Volunteers needed at the Befriending Network

The Oxfordshire Befriending Network is looking for volunteers for the next block of training sessions due to start in February 2012.

The Oxfordshire Befriending Network, which is part of Age UK, Oxfordshire, aims to improve quality of life for people suffering from terminal or life-threatening illnesses by providing trained volunteers to offer practical and emotional support in the home, hospital or hospice.

They offer free training over five sessions, where volunteers learn how to cope effectively with issues around end of life. They also offer on-going support after training has been completed.

Sue Westwood, Interim Specialist Services Manager at Age UK Oxfordshire said: "We urgently need to recruit more people to train to become volunteers, we currently have individuals waiting for the service who could be receiving the valuable support that our volunteers can provide, but we need to increase the number of trained people that we have available."

When the snow comes........

This time last year we had already been snowed in, this year it has been so warm it is hard to imagine it but if or when the snow comes, the village should be prepared.

Oxfordshire County Council has announced that they will no longer top up our 13 grit bins after the initial fill, which was done a couple of weeks ago. They have promised to replace the P.O. /Paine's Hill bin and the new yellow bins they dropped round the village last year with green ones, dug in. Despite reminders we are still waiting for this to be done.

This year OCC has provided, and the Parish Council delivered, bags of salt to volunteers who have agreed to monitor their nearby grit bin and re-fill when necessary. If this salt supply runs out the PC will have to order in, and pay for, some more to deliver to the volunteers at around £100 per ton. OCC are unhappy that so much salt is taken away for people's drives etc. It is there for the public roads and pavements. Salt can be bought easily at the moment from builder's merchants and DIY stores for home use.

It is important to use the salt sparingly, only a light sprinkling is needed to keep tarmac clear but this will not deal with deep snow which needs clearing first. The Parish Council has given a snow shovel, to each of the grit bin volunteers, for local use, please make sure you return it to the volunteer if you borrow one.

OCC have now promised to include Paines's Hill in their snow clearing schedule, previously it had been omitted, but Fenway still is not included. We will be relying on 'in village' clearance again if we have much snow as OCC admit they may well not get to the villages for a couple of days. If we do get snowed in, PLEASE try to keep your cars off the roads, or at least park sensibly only on one side if you can. This makes the snow clearing much more possible and avoids vehicles slaloming through the village.

Last year the village showed its team spirit as usual and people helped each other to get round or get supplies if needed. This was really appreciated and made things much easier for the less mobile. Particularly if you have a 4x4, keep an eye on your neighbours again and give them a hand.

Below is the list of volunteers and grit bin locations:
1. Fenway / opp. Bridleway Cathy Fleet
2. Shepherds Hill Kate Quist
3. Fenway /Bottom of Grange Park Roderick Nicholson
4. Grange Park The Whybrews
5. Church Corner David Kewley/Stuart Ferguson
6. opp. The School Bob Bickley
7. Paine's Hill John Coley
8. Post Office / Paine's Hill The Tosh's
9. Nizewell Head Marian Trinder
10. The Crescent Kevin Osbourne
11. Top of Jubilee Close Gordon Hallam
12. Foot of Jubilee Close / South Side The McKinleys
13. Red Lion Corner The Red Lion

Bicester Rural neighbourhood update - November 2011

Crimes

In North Aston there were two burglaries, one to a workshop where nothing was stolen and another to a yard where batteries were stolen from a container that was forced open and also another from a parked vehicle.

Good news stories

In relation to break in to sheds on Launton allotments, two people have been arrested and are on police bail pending further enquiries by Police.
A warrant was executed under the misuse of drugs act to a property in Steeple Aston. Officers found controlled substances and a male was arrested and has been released on Police bail for further enquiries to be carried out.
A male has been arrested and charged with the theft of scrap metal that took place recently in Piddington, he was due to appear in court in November.

Seasonal crime prevention advice

During the year we have had several reports of theft of heating oil from domestic properties. As the winter months are upon us and residents are purchasing heating oil I would like to take this opportunity to advise you on security in relation to preventing such thefts.
Here are a few crime prevention tips.

. Position your oil tank to allow maximum view from your property - this may discourage passing thieves
. Use control switches to stop the flow of oil when the tank is not in use
. Use good quality padlocks, close shackle are often best, to secure your tank
. Buy an oil level gauge which will sound an alarm if the oil level in your tank suddenly drops or falls below a quarter full
. Use security lights to make the property a less attractive target for thieves
. Defensive planting helps reduce crime - thieves don't want to force their way through or over a prickly hedge
. Additional security; a wooden or metal fence, trellis or wall can all offer additional protection, although the tank must be accessible for the oil tanker driver.

Contact

Thames Valley Police went live on 14th November with 101, the new national single non-emergency number, which will replace the 0845 8 505 505 number.
Both numbers will run side-by-side until the end of March, but if demand for the 0845 8 505 505 number drops it may be discontinued earlier.
Calls to 101 (from both landlines and mobile networks) cost 15 pence per call, no matter what time of day the call is made, or the duration of the call.
The routeing will be based on the same system as 999 calls which links a caller's dialling code to the police force that covers that geographic area. Calls from a landline will be routed to the nearest police force that covers the area's dialling code. If the caller is using a mobile, the call will be routed using the location of the mast that the phone is transmitting from.
If a call is made to 101 within a force area that has not yet 'gone live', the caller will hear a recorded message telling them to redial using the relevant non-emergency number.
I would like to take this opportunity to wish you all a happy and crime free Christmas and best wishes for the New Year.

