FIRST: From the Borough:
Lifting of eviction ban - support available from our Housing Service for tenants
With the current ban on housing eviction ending, tenants should know that support is available from our Housing Service.
https://rbwm.housingjigsaw.co.uk/Any private rented sector tenant served with an eviction notice, or who is concerned about meeting their rental obligations, can contact the Council’s Housing Options Team and speak with an officer about their options.
If you have been served a notice to leave your accommodation, or are struggling to pay your rent, you can complete an online self-referral to start receiving support.
https://rbwm.housingjigsaw.co.uk/accounts/account/registerLandlords and letting agents also play an important role in signposting their tenants to the support available from our housing team. They can sign up to ALERT, our referral portal for professionals, to refer their tenants to our Housing Service.
https://rbwm.housingjigsaw.co.uk/alert/duty-to-referNEXT: Have your say on our gambling policy
We are responsible for licensing gambling premises within the Royal Borough such as betting shops and venues with lower-stake gaming machines.
We are required to consult every three years on our gambling policy which sets out how gambling premises are regulated, how we take into account local risk factors relating to gambling, and our expectations in relation to operators with licensed premises.
You can take part in the consultation from today (Friday 30 July) until Friday 10 September on our website where you can also find a link to the current policy.
Please note, this does not apply to online gambling which local authorities are not responsible for.
https://www.rbwm.gov.uk/home/council-and-democracy/consultations/licensing-consultationNEXT: More than 100 hearing aids provided to pupils across Berkshire to assist home learning
More than 100 children with hearing loss have been provided with radio aids this past academic year to help support their learning thanks to the Berkshire Sensory Consortium Service.
Its educational audiologist Lisa Bull and teacher of the deaf Julia Battle have been providing and setting up the devices for pupils, which have proved extra popular as a result of social distancing and home-learning during the pandemic.
The Berkshire-wide service is hosted by Achieving for Children, on behalf of the Royal Borough of Windsor & Maidenhead.
A radio aid is a listening device consisting of a transmitter, worn by a teacher, peer or parent, and a receiver(s), worn by the young person. It works by making the speaker’s voice clearer and overcomes the problem of distance from the speaker.
Councillor Stuart Carroll, cabinet member for adult social care, children’s services, health and mental health, said: “This is a wonderful achievement enabling children with sensory impairments to have the technology they need to access lessons while learning from home and, importantly, fully participate in their educational experience.
“I’d like to thank the service and its staff for their efforts in making this possible. They have gone above and beyond in ensuring young people with additional needs are supported and feel included in their school day against the very challenging backdrop of the pandemic.”
Hearing aids and cochlear implants work most effectively over a distance of less than two metres. Social distancing, the use of face masks as well as listening via a computer where the sound quality is significantly impacted can make hearing clearly extremely difficult.
Jane Peters, Head of Service at the Berkshire Sensory Consortium Service, said the radio aids had been a ‘lifeline’ for young people, with many more now keen to try one out.
She said: “Our sensory impaired children and young people use a range of additional assistive technology to support their access to learning which is provided by us.
“Our staff have travelled all over Berkshire delivering and setting up equipment on people’s doorsteps, in the garden and providing advice and training online as part of our drive to ensure that every young person has the support they and their family have needed. I’d like to thank Lisa and Julia for their remarkable efforts in making this possible.
“It is an incredible achievement and an amazing milestone. We normally issue around 70 radio aids every year to every pre-schooler or young person who would benefit from one. This year more of our young people have wanted to try one and have realised the benefits which will now support them going forward.”
For more information about the service and how it supports children and young people with hearing, vision or multi-sensory impairment, please visit:
http://www.berkshiresensoryconsortium.co.uk/NEXT: Prizes awarded in Active Travel poster and poem competition
Prizes have been presented in a poster and poem competition for school children promoting road safety and changing the way we travel to more sustainable options.
The Royal Borough teamed up with Frog Bikes, near Sunninghill, to run the Active Travel competition for schools across the borough, with new bikes the top prizes.
We asked children aged four to 11 to design a poster around the themes of the Green Cross Code, air quality near schools, school streets and walking and cycling to raise awareness about the impact of school traffic and the solutions that can be provided if we rethink how we travel.
A prize-giving took place on Monday 19 July at Maidenhead Town Hall where the bikes were presented to the winners in each category by Councillor Gerry Clark, cabinet member for transport and infrastructure, and Josh Marchant, marketing executive for the UK and Ireland for Frog Bikes.
