Isle of Wight News on Ventnor Blog

Sounds like most of the Island is experiencing a visit of the soft white stuff again.

Reports are coming in that there’s snow in Freshwater, St Helens, Newport, Ryde, Shanklin, Sandown, Shorwell, Cowes and even here in Sunny Ventnor.

Update: Wootton and Seaview also seeing snow.

Let’s hope that we don’t get quite as much as last time.

Image: Little Rotten Robin under CC BY-ND 2.0

You may have read previously about offers to your dog micro-chipped or bicycle security marked at various point on the Island, but found you haven’t been close to where it’s been happening.

Well, this Saturday it’s being made available in Rookley and Arreton.

Two weeks later, on Saturday 6 February, it will also be on the move to Nettlestone, St Helen’s, Bembridge and Brading.

Details
Have a click on the names, the times and locations are detailed OnTheWight – you might find some other things to do while you’re there.

Image: Mark Watson (kalimistuk) under CC BY 2.0

If you haven’t already seen them, the last of the statutory notices stemming from the school reorganisation have been published.

Statutory notices for Brading CE Primary and St Helens Primary are published today with the notices for Shalfleet CE Primary and Yarmouth CE Primary following next week.

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Police are appealing for witnesses who may have seen a man just before his death yesterday. If you can help, please use the contact details below to get in touch with them.

At 3.54pm yesterday afternoon (Monday 26th October), 77 year old John Rhodes from Sandown, was driving a grey Mercedes A160 from St Helen’s towards Brading on the B3330 Carpenters Road.

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These guys are so busy, we’re not sure how do they ever have time for anything else?

Yes folks, X-Directory are back and this time they’re going to be rocking out St Helens.

Head to The Vine Inn if you want to hear the best of The Clash, The Pistols, The Damned, The Buzzcocks, Undertones or Ramones.

Kicking of about 9pm, get there early to secure you place at the front.

PS. Don’t forget the ear plugs ;-)

Following an independent review into five of the Island’s primary schools, a report issued to the Isle of Wight Council recommends that at least four of the schools federate in order to remain on their existing sites.

The report, which Standards Not Tiers fully endorses, will be presented to the Cabinet at the end of the month (31 March), when a decision on the future of the schools will be made.

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We saw/heard a hovercraft buzzing past Ventnor last week and wondering if they had got lost on the way to Ryde :)

We put out a call on Twitter to see if others had seen it too and a number of comments came back saying that it was probably sea trials.

How right these wise Tweeters were. Hoverwork got in touch with VB today to let us know that they’ve just completed the construction of another hovercraft for export.

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Press release issued By Standards Not Tiers on behalf of St Helen’s, Yarmouth and Chale Primary Schools SOS Action Groups

On Monday 8th September delegates from St Helen’s, Chale and Yarmouth Primary Schools held a meeting in St Helens, which was attended by Representatives of NASS, (National Association for Small Schools) and SNT (Standards-Not-Tiers).

Left to right: Sarah Edmunds, Chris Welsford, Miranda Botha, Mervyn Benford, Chris Farnsworth, Alison Bacon, Patrick Joyce, Lisa Dyer, Owen Toms, Caroline Diamond, Jonathan Bacon.

Speakers discussed the Isle of Wight Council proposals for the reorganisation and closure of schools, which are amongst the smallest and most successful in the country and agreed to offer assistance to all Island schools that are threatened with closure, both primary and middle.

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Thanks to County Councillor Patrick Joyce for sending through this response to a report in the County Press last week that he had not returned his annual report for last year. He disputes this allegation and you can read his Annual Report below. Ed

Reference article in last week County Press. I would like to clarify two points I am no longer a member of the Conservative group in County Hall and to rebuke the outright lie that I did not forward my annual report telling my constituency what had happened in the last year, unfortunately I assume Chairman Pugh did not like it so it was not published.

I attach a copy for my constituents (see below), they can decide at next year’s election if they believe I am carrying out my duties or not.

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On Saturday the Guardian had a blitz of article on the UK as a destination for beach holidays – and the Isle of Wight came out in most of the pieces!

By our quick straw poll, it appears that The Island was mentioned more than any other part of the country. Well done to Sue Emmerson and Kellie White in the press office at the Isle of Wight Tourism Press & PR Department for getting so many items in there.

Biggest tip ‘o’ the hat goes to The Spyglass, Ventnor who got the main photo in the article covering the Seaside Pubs.
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