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March
2006 Burnham-On-Sea News Headlines
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News
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 Wind
farm 'invalid' - planners
CONTROVERSIAL plans for a wind farm on the outskirts of Burnham-On-Sea
have been deemed "invalid" by district planners, we can reveal.
In a surprise twist on Friday (March 31st) the District
Council said inadequate information about access to the site had been
given.
More...
 Courage
Awards for brave five
BRAVE Burnham-On-Sea youngsters who have overcome difficulties
have been honoured at the town's 2006 Youth of Courage Awards. The
Rotary Club event is held every two years to celebrate the achievements
of local youngsters who have shown tremendous courage.
More...
 World
boxing champ visits Brean
FORMER world
boxing champion Duke McKenzie was the special guest at a night of local
boxing in Brean, near Burnham-On-Sea, on Thursday March 30th. The
former WBO and European Flyweight Champion joined an audience of more
than 400 people for a dinner boxing evening at Brean Leisure Park. More...
 Town
seafront gets a battering
HIGH tides
and strong winds combined to give Burnham a battering on Thursday morning,
March 30th. The
town's flood gates at the top of the jetty and Maddock's Slade were
closed by the Environment Agency as a precuation, as the stormy weather
conditions hit the area. More...
 New
homes plan wins backing
PLANS to
build 12 new homes on a patch of derelict land near Burnham-On-Sea have
this week been given the thumbs-up by town planners. The
proposal for a dozen new properties on land bordering Naish Road and
Berrow Road were backed by planners at a meeting on Tuesday night. More...
 14
new wind farm photos unveiled
A NEW set of photos has been released showing how the controversial
wind farm planned for the outskirts of Burnham-On-Sea would look if
it gets the go-ahead by local planners. Ecotricity,
the company behind the scheme, has released 14 photos of the five wind
turbines from different local spots.
More...
 Council
strike hits Burnham
SCORES of
council staff in Burnham-On-Sea and Highbridge joined a nationwide strike
in protest at changes to their pensions on Tuesday. Several council-run
services in the area were disrupted as workers walked out for 24 hours,
but the towns were not severely affected.
More...
 Night
club to re-open in April
FEARS that
a Burnham-On-Sea night club may be closing down have been dismissed
after the owner said that it is to relaunch in April. Shakers
in the High Street has been closed for several weeks, prompting concerns
among clubbers that the night spot might be shutting for good. More...
 Cliff
plunge dog not found
A COUPLE who lost their dog when
it ran over the edge of cliffs at Brean Down, near Burnham-On-Sea, returned
on Monday for a renewed attempt to try and find the animal. But despite
a big search of the area, David Staynings and Diana Benjamin did not
find their four-year-old greyhound. More...
 New
Sanders pet centre opens
HUNDREDS of
animal lovers flocked to the official opening of Sanders Garden World's
new Pet and Aquatic Centre on Saturday, March 25th. Pauline
Kidner, Founder of Secret World wildlife rescue centre, declared the
new Pet and Aquatic Centre open alongside Weston-super-Mare's mayor.
More...
 Town
pupils hear about RNLI
BURNHAM-On-Sea RNLI's visits and education officer Tony Deahl
has been busy explaining to youngsters at King Alfred School the job
of the life-saving lifeboats service and the need for continued fundraising.
He was among several RNLI staff at the Higbridge school this week. More...
 Dog
lost in fall at Brean Down
A TORCH-lit search of Brean Down was called off by Burnham-On-Sea
Coastguards on Sunday night after a dog believed to have fallen over
the steep cliffs was not found. The
animal's owners had been walking their greyhound along the top of the
Down when it ran over the cliffs.
More...
Wind
farm power row erupts
A WAR of words
has broken out between campaigners fighting a wind farm near Burnham-On-Sea
and the company proposing the scheme regarding the amount of power that
the turbines would generate. KNOll
to Windfarm say it is "confused" by the figures supplied by
Ecotricity.
