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Pic: Artists Leigh Drummond (left) and Dave
Ward beside the mural.
Pavilion makeover
A MURAL of famous cricketers, painted by
graffiti artists has transformed a village cricket pavilion.
Birstall Village Cricket Club's pavilion on the School Lane playing
field has been repeatedly covered in graffiti tags. The club
was spending hundreds of pounds on paint to cover it over and
were disappointed when their latest clean up operation only lasted
days before the graffiti vandals were back.
Andy Corbett, Junior co-ordinator at the club was contacted by
artist Dave Ward from Syston after he read about the vandalism
in the Mercury. Andy said: "I met up with Dave and he offered
to do a mural free of charge if we provided the materials. We
discussed a design and the club's committee decided to go ahead
with it."
He added: "I think it looks fantastic, it's great for the
cricket club but it's also for the whole of Birstall to enjoy."
The design features Andrew Flintoff, WG Grace, Paul Nixon and
Ricky Ponting. It took artists Dave Ward (32) and Leigh Drummond
(26) four days with aerosol sprays to complete and they attracted
a large crowd of young people who stopped to watch them work.
Dave, a graffiti artist for 20 years, said: "It can save
a lot of money having these murals on walls. I've a lot of respect
in the graffiti scene and lads aren't going to vandalise a mural.
They prefer to hit plain walls." Dave has recently completed
a mural for Earl Shilton Town Council on a large wall that had
become an eyesore. He painted a jungle design which has remained
undamaged.
Dave added: "I'm really pleased how the Birstall job has
turned out and now I'm looking to do more work with local councils."
The paint and materials cost £300 and was provided by Andy
Corbett from the £1000 he recently won after receiving
a Government award for tackling antisocial behaviour in the area.
The mural has received coverage on BBC Radio Leicester, East
Midlands Today and is also featured on the English Cricket Board's
Lords website.
More details about artist Dave Ward can be seen at www.kolorblindesignz.com
New community building
A NEW community building is planned for
the Hallam Fields development and residents, local groups and
organisations are being invited to come forward with expressions
of interest in using the new facility.
The building will be two storey, 5000 square feet, and will be
completed by the end of 2008.
The Parish Council will manage the building. Parish Clerk Hugh
Knight said: "The Parish council has been working for some
time with a range of partners to ensure that the new development
is well served with local facilities. We are very keen to ensure
that we create the capacity for the local community to develop
and for existing clubs and organisations in the village to have
the opportunity to serve the new development."
Readers are invited to contact the parish council giving an indication
of the level and times of use that they or their group might
require, and to make any other comments about the new building.
Email: info@birstallpc.org.uk or write to Birstall parish council,
Village Hall, Birstall Road, Birstall, Leicester LE4 4DH
o The estimated cost of the building is £700,000
o The contribution made by Jelson Ltd is £400,000
o Birstall Parish Council has budgeted £125,000 for the
building
o Charnwood Borough Council will contribute a sum, taken from
its budget for community projects in Charnwood villages, in the
region of £60,000
o A bid for funding has been submitted to the Big Lottery fund
and a decision is expected in September.
Bid to improve park
A PROJECT that aims to create pedestrian
and cycle links between Watermead County Park and the surrounding
villages is hoping for a share of lottery funding.
The £1.4million scheme for the park is a small part of
a larger bid called Connect 2, which is seeking a single grant
of £50million from the Lottery's Living Landmarks: The
People's Millions competition.
Projects bidding for the lottery cash will face the public vote
when they are featured in a TV programme scheduled for December,
with the money going to the projects with the most votes.
Plans for Watermead Country Park include:
o Resurfacing of paths from Birstall locks to Thurmaston, north
to the Hope and Anchor and beyond as far as Cossington.
o Refurbishment of the bridge at Birstall lock and at Thurmaston
lock.
The Connect 2 in Leicestershire project is a partnership between
Leicestershire County Council, Leicester City Council, Charnwood
Borough Council and Sustrans, the UK's leading cycling charity.
Ernie white, Cabinet Lead Member for Community Services, said:
"The scheme will remove cycling obstructions and connect
the Soar Valley Communities of Birstall, Syston, Thurmaston and
Cossington to each other and to Leicester. The key connection
will be through Watermead Country Park offering level cycling
in an attractive environment."
Patrick Davis, from Sustrans East Midlands, said: "Connect
2 is about bringing people together and helping them to make
local journeys without their cars. In other words, to burn carbohydrates,
not hydrocarbons!
In order to get through to the TV stage of the competition, members
of the public need to pledge their support for the scheme. To
do this or to find out more visit www.sustransconnect2.org.uk,
call 0845 0581373 or email connect2@sustrans.org.uk
Memories of Thurmaston
A BOOK that gives an insight into Thurmaston's
past is the first publication of the Thurmaston Heritage Group.
'Memories of Thurmaston' is a 72 page book with nostalgic
photographs of street scenes, class and village events, shops
and pubs and aerial views.
There is information on the village's history, industry and life
and the group says it is a must for past and present residents.
'Memories of Thurmaston' is priced at £9.99 and available
from Thurmaston Print Shop, 814 Melton Road, Thurmaston, Leicester
LE4 8BE (Tuesday to Friday 9am-5pm) or can be posted in the UK
for £2.50 or Europe for £3.50. Cheques made payable
to Thurmaston Action Group should be sent to the address above.
Parish Council notes
THE ANNUAL meeting of Birstall Parish Council
was held on May 14.
Stuart Jones was elected as chairman of the council
for the ensuing year and Tony Fowler was elected vice chairman.
The annual meeting was followed by the monthly meeting of the
council.
