 Christmas window winners bring festive fun to towns
The results are in! Congratulations to the winners of our first ‘Best Dressed Christmas Window’ competition. See the winning entries on our Facebook page:
Well done to the three winning businesses! A huge thank you to all who entered the competition and to everyone who voted.
We received close to 900 votes and the three winners won the most out of all entries in their area.
Thirty seven businesses signed up for the competition. If you haven’t been out to see their fantastic festive window displays, there’s still time to do so while getting some final shopping done this week.
 Dedicated librarian retires after more than 30 years
Our libraries team has said a fond farewell to a colleague who has retired after many years of dedicated service.
Philippa Tegg decided to retire after turning 70 in the summer, when her colleagues at Lower Earley Library held a birthday party for her. Her face will be familiar to many, as she has worked in all the libraries in Wokingham Borough and Reading during her career, as well as in Newbury.
She has lived in Earley since 1982, having grown up north of the River Thames in the Oxfordshire countryside.
After serving in the Women’s Royal Naval Service and working in insurance, she joined Berkshire County Council in 1992, six years before Wokingham Borough Council was formed as a unitary authority.
Philippa said: “I shall miss all the interactions that happen every day, seeing the familiar faces and keeping up with everyone.
“Libraries are essential for those little conversations that go on between staff and customers, many of whom visit regularly – not just for books, but mainly for chance to chat. The impact of the library service on people’s health and wellbeing should never be underestimated.”
 The most read stories from 2023
With this, our penultimate Residents Round-up of the year, it’s a good time to showcase our most read stories from 2023. In case you missed them:
All of these are on our new council website and new news hub, launched this summer.
 Progress on our first solar farm
Plans for our first solar farm near Barkham are looking bright, following an official grid connection offer from Scottish and Southern Electric Networks (SSEN).
The offer confirms the farm could start feeding power into the grid by August 2026, more than a decade earlier than the 2037 we were advised of in March this year. This is a significant and positive step forward in delivering the project.
The solar farm, once up and running, could generate enough green renewable energy to power thousands of homes and businesses.
As well as supporting the carbon reduction targets in our Climate Emergency Action Plan, the project will help raise income by selling power generated into the grid.
 Helping businesses do more in 2024
We recently offered free advice and guidance on starting a new business or taking an existing one to the next level at a drop-in session.
In support of Small Business Saturday, a national campaign that champions small businesses, we partnered with Berkshire Growth Hub and Federation of Small Businesses to hold our first drop-in session after the pandemic. This was part of our continued support to the local business community.
Entrepreneurs, mostly from micro and small businesses had a chance to discuss many aspects of starting, running or growing a business with our team and partner organisations.
The most common topics included getting funding, finding suitable premises, and stepping up marketing and promotion. Some visitors wanted to know more about legal protection, insurance and human resources.
 Useful links for the festive break
We’ll have a full reminder with all the details you’ll need for the Christmas break in Friday’s (22 December) Residents’ Round-up.
Watch out for Christmas scams
Our partners at the Public Protection Partnership have put together 12 of the most common Christmas scams residents fall victim to. They include advice on how to spot them. These include:
- Fake phone calls
- Parcels and safe Christmas deliveries
- Fake donations sites and more
Check the Public Protection Partnership website for full list of advice and tips. The Friends Against Scams website can also help with support.
What you might have missed
- There's still a few tickets left for free festive film screenings at Wokingham Leisure Centre (Carnival Hub) this Friday (22 December). Book your space on the Places Leisure website
- Looking for a new role to start in 2024? We’ve got roles in social work, engagement officers, procurement and more. Check our jobs board for the latest vacancies
- If you’re looking to keep up with what’s going on in your local area, check our list of online social media groups you could join
|
