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Daleks coming for Christmas lights switch-on

Spotted in the station car park this morning:

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Footbridge plans on public display

The Town Council says that a planning application has been submitted to Wiltshire Council for a new foot/cycle bridge between the Library and Kingston Mills.

The plans relating to this application will be on display at the Library from the afternoon of Friday November 20th for one week, during normal library opening hours.

This is your chance to examine the proposals in detail and form your own opinion.

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Forthcoming festive shopping

News comes from the Tourist Information Centre about some festive shopping events taking place in Bradford over the next few weeks:

Sunday 29th November – The French market will be returning 10 am to 5 pm in the Library car park.

Tuesday 1st December – Switching of the town Christmas lights, 6pm by the winner of ‘buy a Christmas bulb’ competition together with some surprise guests! Late night opening for town shops.

Sunday 13th December – Festive Sunday, 10 am to 5 pm, another opportunity to shop in idyllic surroundings as there will be carol singers, chestnuts roasting…

And finally: Bradford on Avon’s very own Christmas market, from Monday 14th December to Thursday 24th December – Many of you will be familiar with Bath Christmas market and Bradford on Avon have permission to transform Westbury Gardens into a festive shopping mall which will complement the established shops within the town.

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Local green charity wins £140,000 for Bradford

Local charity Climate Friendly Bradford on Avon has been awarded around £140,000 from the British Gas Green Streets energy fund.

The money will be spent on making local homes more energy efficient, and fitting solar panels on to one of the town’s schools.

More from the official British Gas announcement:

“Members of Climate Friendly Bradford on Avon impressed the judges with their strong community support.

“The group has ambitious plans to make Bradford on Avon carbon neutral by 2050. These plans include fitting 100 homes with energy efficiency measures and to install solar panels onto a local school. They also hope to boost their membership further, which currently stands at just over 400 and encourage more residents to embrace renewable and sustainable energy.

“The group beat two other projects from the South West region who pitched against each other to win a share of the Green Streets funding. In total almost 100 projects from across the UK applied for the British Gas Green Streets initiative, where a total of £2 million will be invested in innovative community energy projects across the UK.

“The programme will give groups the funding, support and technical expertise to generate their own energy, improve energy efficiency and bring the community together to do their bit in the fight against climate change. Installing micro-generation and energy saving technologies on local schools, village halls, churches and pubs will breathe a new lease of life into these community buildings, curbing running costs and benefiting the wider population by providing learnings that can be replicated in villages, towns and cities across the UK.

“Richard Craft, chairman of Climate Friendly Bradford on Avon, said: “This is fantastic news for Climate Friendly Bradford on Avon. It will be a great opportunity to demonstrate the passion and commitment of our supporters, as well as showing energy efficiency improvements that everyone can do. Our community is just one of thousands across the UK, and if we can do something positive about tackling climate change, everyone can.”

“Martin Orrill, Head of Energy Technology and Innovation at British Gas, who sat on the judging panel, said: “The level of support within this community is outstanding. I was very impressed with the huge participation from across the town. We were particularly encouraged by the ideas that Climate Friendly Bradford on Avon had to involve the whole community.”

“Subject to final survey and contract, Climate Friendly Bradford on Avon will be one of 14 projects from across the UK who will all receive a share of the £2 million funding pot. Next year, the projects will go head-to-head in a number of challenges to reduce energy use, generate local energy and increase support amongst members of their own community. Their progress will be monitored for a year by the independent Institute of Public Policy Research (ippr) think-tank and the project crowned Britain’s greenest community after a year stands to win a further £100,000 in funding from British Gas.”

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George Stone to retire, Mace will become Co-op

George Stone, owner of the Mace store on Winsley Road, will retire in the next two weeks. His store has been sold to the Co-op.

From the Wiltshire Times:

“The Mace foodstore in Winsley Road will retain its current staff and post office when the Southern Co-Operative take over on November 18. Shopkeeper George Stone, 78, and his wife Joan, 76, are retiring to Winsley, six decades after Mr Stone built the 3,000 sq ft shop in 1949.”

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Wiltshire Council starts homes planning consultation

Wiltshire 2026 is a campaign to get people thinking about the future of housing the county. In the light of recent protests from Bradford residents about plans for more homes on the old golf course, and the 10-year battle over what would happen with the Kingston Mills site, it might make interesting reading.

A travelling exhibition about the campaign will be at St Margaret’s Hall on November 19th.