Tenbury Launches a Town Guide App

A new Smartphone application has been launched which gives instant access to everything you need to know about Tenbury Wells.  The app can be installed from both the itunes store for iPhones and from the Android Marketplace for all Android phones.

The app gives instant access to all local businesses and where available their websites.  It also allows easy access to lots of other useful information.

Early next year, it will also start to detail special offers from local shops.

The app has been developed on behalf of Tenbury Town Council and funded under the TWO4B project.

Pirouetting Truck Avoids the Teme

A Kingsmill delivery truck on route to the Spar supermarket narrowly missed a dip in the Teme at Tenbury Wells this morning.

Whilst turning in the old cattle market site, the lorry skidded on ice and slid through the boundary fence and partly demolished a wall.

The truck stopped short of the railings,  Luckily no one was hurt.

Town Council to create more parking.

Tenbury Town Council have agreed in principle for the existing Civic Amenity site to be relocated to the Bromyard Road Business Park.

The Town Civic Amenity Site (Town Dump)

The site is currently situated on land owned by the Town Council and leased to Worcester County Council who in turn let it to Severn Waste who run the facility.

The Town Council (or rather the Council Tax payers) have to pay full business rates on the site, estimated at more than £300, but only receive £1 a year in rent from Worcester County Council.

The site which attract scores of complaints each year, mainly due to the difficult access and steep stairs, was due to be replaced years ago. When Severn Trent took over Worcestershire's waste contract they had to put aside a considerable sum of money to find a new site and create a modern facility.

Although lip service has been given to this over the years, no real attempt has been made to move the project forward.

Hopefully this will now happen in 2012, and a modern facility can be created, which will allow easier and safer access and allow for much more recycling.  Most of the materials "dumped" in the skip at the moment such as wood, metal, bricks, concrete etc go to landfill whereas they could be recycled.

Once the facility has been moved, the resulting space can be turned back into parking spaces.

As another Christmas draws nearer....

The annual Tenbury Wells Lantern & Santa Parade marked the end of the 2011 Mistletoe Season.

All the usual characters were in attendance,

although surprisingly the lantern section seemed somewhat depleted despite the run-away success of this years lantern workshop.

There was also a dance exhibit in the window of 12 Teme Street, but this proved very difficult to see.  Perhaps they had overdone the atmospheric lighting, but with condensation and reflections on the windows the dancers were all but invisible to my old eyes.

More photo's

Free parking in Tenbury over Christmas period

Following recent pressures affecting the national economy and reports from local businesses about a slow down in trade, Malvern Hills District Council will be providing free car parking concessions in the week before Christmas.

From the 19^th to the 24^th December, pay and display charges will be waived in its car parks

Councillor Paul Cumming, Portfolio Holder for Finance & Resources at MHDC said:

“This council considers the support of local business and the local economy to be a priority and we are keen to assist local traders who have reported generally sluggish sales. We want to help give trade a boost and encourage more people to shop in our towns in the week leading up to Christmas. “

Tenbury Town Council Inflation Busting Increase

Tenbury Town Council are proposing increasing their precept request by just over 13.5%.

Amongst other things funds required are to pay for additional repairs to the Community Centre which aren't covered by the HLF Grant.  Also a budget has been created to help fund the Town's Diamond Jubilee celebrations next year.  The amount being set aside for future repairs to the Car Park has also been increased and unless it is agreed that charges are introduced this is likely to have to increase again.

There are still some anomalies in the way they subsidise certain facilities to a much higher degree than others, but the Council has pledged to have detailed negotiations during the coming year to try to overcome these.

The other uncertainty at this stage is the overall financial effect of transferring the running of the Regal to a Management Trust.  This should show major savings in future years, but probably not in the first year.

As the other elements of the Council Tax have been frozen by central government, the TTC increase won't have a major impact in the overall Council Tax charge.  The increase for a band A property will be about the cost of one small chocolate bar a month.

The full Council will be voting on the increase next Monday.

Wow What a (National) Mistletoe Day

Today started gently enough with a small gathering of Druids in a local orchard.  Male & Female Mistletoe was harvested during a gentle ceremony that thanked the tree for producing apples and for hosting the Mistletoe.  During the ceremony, the Apple tree was anointed with Cider as a thank you gift.

The Male & Female Mistletoe are harvested separately and caught before hitting the ground.  They are then kept separately for the ceremony later in the day.

The next part of the day started with a BANG!  Drummers appeared on both sides of Teme Bridge and started to play loud rhythmic music. 

They were joined by the Mistletoe Foundation Parade as it brought the Harvested Mistletoe across the Teme into Tenbury.  All of a sudden, the Town centre which had only a few minutes ago appeared deserted, was packed with people watching the parade.

So much so that the Parade had to complete the last section on the road as the pavements were packed.  As the Parade crossed the road, it was met by the Head Girl & Boy from Tenbury High School with their attendants on the "Steps of Learning"

2011 Tenbury High School Head Girls , Anna Gunter (left) 

and Deputy Head Girl & attendant Jessica Sanders and

Head Boy, Callum Redding (right) and 

Jordan Powell (standing in for Deputy Head Boy Scott Dallow )

The Parade, and everyone else then made their way to the Burgage for the next part of the ceremony.

During the ceremony, the Mistletoe is blessed and the Mistletoe Queen is crowned.  The Male & Female Mistletoe are then brought together.

Apple Juice & Beer are poured over the Mistletoe so that all harvests of the Teme Valley are honoured.  Good intentions are put into the blessing and then the Mistletoe is given to the River Teme as a thank you to the land for its abundance and hoping for a good year, next year.

By now the sun was setting so a few of the two to three hundred people that had watched and joined in the ceremony retreated to the Pump Rooms for a warm drink and a chat.

They were joined by local MP Harriett Baldwin to present the prizes for the Mistletoe themed shop window dressing competition.

The first prize was awarded to Marilyn of Marilyn's Ladies Fashions. The second to Beauty Laine and joint third to Country Flowers and the Salon.

Then the entertained changed pace again with Damh the Bard, playing to a sell out crowd at the Royal Oak.

More photo's from the day.