More...
 Paramedics
rush to eldery man
TWO teams
of paramedics raced to help an elderly man who collapsed in a Burnham-On-Sea
pub on Sunday lunchtime. The
man, believed to be in his 70s, suffered breathing problems and collapsed
at around 1.15pm in a corridor at the Reed's Arms
pub on Burnham seafront. More...
 Scouts
visit town's hovercraft
A GROUP of scouts from Worle, near Weston, met the crew members who
run Burnham-On-Sea's rescue hovercraft during a special visit recently.
A group of a dozen children from the recently formed Second Worle Scout
Group were shown around the hovercraft and given safety advice.
More...
 Council
strike 'won't disrupt Burnham'
BURNHAM-On-Sea
residents have been reassured that a huge nationwide strike by council
staff on Tuesday March 28th should not cause too much disruption in
the town. A
shutdown of public services is threatened when unions hold the action,
but council bosses say we won't be affected. More...
 Rebels
unveil replacement rider
BOSSES
at the Burnham-On-Sea based speedway team Somerset Rebels have
moved swiftly to cover for injured Czech International Pavel Ondrasik
by signing Geramn rider Stephan Katt as his replacement. Katt rode for
the team in 2003, when he took part in 30 meetings.
More...
 Seafront
drinking crackdown
MORE than
a dozen signs like this one will be appearing along Burnham-On-Sea seafront
in coming weeks as the town launches a fresh crackdown on anti-social
drinking. Burnham-On-Sea.com
learns that fourteen of the signs are to be installed along The Esplanade.
More...
 Traders
voice market fears
BURNHAM-On-Sea
shop owners this week gave a cautious welcome to plans for a three-day
continental market to be held on the town's seafront this summer. Further
details about the event were unveiled by Town Centre Manager Anne-Marie
Spalding
on Wednesday evening, March 23rd. More...
 Rebels
rider 'recovering well'
ONE of the leading members of the Burnham-On-Sea based Somerset Rebels
speedway team, Pavel Ondrasik, is recovering well after undergoing surgery
on Wednesday following an accident at the weekend in which he broke
his wrist. The Checz star had the operation in Prague. More...
 Wind
scheme reaches planners
CONTROVERSIAL plans for a wind farm on the outskirts of Burnham-On-Sea
were officially submitted to district planners on Wednesday. Burnham-On-Sea.com
reported on Monday that the bid would reach Sedgemoor District planners
this week - and that's just what happened.
More...
Barrage
referred to Deputy PM
THE £650
million bid to build a huge Severn barrage between Brean Down, near
Burnham-On-Sea, and Wales has been referred to the Deputy Prime Minister,
we can reveal. The proposal for a 1km wide barrage was unveiled earlier
this month by entrepreneur Gareth Woodham. More...
 Bishop
visits Burnham school
A BURNHAM-On-Sea school which is celebrating
its 150th anniversary this year was visited by the Bishop of Bath and
Wells this week. The Right Revnd Peter Price, Bishop of Bath and Wells,
visited St Andrew's School in Dunstan Road on Monday - much to the delight
of pupils and staff. More...
 Firefighters
tackle heath blaze
FIREFIGHTERS
from across Somerset tackled a major heathland fire at Crook Peak, near
Burnham-On-Sea, on Monday March 20th. Seven crews from Somerset Fire
and Rescue service dealt with the large gorse fire on the northern side
of the hillside, which raged for more than four hours. More...
 Free
bus passes for over 60s
BURNHAM-On-Sea residents over 60 years old and certain
categories of people with disabilities will soon be able to travel free
on buses across the county. Sedgemooor
District Council announced this week that it and the County Council
are launching a new Travelpass Scheme.
More...
 Court
rejects racist claims
A MOTHER who claimed her son was racially abused at a fee-paying school
in Burnham-On-Sea lost her claim for damages on Monday March 20th. Aliya
Smethurst had claimed her son Mikhail was called "mud face"
as a six-year-old at St Christopher's School, but the court rejected
the claim. More...
