Free blood pressure checks to avoid strokes

FREE blood pressure checks are being offered at Williton Community Hospital on Wednesday, February 7, between 11 am and 4 pm.
The sessions are being organised by The Stroke Association, which is the only national charity solely concerned with combating stroke in people of all ages.
Organiser, Carol Clifford, said: “The reasons are simple - high blood pressure can lead to strokes and many other health problems.
“In fact, it is the number one risk factor for strokes.
“A third of adults in the UK have this condition, yet many of them are unaware of it because there are no symptoms.
“That is why high blood pressure is called the silent killer.”
For more information, contact Carol Clifford on 01984 634276, or just turn up on the day.
The Stroke Association funds research into prevention, treatment, and better methods of rehabilitation.
The charity also helps stroke patients and their families directly through its community services, which include dysphasia support, family support, information services, welfare grants, publications, and leaflets.
It also campaigns, educates, and informs to increase knowledge of stroke at all levels of society, acting as a voice for everybody affected by stroke.
A stroke is the brain equivalent of a heart attack and can be diagnosed by using FAST:
Facial weakness
Arm weakness
Speech problems
Test all three.
If any of these symptoms is present, an ambulance should be called straight away.
The Stroke Helpline provides information on stroke to the public and is open between 9 am and 5 pm Monday to Friday on 0845 3033 100
More information on The Stroke Association can be found at http://www.stroke.org.uk/.
Photo submitted.

Council wants to honour parish heroes

UNSUNG parish heroes are to be honoured by West Somerset Council with an awards presentation in March.
The council is seeking nominations by February 23 of groups or individuals who have worked to improve their local communities.
Council leader, Councillor Christine Lawrence (pictured), said: “We would like to acknowledge the time and effort that many local people put into making their parishes better places for people to live and work in.
“We are organising an event to celebrate their achievements and to thank them for their work.
“We are asking for councils or residents to nominate people or groups that have made a significant or outstanding contribution to improving the lives or environment of others.
“We appreciate that a lot of people put in a lot of effort to bring about benefits to the whole community.
“We would love to help celebrate the contribution of these people or groups and acknowledge the positive impact they make on the lives of others.”
Examples of nominations could be people or groups which have enabled others to achieve a better quality of life, or tended open spaces for the benefit of the environment, or who have overcome hardship to contribute to their community.
An awards ceremony will be held in the council’s Williton chambers on March 15.
Anybody who wants to make a parish champion nomination should send their own contact details, together with their nomination and the reason for the nomination, to Wendy Bass, West Somerset Council, 20 Fore Street, Williton, TA4 4QA by February 23.
Photo submitted.

Business fair places are still available

MEMBERS of the West Somerset Community College band will be performing at the opening of the West Somerset Business Fair.
The fair will be held in the Queens Hall, Minehead, from 11 am to 6 pm on Wednesday, February 28.
It will be the district’s largest business networking event of the year.
Special offers are available to any exhibitor who wants to book one of the remaining stands, details of which are available oin application.
The West Somerset Business Network, which is organising the fair, has also arranged free parking permits for exhibitors and visitors.
Network chairman Sandra Wilson said there were still some places available for exhibitors and people who wanted to hold seminars at the event.
A free prize draw will also be held on the day.
The fair provides an opportuinity for business owners and managers to showcase themselves to each other and find out more about the range of products and services available locally.
Face-to-face marketing is recognised as the most effective method of gaining new orders and contracts.
The business fair offers a wide range of marketing opportunities for those taking part, including:

• A choice of 2m or 3m display stand spaces


• Half-an-hour seminar slots


• A rolling PowerPoint screen presentation


• The display of company pull-up banners


• A business village for exchange of business cards


• An exhibitor directory

The cost of taking part ranges from £25 to £195, and exhibitors will receive breakfast and lunch.
There will be a pre-event training session for exhibitors, and the business fair package also includes a pre-opening networking hour on the day.
All the trading businesses and networking activities will be concentrated on the ground floor..
More information and booking details are available from business fair administrator Lesley Marriner on 01398 322000 or email lesley.marriner@ylem.com.

PLEASE NOTE THE CONTACT TELEPHONE NUMBER WAS WRONGLY STATED IN THE PRINTED EDITION OF THE NEWSPAPER. THE NUMBER GIVEN HERE IS CORRECT.

New kitchen is finishing touch for village hall

THE final stage of the refurbishment of Timberscombe Village Hall has been completed with the installation of a fully-equipped kitchen.
It includes two ovens and a commercial dishwasher, meaning the hall is now able to cater for a wide variety of public and private functions, including weddings and parties.
Timberscombe Village Hall Committee thanked West Somerset Council’s Rural Initiative Fund for a grant of £7,749 which made the project possible, and H.D.Lynch, of Minehead, for designing and fitting the kitchen to a high standard.
District council ward member, Councillor Roger Webber said: “The council is delighted to help community projects like these.
“As well as providing modern facilities so that halls can build on their successes, it also gives local people a social centre at the heart of their rural villages.”

