A ROW over the work of town councils during the pandemic erupted over the summer. Borough council leader John Halsall told a meeting of the council that Earley and Wokingham town councils had been asleep for 18 months “with no evidence that either body has done anything material in that time”, something angrily denied by the Lib Dems who ran both town councils.
Cllr Halsall called on the councils to praise the surge testing programmes that had been set up at short notice, saying the borough council had the green light to go ahead with it on Friday evening and the project was up and running by Monday morning.
“That’s fantastic, leading the way,” he said.
There was more anger as Cllr John Kaiser, the council’s deputy leader, poor people voted for opposition parties. He made the comments during a debate about Gorse Ride. Afterwards, Cllr Kaiser said: “The point I was trying to make is that Labour claim to stand up for the least well-off in our society, but don’t live up to that in their words and actions. They don’t want to talk about how we (the Conservatives) are helping the poorest in our community and instead want to manufacture a row about the word I used … they are stoking up division rather than doing something to help people.
“Residents will take a dim view of Labour’s attempts to start a class war.”
An anonymous donor was helping a Wokingham-based charity. First Days said that it had been receiving regular gifts for six months. The mystery gifter had been selecting items that they knew the charity needed and had them delivered to their new depot in Mollys Millars Lane. The charity’s CEO, Emma Cantrell, said it was moving that people wanted to help in this way, adding: “They seem to always know what we need”.
Arborfield youngster Charlie Kristensen received The Diana Award for his anti-bullying campaign #Cheer Up Charlie, which stemmed from his own experiences. He has trained as a Diana Ambassador and said the award was a dream come true.
Pupils at The Holt School uneveiled a memorial to James Furlong, the teacher murdered during the Forbury Gardens terrorist attack. The artwork is a mosaic by artist Gary Drostle that depicts a golden heart surrounded by symbolic images including a circle of hearts, a rainbow and the words passion, courage, dedication, integrity and humour.
Covid rates continued to bob along at around 100 cases per 100,000 people, as the vaccination programme continued. However, there were regional pockets of infection. The Palmer Park area of Reading saw rates hit 1,690 per 100,000 people, while parts of Woodley had so few cases they didn’t register on the government’s covid map.
The Berkshire West Clinical Commissioning Group announced the launch of a mobile vaccination bus which would help reach people who could miss out on a jab because they couldn’t get a vaccination centre.
All covid restrictions were to end on Monday, July 19, and in readiness Wokingham Borough Council announced that it would use covid marshals to patrol the streets during the evenings.
There was also some anger that publications featuring columnists calling the pandemic a hoax were being placed in Wokingham Today’s display stands in the borough’s leisure centres and people had picked them up thinking they were getting the latest issue of your favourite local newspaper.
The impact of Marcus Rashford’s campaign for the free school meal programme to carry on throughout the school holidays continued to be felt, with Woodley Lunch Bunch promising that its Grub Club would return for families who needed it, pointing out the vouchers provided by the government only covered the children receiving free school meals, not the family. The Grub Club in Wokingham expected to feed 129 children and their parents during the year.
Bracknell MP James Sunderland called on schools to be able to restrict self-isolation. At the time, if one pupil came down with covid, the whole class needed to self-isolate for 10 days. “We owe it to our children to get back to normal,” he said.
Events started to be held again, including the return of the Hurst Show. Covid restrictions were in place to ensure the event went ahead safely, including using four venues for the weekend-long event. Money raised went to Alexander Devine Children’s Hospice and Just Around The Corner.
The Sonning 10k returned and saw more than 400 runners join in the fun. First home was Mark Worringham from Reading Roadrunners, who completed the course in 35 minutes and 48 seconds.
Wokingham Pride returned with a covid-safe gathering by the town hall, a small parade and a picnic in Elms Field. It is hoped that the 2022 event will be bigger and better.
Tribute band festival Marvellous returned to Dinton Pastures, bringing with it a weekend of musical fun for 6,000 people. The event was held with covid-safe precautions in place and judged to be a success.
Tributes were paid to Twyford see-sawing ace Dave Turner, who campaigned hard for the village to have a new library at Polehampton Boys School. Cllr Lindsay Ferris said: “He was very committed to Tywford and the surrounding community.”
The Mill at Sonning announced that it was to rename its auditorium in honour of playwright and master farce writer Ray Cooney, after help and support he had given the theatre during the pandemic.
Shinfield Studios was going to be joined by a new TV studio, as part of the University of Reading’s Cine Valley project.
Throughout the month, Wokingham celebrated England’s success in the Euro 2020 tournament. The team reached the final and punters flocked to the reopened pubs to enjoy the tournament in safety. Sadly, England lost a penalty shoot-out and emerged as runners-up, but it was good to be back in the pubs again.
And there was more good news from the pub sector: The Pheasant inn in Winnersh was to reopen with new owners, who promised a fusion menu and a complete revamp of the pub’s interior and exterior.
Elsewhere, The Rose Inn in Wokingham’s town centre announced that it would reopen in October following an extensive refurbishment.
It was announced that the name of the new primary school in Matthewsgreen would be St Cecilia, and it will open in September 2022.
Clothing retailer FatFace announced it was to shut its Wokingham branch at the end of August, although its Bracknell and Wokingham branches would remain open.
Council leader John Halsall expressed his desire that the Carnival Hub development would include a proper theatre space, with 450 seats and appropriate facilities. This was a change to the previously published aim of having a sports hall that could be used for arts events.
Wokingham’s twin town of Erftstadt suffered heavy flooding, leaving families homeless, following days of heavy rain. The town lost power, and the sewage works was forced to close. Torrents of water flowed through the streets.
Residents here, led by Wokingham Town Council and the Town Twinning Association, helped where they could with many responding to an online appeal. Wokingham Lions gave £1,000 to this.
A campaign to see a sixth form built at the Bohunt School in Arborfield continued, with parents warning that 89% of affected pupils would go to schools and colleges outside of the borough for their Year 12 and 13 studies as it was easier than crossing Wokingham.
Catsy revealed that he had a copycat – or copykit – after a young artist made some tribute artwork featuring a Catsy-style cat on a rainbow. He said it was “very touching”.
And spare a thought for Nick Salter, a man who does things by halves. He grew a big bushy beard during lockdown and then shaved half of it off toi raise more than £1,000 for Addison’s Disease Self-Help Group. The charity said that Nick’s half-beard photos “made our day”.