Wind
plan goes to planners
CONTROVERSIAL plans for a wind farm on the outskirts of Burnham-On-Sea
will be submitted to planners this week. Ecotricity,
the company behind the scheme, told Burnham-On-Sea.com on Monday March
20th that its proposal would reach planners within 48 hours.
More...
Speedway
man injured in crash
ONE of the leading members of Burnham-On-Sea's Somerset Rebels speedway
team could be out of action for at least a month after breaking his
wrist in an accident over the weekend. New Czech signing Pavel Ondrasik
was involved in an accident on Saturday night. More...
 Sunshine
boost for traders
LONG-awaited Spring sunshine brought the crowds into Burnham-On-Sea
on Sunday, putting a smile back onto the faces of traders in the town.
The weather was welcome news for the tourist trade which has been suffering
from a late start to Spring caused by cold weather. More...
 School
celebrates 150 years
A BURNHAM school which is celebrating its 150th anniversary has being
attracting former pupils, parents and teachers with an exhibition charting
its history. Stephen James, head teacher at St Andrew's, opened the
doors this week to let people join in with the celebrations. More...
 Burnham
man shot himself
A BURNHAM-On-Sea man suffering after the death of his wife shot himself
because he could not cope without her, an inquest was told this week.
Peter Whitcombe, 66, of Old Burnham Road, killed himself at Jaycroft
Road after tragically suffering the loss of his wife to cancer. More...
 Celebrity
chefs draw crowds
A
CROWD of over 3,000 people watched three top TV celebrity chefs perform
cookery demonstrations and workshops at a popular food fayre in Brean
on Thursday (March 16th). Lesley Waters, Ed Baines and Martin Blunos
appeared at the annual 2006 Somerset Food Fayre. More...
 Matthew
just misses top spot
BURNHAM-On-Sea
fashion student Matthew Bowkett just missed out on first place in the
final of Sky One's reality TV series Project Catwalk on Thursday
night. But
the 21 year-old from Stoddens Road is quite rightly proud of his overall
second place in the overall series. More...
 Angry
motorist writes to PM
AN ANGRY Burnham-On-Sea motorist has written to Prime Minister
Tony Blair demanding stiffer sentences for vandals who commit so-called
'petty' crimes. Dee Emery, pictured, has contacted 10 Downing Street
after her family's car was attacked in a Burnham street. More...
 Lighthouse
sprouts extra leg!
BEACH walkers
in Burnham-On-Sea were forgiven for taking a double take at the town's
low lighthouse this week after it appeared to sprout an extra tenth
leg! But there was no need for concern - the famous landmark was simply
getting a spring clean and a makeover thanks to a fresh lick of paint.
More...
 Highbridge
rail services boost
COMMUTERS in
Burnham-On-Sea have been handed a boost from train operator First Great
Western, which has announced several new services for Highbridge Railway
Station. From December, there will be 21 trains to the north and 22
to the south
each day - an increase on the current service. More...
 Clothing
leaflets caution urged
RESIDENTS in
Burnham-On-Sea are being advised to be "cautious" about responding
to a leaflet being dropped through town letterboxes which encourages
donations of clothing for the third world. Scores of the leaflets were
delivered across the Burnham area this week.
More...
 Big
crowds to watch TV chefs
A CROWD of up to 3,000 people is expected to watch three top
TV celebrity chefs when they perform cookery demonstrations and workshops
at a popular food fayre in Brean on Thursday (March 16th). Lesley Waters,
Ed Baines and Martin Blunos will appear at the annual event. More...
 Lights
spark Coastguard alert
BURNHAM-On-Sea Coastguard was called
out in the early hours of Saturday morning, March 11th, after a visitor
became concerned about a set of lights on the town's beach. The alarm
was raised at 1am when the man spotted several lights on the sands south
of the town's lighthouse.