• Our photograph shows village hall committee chairman Tony Webb (left) and former chairman Mrs Wendy Hellewell receiving a cheque for £7,749 from Councillor Roger Webber. Photo submitted.

Public sessions to discuss Carhampton eco homes

A PUBLIC meeting is being held in Carhampton Village Hall on January 18 to allow local residents to view plans and have their say on the proposed development of eco-friendly, carbon neutral, affordable homes at Townsend Farm.
There will be an informal session between 3 pm and 5 pm, followed by a formal presentation between 7 pm and 9 pm.
West Somerset Council wants to develop the scheme in partnership with the Somerset Trust for Sustainable Development, a charity set up to promote sustainable construction and design.
A community land trust would be set up to allow land to be taken into the ownership of the local community and managed by a board of local people, including parish councillors, local residents, and tenants.
The trust would have a responsibility to protect community assets, re-invest any proceeds, and ensure the homes remained affordable.
District council housing, health, and welfare portfolio holder, Councillor Mary Crowley, said: “We could build 30 homes, 20 of which will be affordable homes to rent and buy, with the remaining 10 to be sold on the open market to off-set costs.
“If we can take it forward, this will be a groundbreaking project, with homes built to a carbon neutral specification that will be affordable for local people on low wages.
“The aim is to derive 20 per cent of the homes’ energy from micro generation like solar or wind power, or ground source heat pumps.”
Somerset Trust for Sustainable Development director Charles Couzens said: “We are looking forward to working with the local community and the council to create new homes which meet the need for affordable housing and have a vastly reduced global footprint.”
The presentation from the Somerset Trust for Sustainable Development will explain how community land trusts can work for the benefit of the community, as well as the benefits of carbon neutral housing.
Following the presentation, representatives will be available to explain more about the development and to answer questions.
Photo submitted.

Round the world yacht race challenge for Tiina

WEST Somerset schools project co-ordinator Tiina Huovinen (pictured) is set for the adventure of a lifetime after being selected to take part in the world’s longest ocean yachting race.
Tiina, 33, who works with the West Somerset Strategic Partnership, will compete in the Clipper 07-08 Round the World Yacht Race.
She heard about the race from a past competitor.
Tiina said: “I have done some sailing before, but nothing like this. I thought it sounded like just the sort of challenge I would like to take on, so I applied.
“I am looking forward to learning new sailing skills and the mental challenge of finding out what I can cope with.
“I am keen to win, but it is also about your own personal experience and doing the best you can.”
Tiina, who is originally from Finland, will set out on the last two legs of the Clipper 07-08 with a crew of people from all walks of life.
Together, they will race through the Panama Canal, and on towards the finish in Liverpool.
It’s still not too late for others to apply to take part in the race. And Tiina, whose job involves co-ordinating a learning partnership strategy for schools in West Somerset, said: “I would encourage others to take on something like this.”
Competitors receive intensive training before they race across thousands of miles of ocean aboard 68-foot yachts.
Crew members take turns to cook, clean, and carry out repairs, as well as sail the yachts.
The Clipper Round the World Yacht Race was established a decade ago by highly-respected sailor Sir Robin Knox-Johnston, currently racing solo around the world in the VELUX 5 OCEANS event.
He was keen for amateur sailors to experience the adventure and rewards of ocean racing, previously only enjoyed by the privileged and the professional.
Sir Robin said: “Tiina will be joining more than 1,400 people who have made the Clipper experience a turning point in their lives.
“We want people to finish the race thinking that it is the best thing they have ever done.”
Anybody over the age of 18 years can enter, and there is no upper age limit. Competitors who have already signed up for the race - 40 per cent of whom have not had previous sailing experience - include a vicar, a housewife, and a postman.
The Clipper 07-08 Round the World Yacht Race starts from Liverpool, in September, and lasts 10 months and takes in 35,000 miles of ocean racing.
The overall race is divided into seven legs and a total of 15 individual races.
Points are accumulated according to each race position, and the yacht with the highest total at the finish (Liverpool, 2008) wins the race trophy.For more information on applying to become a crew member in the sixth Clipper Round the World Yacht Race, contact Clipper Ventures on 02392 526000 or email crew recruitment manager David Cusworth at dcusworth@clipper-ventures.com.

Photo submitted.