Police Inspector Cathy Yallop gave a presentation to the council.
She said the recent re-organisation of the Police and the creation
of a Charnwood Policing area would not affect policing in Birstall.
Current Police priorities in Birstall are antisocial behaviour,
graffiti and speeding. Priorities are updated after regular consultations
with key individuals in the community.
Councillors discussed the recent exhibition of the County Council's
proposals for traffic management on the A6 through Birstall.
Turnout had been good, it was reported. Comment was made that
there was little room for compromise as the plans had to conform
to Department of Transport guidelines.
New pavilion opened
BIRSTALL'S NEW sports pavilion on the School
Lane playing field was officially opened by the Mayor of Charnwood
in May.
Pic: Ken Pacey the Mayor of Charnwood opens
the new sports pavilion.
The £350,000 building has been provided by Birstall Parish
Council and contains four changing rooms, four shower rooms,
an official's changing area, a club room, a kitchen area and
a baby changing room.
Parish Council Clerk Hugh Knight said: "The previous facilities
were inadequate and did not meet modern health and safety standards.
The new building is an investment for the future that the people
of Birstall can use for years to come."
Chairman of Birstall Parish Council Stuart Jones said: "The
new pavilion will be of enormous benefit, especially to youngsters.
The comments we've had so far have been very positive, it seems
the facility is better than people were expecting."
The playing field and sports pitches are managed by the Parish
Council, with the pitches hired by sports teams playing football,
cricket and rounders. The use of the pitches is at maximum capacity,
says the Council.
Makeover transforms shop
A £70,000 refurbishment of a Birstall
butchers shop has proved a hit with customers.
Pic: Scott Langton in the shop
Trade doubled on the first full day of trading at J Michaels
newly extended store on Sibson Road.
The shop now opens onto the street with wide sliding glass doors
and there is a larger display area for customers to browse the
expanded stock which includes 30 types of cheese, fish and seafood,
organic meats, free range poultry, locally sourced Dexter Beef
from Barkby Thorpe and Henry Walker pies and sausages.
Pic: Deputy Mayor of Charnwood Roger Wilson
(right) cuts
the ribbon, held by David Michael
Owner David Michael said: "People are saying it's much more
spacious, it's more relaxed and easier to browse without the
feeling someone's going to jump on them while we're still here
to serve them.
Tigers player's Graham Rowntree and Matt Hampson were special
guests at the official opening of the store by Deputy Mayor of
Charnwood Roger Wilson.
Pic: Jennie Michael, Graham Rowntree, David
Michael, Scott Langton and Matt Hampson
Pic: Liam Pidcock serves Mrs Joan Haywood
at the barbeque
Pic: how the shop looked in 1957
The refurbishment, which also includes a new cold room and a
new freezer unit, received £7000 in aid from the Rural
Retail Development Grant, administered by the Rural Community
Council.
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Police report
The past month has once again been a busy one. I thought that
you may wish to know exactly what officers have been doing around
Birstall to tackle issues within the village, so here goes.
Since the beginning of May 2007 officers have arrested three
youths for burglary in the village, thanks to the prompt assistance
of a local resident who called the police in time for us to be
on the scene and apprehend the offenders. A plain clothes operation
has also been set in motion which saw a grand total of 75 youths
stopped and moved on where necessary over two nights, this operation
will continue on an ad hoc basis, also during these two nights
a large number of alcohol was seized from minors and tipped away,
a caution for possession of cannabis was given to one individual
and sever youths were taken home and advice given to them and
parents. Since this operation the local groundsmen have actually
commented that there has been less litter and damage around the
village.
Hi-visibility patrols have been put in place on Friday and Saturday
nights as part of an initiative with other local areas that suffer
from antisocial behaviour (ASB). On a similar vein and in line
with my previous article last month, I have spent a good amount
of time liasing with the Borough Council and the Housing Office
on Beaumont Leys and have now issued a joint warning letter to
youths involved in ASB in and around Birstall, as you can see
the youths are not just local and have therefore required extra
time and effort to locate and take the appropriate action against.
As I write I am aware of seven further youths who have been involved
in ASB in Birstall who have now been identified as responsible
for Criminal Offences, including damage and these will be arrested
in the near future.
I must congratulate the Birstall Village Cricket Club with their
mural. I would be interested to know how people feel about the
new look cricket club building as I did ask for ideas for pastimes
for the youths in Birstall and had been thinking of organising
a similar venture. I even have a kind hearted local resident
who has a wall fit for the purpose! Past experience has taught
me that getting youths involved in a structured and tasteful
piece of village artwork actually gives them a respect for something
that is theirs and of which they can say, with the fear of being
accused of damaging property, "Look, I did that!" Besides
a tasteful and professional mural with a friendly theme is certainly
better than the 'tag' style doodles that litter the village at
present. Would you welcome such an activity or not? Please let
me know, why not go and look at the cricket club pavilion and
then make your choice, and if you have got a good idea for the
youths to do, but haven't yet had a chance to tell me than please
get in touch. So far I have had two suggestions, one of which
does seem promising.
Speed checks have also started in the village with a number being
advised and in some cases Fixed Penalty Notices (Tickets) being
issued for speeding, these incur a £60 fine and three points
on your driving licence. One gentleman was reported for the offence
and will be going to court instead. These checks will continue
over the forthcoming weeks around the village.
Feel free to contact me at any time or alternatively drop in
to see me or PCSO Butler at the monthly advice shops, the next
one being on Saturday June 16, 2007 at the former Council Offices
on Sibson Road.
from PC 815 Chris Falle
To leave a voicemail dial 222 2222. You will need to enter 0815
when asked to do so.
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