More...
 Animal
lovers at garden centre
DOZENS of
animal lovers flocked to Sanders Garden World, near Burnham-On-Sea,
at the weekend when it hosted an Animal Care Day to tie in with the
upcoming opening of its brand new Pet and Aquatic Centre. Staff from
Secret World rescue attended the one-day event.
More...
 Sand
yachts compete at Brean
BITTERLY cold winds and snow showers
failed to put off 20 sand yachting enthusiasts from gathering on Brean
Beach, near Burnham-On-Sea, on Sunday March 12th. The
current leader of the British Land Yachting Championships, Martin Leach,
was in top form
at the two-day event. More...
 Show
is a blooming success!
A GROUP of green-fingered Burnham-On-Sea
residents was celebrating on Saturday March 11th after winning trophies
at the town's Spring horticultural show. More than 200 entries were
submitted to the annual event, ranging from flowers and cookery items
to photos and
artwork. More...
 RNLI
appeals for volunteers
BURNHAM-On-Sea
lifeboat station has appealed for new volunteer crew members, shore
helpers and tractor drivers to come foward. The station said on Saturday
it urgently requires crew and a tractor driver, who must be available
in the daytime. Full RNLI training will be given.
More...
 Two
cars collide in A38 crash
ONE person was taken to hospital
with neck injuries after a two-car accident on the A38 near Burnham-On-Sea
on Saturday morning (March 11th). Paramedics
and police were called to the scene, outside the Orchard Inn at Highbridge,
shortly after 10.30am
- but no-one was seriously injured. More...
Green
Party attacks barrage plans
THE Green Party said this week
it has "deep
misgivings" about the scale of the huge Severn
Barrage being planned between Brean Down and Wales, but the party
said it was pleased that the "looming energy crisis" would
be put back on the agenda by coverage of the £650million plan.
More...
 Thieves
target elderly woman
BURNHAM-On-Sea police are appealing
for witnesses after an elderly woman was the victim of a distraction
theft at a supermarket in the town. The
victim was shopping in Tesco at Love Lane at about 2pm on Thursday March
9th when she was approached by a man and a woman.
More...
 Town
carnival 'under threat'
THE future of Burnham-On-Sea's
carnival is under serious threat because of a lack of volunteers, says
the man running the popular annual event. Carnival Chairman Mike Young
warned this week that if more volunteers are not found, the annual winter
carnival's future could be in jeopardy.
More...
 TV
star Matthew reaches final
BURNHAM-On-Sea fashion student Matt Bowkett reached the final
of Sky One's Project Catwalk TV show on Thursday night (March
9th) when he beat three other contestants vying for a place in next
week's grand final of the programme which will be held at London Fashion
Week. More...
 Easter
switch-on for new lights
SIXTEEN extra illuminations are to be switched on along Burnham-On-Sea's
seafront over the next few weeks. A second set of colourful blue and
white lights between the Tourist Information Centre and Sailing Club
are to be installed before Easter, it was confirmed this week. More..
 Town's
holiday brochure is launched
BURNHAM-On-Sea's 2006 holiday brochure
was officially launched at a travel industry event in Brean this week.
The 'More of a Holiday 2006 Sedgemoor' publication was unveiled at the
Somerset Holiday Literature and Catering Trade Show at Brean Leisure
Park on Tuesday
morning. More...
 New
photos of wind farm plan
NEW photos showing what the proposed
wind farm on the outskirts of Burnham-On-Sea will look like have been
released this week by the pressure group fighting the scheme. The
'kNOll to Wind Farm' group issued the photos to show how the five wind
turbines will look. More...
 Carnival
cash boost for groups
GROUPS from across Burnham-On-Sea
received cash windfalls this week from the town's Carnival organisers.