Limo driver Beresford looking for karting sponsors

WEST Somerset’s answer to Jensen Button is appealing to the local business community to help him in his race to reach the podium and fulfil his true potential.
Limousine chauffeur Beresford Mandley, who lives and was brought up in Minehead, is looking for sponsors to fund his next step in motor sport after becoming the 2006 National Karting Association champion.
The 29-year-old, who runs Limo Express in the town, is now ready to get behind the wheel of a more powerful kart for his next challenge, and wants to work his way up through the karting series.
Beresford said: “I have always been interested in motor sports from a young age and like to try out anything with an engine.
“Until last year, it was just a hobby. I went to a karting event in Avonmouth and ended up setting the fastest lap time.
“Then, I went to the Newport regional finals and took part in the grand prix and won there and became regional champion.
“The national championship was in Warrington and I raced against 54 karters from all over the country.
“We had five qualifying heats and I ended up in pole position in the final and left the others standing by winning by six or seven seconds.”
His prize for winning 2006 NKA Championship was a pro-train course with an expert instructor to further improve his racing skills and secure a motor sport association licence, which he is hoping to achieve on January 17 when he travels to Wilton Mill Circuit, in Northants.
“Gaining an MSA licence will enable me to get into the next stage of karting where I will be racing at speeds of 100 to 110 mph,” said Beresford.
“It is much more difficult but I am confident I can do well.”
To progress to the next level, Beresford, who also runs a yellow cab business in Minehead, is looking for £4,000-a-year towards his equipment and race suit and he is hoping the prestige of having sponsors’ names across his kart and suit will prove alluring to local businesses.
Beresford said: “I want this to be as much about the local community and I have already received some interest in sponsorship but would like more interest from local businesses and help give them more coverage.”
He already receives great support from his family with his car-building father as his pit crew and his mother helping to run his companies when he is busy on the track.
Beresford is also no stranger to publicity, after being awarded runner-up Chauffeur of the Year 2005 and voted a top 10 Chauffeur in Europe in 2006 and being featured in national motor magazines, including as the face behind the Peugeot E7, the model of yellow cab he drives.
Beresford is also allowing people who fancy trying their luck on the karting circuit to race against him in a ‘chauffeur challenge’ with an opportunity to receive a bottle of bubbly and a trophy he is beaten.
However, he assured cab and limo customers that race practise was purely on the circuits, and not while he was working.
“I will be sticking to the speed limits and doing my racing on the track rather than the streets in Minehead,” he said.
For more details, visit Beresford’s website http://www.limoexpress-uk.com/ or telephone him on 0786 3241507.

• Our photograph shows Beresford Mandley in kart racing gear with his limousine. Photo by Mark the Photographer, ref M010019. Order image reprints online at www.tcpbymtp.co.uk.

Patagonia expedition finds 1741 shipwreck

WEST Somerset adventurer Major Chris Holt (pictured) has successfully helped to lead an expedition to Patagonia to find the wreck of a sunken English warship after 265 years.
The team discovered what is believed to be part of the hull of HMS Wager, a warship which sank off the coast of Chile in 1741.
The story of the Wager shipwreck remains important in the modern world, because it was influential in the formation of what is now the Royal Marines.
Major Holt is the son of Tim and Eileen Holt, who live in Tivington. He retired from the Army in 2005 after serving 10 years in the Royal Engineers, mostly in bomb disposal, which saw him awarded the Military MBE.
During his Army career, Major Holt saw operational service in the Balkans and Iraq, and he was also an Army diver.
It was his diving skills which were required for the Patagonia expedition, which was mounted by Scientific Exploration Society (SES), headed by world-famous explorer Col John Blashford-Snell.
They travelled to the remote and uninhabited Wager Island, off the coast of South America, with a team of 10 divers to try to locate and survey the wreck.
The last British attempt to find the Wager was in 1829 by the Beagle, with Charles Darwin on board, which was unsuccessful.
Working in severe weather the diving team under Major Holt found wreckage in a river bed, and not, as expected, under the sea.
Major Holt said it was probably the result of a huge earthquake in the 1960s which raised the coastline by about 23 feet in one event and caused a tidal wave which struck Japan.
He said: “The island turned out to be exactly what we were expecting, which was a fascinating place and pretty weather-torn.
“All in all, it definitely felt like an expedition as we were completely isolated for a month and battered by the weather.
“We were hit by two phenomenal storms. You could barely stand up for three-and-a-half days and it was some of the worst weather conditions I have ever experienced and we were nearly washed away.”
The extreme weather conditions in the area made the operation dangerous and at one time the camp was flooded after three days of continuous of rain, and food was almost exhausted as the re-supply boat was unable to reach them.
A British archaeologist on the expedition, Andy Torbet, said: “Subject to scientific confirmation, a five-metre square wooden section of the hull of an 18th century ship appears to be part of the Wager.”
He said a musket ball found in the hull could indicate the ship had been in conflict.
The expedition was supported by the Chillean Navy, and Chilean marine archaeologist Diego Carabias also examined the discovery and said he believed it was part of the ill-fated Wager.
The story of the HMS Wager wreck and the incredible survival of some of its crew, who took five years to reach England, was recorded by survivor Midshipman John Byron, later Admiral Lord Byron and grandfather of the legendary poet John Byron.

