West Berkshire and they are looking for volunteers to help them make a difference. If you have any spare time and would like to get involved, please email: CSW@westberks.gov.uk
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 The number of secondary school places for children with social, emotional and mental health (SEMH) needs in West Berkshire was given a boost when The Castle@Theale opened its doors last year.
Now, completely refurbished and officially opened last week, the new facility is a satellite of The Castle School in Newbury and will provide a much-needed additional 42 SEMH places within the district. You can read more here.
 Do you know a person or community group who has made an amazing contribution to your community this year? You can recognise their efforts and say thank you to them by nominating them in the Community Champion Awards.
This year there are four categories: Community Group of the Year, Lifetime Achievement Award, Pat Eastop MBE Junior Citizen of the Year Award and Volunteer of The Year. Full details here.
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With over 1,500 members of staff corporately, plus additional members of staff working across our local schools and education settings, we're one of the largest employers in the area. There are lots of reasons to consider a career with us - from the wide range of services we provide to the training and benefits we offer.
Current vacancies include:
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 Thinking of Fostering? There’s a strong community waiting to support you.
We spoke to our foster carers at their recent Halloween party about why they love being part of their local hubs. You can find out more about fostering in West Berkshire here.
A recent visit from Ofsted has found young adults leaving care in West Berkshire continue to be well supported, and living in homes they have chosen and feel safe in.
The inspection looked at our children’s services, specifically the arrangements for young people leaving our care. In addition, it was noted that our young people are supported to develop the independence skills needed for adulthood and that the assistance they need is very accessible to them.
Heather Codling, Executive Member for Children, Education and Young People's Services says, “The findings from this visit are very positive and encouraging. We are clearly providing timely support and assistance to help our young care leavers transition to adulthood, which is often a challenging time.
“However, there is always room for improvement, and we have noted the recommendations of the Inspectors on where we can do better and are taking immediate action. These were around the quality and impact of management oversight and supervision, performance management and audit processes. We are committed to providing the very best level of support for our young people and will be working hard to make progress in the areas they have highlighted.”
Read more here.
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Our next forum will be delving deep into a topic that matters to many residents across our district: rural issues.
The forum will be held on 5 December 2023 at Club Room, Chieveley Village Hall, 6.00-8.00pm. As with the last forum, this forum will operate in a hybrid manner, with attendees able to attend in person or online via zoom.
Our rural communities play a vital role in shaping the character of our district. We understand that issues such as security, public transport, and housing significantly impact your quality of life. Our forum will focus on crucial aspects like:
- Working with the Community
- Rural Housing
- Transport
- Insights from the Rural Business Forum
Chairing the forum will be Cllr Tony Vickers, Portfolio Holder for Planning & Community Engagement, with Cllr Denise Gaines, Portfolio Holder for Highways, Housing, and Sustainable Travel and Cllr Martin Colston, Portfolio Holder for Regeneration, Growth, and Strategy Development, sitting on the panel to discuss topics and answer any questions you may have.
We would appreciate it if you could indicate whether you will be attending, whether in person or virtually, by emailing Executivecycle@westberks.gov.uk. This is so that we can keep an eye on numbers and contact those wishing to attend if needed. This forum is an opportunity for your voice to be heard.
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 A Public Spaces Protection Order (PSPO) which is in place to ensure Newbury town centre can be enjoyed by everyone expires next year - and we want your views on whether it should be extended.
PSPOs allow local authorities to place restrictions and requirements on certain behaviours in an area, to make sure we can all use and enjoy public spaces, safe from anti-social behaviour. They can last for up to three years, but can be extended, varied or discharged during this period.
The current PSPO in Newbury town centre is due to expire in February 2024 and we’d like your views on whether it should be extended and varied. Our consultation will be live until 18 December 2023 and you can take part here.
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We value your views on the decisions we take. There are several areas we are currently holding consultations on, including:
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 We want our customers to be able to speak to us about anything and everything. This includes any issues or concerns they may have. We'd like your views on our draft policy, and for you to tell us if the documents are clear, easy to understand.
We'd also like to know about your experience raising complaints with the council; if you've encountered any problems and, if you raised concerns, were they addressed.
All the feedback we receive will be considered, analysed and used to develop the final policy, which will be included in a report submitted to elected members at an Executive meeting in early 2024. Once approved, you'll be able to find the revised policy on our Strategies, Policies and Plans and About Making a Complaint webpages.
To comment on our Draft Complaints Policy and Procedures, which should take about five minutes to complete, please visit our website by 5pm on Wednesday, 13 December 2023.
Students from The Willink School in Burghfield took part in a co-production workshop we hosted last Monday. The objective of the workshop was to look at improving the accessibility of valuable work experience for the students in this beautiful rural area.
The next step in the process is to find out what type of work experience local businesses can offer now that we are working in a hybrid environment. We hope to work towards a new offer that will benefit both students and businesses.
If you work in/own a business in the Burghfield, Tadley, Mortimer or Reading area, and feel you are able to offer work experience, please get in touch with cdesai@willink.w-berks.sch.uk .
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 Are you worried about your own or someone else’s alcohol or drug use? v-i-a offer free, non-judgmental, and confidential support to family members, friends and carers of people who use their service. If you’re worried about someone and would like some help and advice, get in touch with v-i-a's expert team.
For adults aged 18 and over, contact 0300 303 4554 or email: west.berkshire@viaorg.uk. For those aged 18 and under who live or study in West Berkshire, contact The Edge on 01635 582002 or email: theedge@viaorg.uk.
 West Berkshire Museum will be hosting a fascinating new, year long exhibition ‘From the Nile to Newbury: Exploring Life and Death in Ancient Egypt’, opening on Wednesday 15 November.
The exhibition will display objects collected at the start of the 20th Century (between 1909 and 1946) by one of the museum’s earlier curators, Harold Peake.
Visitors can explore the artefacts of an ancient civilization, from a mummified cat’s head, pottery that is twice as old as the pyramids and the intricate memorial of Irtierthai. You will find examples of Egyptomania and uncover the stories of who brought the collection to Newbury, including one of the earliest female Egyptologists.
West Berkshire Museum is open Wednesday to Sunday 10am to 4pm. Entry is free but donations are welcomed.
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Their Finest Hour digital collection day in Theale |
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We're holding a digital collection day at Theale Library next Monday (13 November) from 10-2pm as part of the Their Finest Hour project.
Their Finest Hour is a new initiative working to create a comprehensive digital archive of the incredible wealth of history and knowledge of the Second World War that lots of us hold either in our heads or our lofts.
Our Culture and Libraries team are looking for people to bring stories about their family’s wartime experience – and associated objects such as diaries, letters, medals, journals and ration books.
Come along to the Theale digital collection day and share your Second World War stories and objects ready to be recorded, digitised, and then uploaded to the Their Finest Hour online archive, which will be free-to-use and launch in June 2024.
Find out more here.
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And finally...
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