The
Burnham and Highbridge Carnival Committee handed over more than £6,250
of donations to representatives of 14 groups when they gathered at the
town's Ritz Club (pictured).
More...
 Woman
injured after crash
TRAFFIC was disrupted through the
Isleport Industrial Estate, near Burnham-On-Sea, on Monday morning after
a rush-hour accident. The accident occurred at 8.45am when a Mercedes
van collided with a Toyota MR2 sports car.
The female driver was taken to hospital suffering with neck and shoulder
pain. More...
 Skittles
raise fun and funds!
SKITTLES players
flocked to Highbridge over the weekend to take part in a two-day fundraising
event for Burnham’s rescue hovercraft. The skittles marathon was
held at the George Inn on Saturday March 4th and Sunday March 5th in
aid of BARB. Run by charity fundraiser Mikki Tilley,
it raised £170. More...
 Music
scheme for High Street
PEOPLE wandering along Burnham High Street could soon
be entertained with background music from the town's band in an effort
to get shoppers to return more regularly. A proposal to play 'homely'
music from several speakers along the street has been put forward
and is now under consideration. More...
 Radio
DJs take on Rebels riders!
RIDERS
from
the Burnham-On-Sea based Somerset Rebels took on the DJs from Somerset's
Orchard FM during a special go-garting challenge on
Saturday March 4th.
The
fast-paced event was full of thrills and spills and was watched by large
crowds. Find out who won with our report. More...
 Lifeboat
station holds AGM
MORE than
40 crewmembers and supporters of Burnham-On-Sea RNLI gathered in the
town's Sailing Club for the group's annual meeting on Friday night,
March 3rd. During the meeting, three of the station's helmsmen were
presented with competency certificates by RNLI Divisional Inspector
Simon Pryce. More...
£650m
barrage plan unveiled
A HUGE £650 million project
to build a barrage between Brean Down and Lavernock Point in Wales has
been submitted to district planners this week. Burnham-On-Sea.com spoke
to Gareth Woodham, the wealthy entrepreneur who is behind the project,
which will link England and Wales. More...
 TV
thriller for Burnham's Matt
FOLLOWERS of Burnham fashion student
Matt Bowkett were kept on the edge of their seats on Thursday night
(March 2nd) when he only just managed to avoid being booted off Sky
One's Project Catwalk TV show. He had been tasked with making
an outfit for Top Shop,
but struggled. More...
 Garden
centre celebrates five years
STAFF and customers at Sanders
Garden World, near Burnham-On-Sea, will be celebrating the garden centre’s
fifth birthday next week, March 14th. The
centre has played host to more than five million customers since opening
in March 2001 and is marking its anniversary with several events.
More...
 Round
Table cash up for grabs
NEEDY groups in Burnham-On-Sea
and Highbridge are being invited to step forward and make a claim
for a pot of cash. Burnham Round Table has a surplus of money left over
after a successful year of fundraising, which it wants to distribute
to local groups
who apply over the next few weeks. More...
 Icy
start to spring for town
BURNHAM-On-Sea
shivered in a winter chill on Wednesday, March 1st, as snow and sub-zero
temperatures struck on a day seen by some as the start of Spring. Several
light downfalls of snow passed through the town on Wednesday, briefly
leaving some on the ground,
and leaving impressive wintry scenes. More...
 Vehicle
stolen from Burnham street
THIEVES
drove
away an expensive people carrier vehicle from central Burnham-On-Sea
on Tuesday night, February 28th. The vehicle was stolen from a parking
area in Cross Street, near The Esplanade, between 7pm and 10.45pm.
Police conducted enquiries in the area on Wednesday and are appealing
for information. More...
 Burnham
scoops lotto windfall
MEMBERS
of the Burnham-On-Sea and Highbridge Regeneration Partnership are celebrating
after securing a huge grant from the Big Lottery fund for almost £127,000.
The money will be used to help the regeneration of the towns through
the appointment of a person to oversee the work. More...
More
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