Photo submitted.

Public opinions sought on Seaward Way development plans

AN informal information evening is being held on January 17 to give local residents an opportunity to have their say on a proposed of health and well-being development planned for a site off Seaward Way, in Minehead.
The proposed development includes a £24 million replacement for Minehead Hospital and a leisure centre which will encompass a replacement for the Aquasplash swimming pool as well as a range of other health facilities, plus business services, and some housing for local people.
The information evening is open to the public and takes place from 5 pm to 7:30 pm in the West Somerset Community College.
The public meeting is being arranged in order to inform local residents about the current proposal for the site and to consult on the leisure facilities which should be included in the proposed learning and leisure centre.
The evening will include full graphic displays demonstrating all aspects of the project, known as New Horizons, and the project steering group members will ask attendees about the specific facilities they want to see in the new leisure centre.
Evidence gathered at the information evening will help to influence future design proposals.
A strong attendance will also help to demonstrate local support for the project, which is critical for the securing the remainder of the funding for the project.
District council leader, Councillor Christine Lawrence, said: “This ambitious project is all about positive partnerships.
“It will demonstrate the power of effective partnership working between organisations coupled with the positive partnership forged with local people interested in securing first-class health, learning, and leisure facilities for the residents of West Somerset.
“We actively encourage everybody to attend this meeting because it is their opportunity to see what we are offering, and their chance to influence this development to ensure that it meets the needs of the whole community.”
Community college principal Nick Swann said: “Local people, including college staff, have worked for years to secure this groundbreaking project.
“Close community involvement will continue to be essential to its success. We welcome all local people who would like to give their views on the proposals.”
Minehead ward county Councillor Ian Galloway said: “This meeting will explain the exciting developments that we hope to bring to the site and will give local people a chance to have their say.
“That is absolutely vital in this project and we need to have facilities that meet the requirements of local people.”
County council portfolio holder for economic development, Councillor Paul Buchanan, said: “Engaging the public is an absolute priority for Somerset County Council with regards to this project.
“Demonstrable public support will have a positive effect on gaining future project-critical funding streams, so I hope many people turn out to have their say and influence the future of the Seaward Way site.”
New Horizons is a partnership between West Somerset Council, Somerset County Council, Somerset Primary Care Trust, and the West Somerset Community College.

Dulverton community being asked to help combat anti-social behaviour

RESIDENTS of Dulverton are being invited to a community meeting on January 17 to help come up with a solution for a wave of anti-social behaviour which has struck the town.
West Somerset Council is co-ordinating the meeting, which is being held at 7 pm in Dulverton Town Hall.
The council wants to build on the positive action taken so far in response to the anti-social behaviour which was experienced last autumn.
The council’s community safety officer, Pete Hughes, said: “Although the incidents were of a relatively minor nature, the council has met with Dulverton Town Council, Avon and Somerset Police, the county youth service, and local housing providers to take positive action to help ensure incidents do not become more serious or more frequent.
“At the meeting, we will be reassuring local people and asking them if they would like to form a community group to help ensure our recent achievements turn into long-term solutions.”
A town council representative is already working with local agencies to deal with the problems.
Steps taken so far include an increased police presence, better signposting to youth activities, and action by housing providers against nuisance and anti-social behaviour.
Mr Hughes said: “By and large, this sort of behaviour is uncharacteristic of Dulverton.
“In line with all parishes in West Somerset, Dulverton is one of the safest places to live in the country.
“However, we do not expect local communities to have to put up with anti-social behaviour which is why we have acted swiftly to address issues.
“So far, the reaction to our initiatives has been very good, with a significant drop in anti-social behaviour in the area.
“However, our achievements are more likely turn into long-term benefits if the community is part of the solution.
“With this in mind, we are appealing for as many local people as possible to contribute time and energy towards achieving the shared goals for Dulverton.
“We are hoping that the community will show its commitment to the future social well-being of the town and come to the meeting next week to decide how it would like to see our recent efforts taken forward.”

• Our photographs show Dulverton Town Hall, in The Square, and also the Lorna Doone statue which stands beside the Exmoor House Lawns. Photos submitted.