Food Caddy Liners are here!

Until now, it's been necessary to go to a major supermarket or the Cherwell District Council offices to buy compostable liners for the small brown food caddies. But, at the request of the Parish Council, Cherwell has agreed to supply compostable caddy liners to Raj at the shop. This means they will be much more easily available to everyone in the village.

A roll of 40 liners at the shop costs just £3 (less than the supermarkets).

As requested by Cherwell, Raj will sell the liners at cost, and the small profit made on them will go to village charities to be decided by the Parish Council each year.

So no more messy caddies or soggy newspaper linings. Just visit the shop for your roll of liners, put a liner in your caddy, and any waste food in the liner. When the liner is full, put the liner and its contents into your brown garden bin for Cherwell to take away and recycle - quick, easy and simple.

Steeple Aston Football Club

Sometimes when you live in a village you assume that everyone knows all aspects of life that you yourself take for granted...times of the buses, who owns the paddock with the Soay sheep, what night they play Aunt Sally in the White or quiz night in the Red....or that Steeple Aston has a football team that has won the Lord Jersey Cup seven times since it was first contested in 1887 and since our first appearance in the Final in 1897. We are still proud to have veterans of the club (Messrs Royston Kinch, Eric Stevens, Anthony Cross, Steve Bell, Patrick Brock, Alex McPhee, Neil Brewer, Adam Peckham, and Christopher Cooper Jnr) who played in winning sides, living in the village.

The Club not only has a great tradition, of which we are rightly proud, but we also have some of the best facilities in the League and we have a reputation as a true village club which we strive to protect and enhance.

Like any club we are always trying to attract new players and as a club our aim is to provide local lads the chance to play a decent standard of football on a Saturday afternoon.

So if you are male, 16 or over and are interested in playing structured league football within the Banbury District & Lord Jersey Football Association - the season starts on the first Saturday in September - come along to training Tuesday and Thursday evenings at Robinson's Close, (the flat green space adjacent to the Village Hall) and get a proper 'pre-season' under your belt before representing your village club in those famous black & white colours.

We run a First XI (Premier Division B.D. & L.J.F.A.) and Reserve XI (Third Division B.D. & L.J.F.A.) and the respective managers Stuart Corby (07779274960) and Ian Pearce (07799888702) would be happy to tell you more at training.

Alternatively give Alan (01869 347756) the Club Secretary or Chris (01869 347933) the Club Chairman, a call.

Look forward to seeing you.

Reassuring letter from Chiltern Rail Chief

Mr Adrian Shooter, the Chairman of Chiltern Railways, who lives in Steeple Aston, has written to the website and to Steeple Aston Life to reassure villagers the Chiltern Railways service will not be affected by the proposed High Speed Rail link (HS2) from London to the West Midlands and beyond.

Space available in Pilates and exercise classes

There are still vacancies in the Pilates and exercise classes held on Mondays in the Village Hall. The exercise class starts at 11.15 am, and Pilates at 2.30 pm.

You can just turn up and give it a try, there’s no special clothing or equipment required.
The cost is not more than £4 per session.

CAB Caseworker Help for disabled & vulnerable

• Are you living with a hard to manage mental or physical condition?
• Do you need some help to cope?
• Our Specialist Caseworker can visit you at home, offer a full welfare benefits eligibility check, and help you to access other relevant support services within your community.

Contact us if you:

• Are under 60 years old, and
• Live in Oxfordshire, and
• Have limited ability to get around on your own, and
• Need support to continue to live independently

To discuss your requirements in complete confidence, please leave a message with your name and contact number for Lynn on 01608 646990

Have YOU ever thought about FOSTERING?

There is a recognised shortage of 10,000 Foster Carers in the UK. PACT, founded in 1911, is also known as the Oxford Diocesan Council for Social Work inc. We are a registered charity working to improve life chances for children. The focus of our work is within Berkshire, Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire and aims to build and strengthen families.

We are an approved Adoption and Fostering Agency. We have a history of finding safe, loving families for children in care. Here are a few facts about Fostering:

1.Did you know you don’t have to be married to become a Foster Carer?
2.You don’t have to have children already although you do need to have experience of caring for children.
3.Did you know you get paid a Fostering Allowance of £335.70 a week to be a Foster Carer which is tax free and won’t affect any other benefits?
4.Most of the children who need fostering are known as ‘hard to place’ children, they will usually be 8+ years of age.

Steeple Aston Baby and Toddler Group

If you have pre-school age children and are looking for a new activity, why not come along to Steeple Aston Baby & Toddler Group?

We meet every Thursday (including most school holidays) from 9.30 to 11.30 in the village Sports & Recreation Hall.

Our friendly, parent-run group has plenty of toys and craft activities to occupy children while grown-ups catch up over tea and coffee. The cost is £1.50 (per family) per session.

For further information contact either
Emily Burt (01869 349198) or
Emily Robinson (01869 347194)