Councillor Clark said: “We received more than 1,000 entries and I want to thank every child for their enthusiasm in taking part. They showed great initiative in coming up with some creative designs for their posters that showed they’d really understood and illustrated the Active Travel themes in an exciting way.
“Encouraging people to use sustainable forms of transport is important for several reasons. There are environmental benefits with reducing the amount of traffic on the roads, as well as health benefits if children are able to walk, cycle or scooter to school where they can.
“There are also positives in terms of safety. Many of our schools are situated in residential areas and providing more pleasant, quiet, safe and less polluted streets for everybody has got to be a plus.”
Entries were judged by council officers and Mr Marchant.
He said: “As a local business we were delighted to be involved in this competition. We like to see kids cycling, scootering and walking to school as this is good for the environment and good for them. They don’t need to jump in the car with mum and dad to get to school – they can cycle safely or follow the Green Cross Code.
“The level of thought that went into the posters, and the ideas that the children came up with, was really heartening to see. You could tell they really wanted to help others understand the themes and encourage more sustainable behaviours.
“During the pandemic we’ve seen more children keen to take up cycling and I think this competition really captured their imaginations.”
Frog Bikes also provided prizes for second and third place in each age category, as well as prizes for the runners-up, including vouchers, water bottles, hoodies and bike lights.
Cyclepods provided Minipod and Scooterpod storage devices. Trinity St Stephen Church of England First School in Windsor were the overall school winners and received the Minipod, while St Edmund Campion Catholic Primary School in Maidenhead came second and received the Scooterpod
NEXT: Make a difference in your local countryside
If you want to make a different to your local green spaces, consider signing up to the Berkshire Biodiversity Action Team.
https://www.tcv.org.uk/southeast/volunteer-south-east/day-projects/berkshire-biodiversity-action-team/The volunteer group helps to improve green spaces across Berkshire and has recently improved accessibility for walkers at Cock Marsh in Cookham by installing a bench and new steps.
Upcoming projects include repairing path surfaces along the Green Way in Maidenhead and clearing vegetation along the Thames Path in Old Windsor.
If you would like to sign up, or if you have any questions, please email Buffy Harris-Jones.
volunteer-berkshire@tcv.org.ukLearn more on the Conservation Volunteers website.
https://www.tcv.org.uk/southeast/volunteer-south-east/day-projects/berkshire-biodiversity-action-team/CRIME
I have attached reference numbers to each crime report. If you live in the vicinity of any of the crimes mentioned and have CCTV or a video doorbell, can you please check the footage. If you have any that might be of interest to the police, can you please make contact with us, quoting reference number given.
Alternatively you can call 101 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or email -
www.crimestoppers-uk.orgMAIDENHEAD CENTRAL:
maidenheadcentralgeographical@thamesvalley.pnn.police.ukSR.windsor&
maidenhead@thamesvalley.pnn.police.uk.
31/7 Saturday 8 p.m. Sheephouse Road. Burglary. Offenders forced the bottom panel of rear utility room door. Untidy search of the whole house. Items stolen were jewellery incl. watches, a baseball bat and a decorative sword. White pillowcase in main bedroom found missing. CCTV shows three men arriving in a silver Ford Focus and leaving with the pillowcase containing items. Ref. No: 43210341923
31/7 8.30 p.m. Forlease Road. Building site. The security company has footage of someone climbing onto the site. Ref. No: 43210341972
RIVERSIDE & BELMONT:
NO CRIME TO REPORT.
MAIDENHEAD WEST
maidenheadwestgeographical@thamesvalley.pnn.police.ukSR.windsor&
maidenhead@thamesvalley.pnn.police.ukBISHAM, COOKHAM, HURLEY, THE WALTHAMS, LITTLEWICK GREEN & KNOWL HILL:
I have attached your Neighbourhood Handout, showing all the members of your Neighbourhood Team.
1/8 Sunday midnight. Butchers Lane, White Waltham. A witness reported to cars in a filed lamping and hare coursing.
31/7 Saturday 3.25 p.m. Westwood Green, Cookham. The owner has CCTV footage of a man walking along the road, scoping cars. Ref. No: 543210341585
PINKNEYS GREEN & FURZE PLATT:
NO CRIME TO REPORT.
MAIDENHEAD SOUTH
maidenheadsouthgeographical@thamesvalley.pnn.police.ukSR.windsor&
maidenhead@thamesvalley.pnn.police.ukBOYN HILL, COX GREEN & WOODLANDS PARK
NO CRIME TO REPORT.
OLDFIELD, BRAY & HOLYPORT:
NO CRIME TO REPORT.
