Fury over major changes
for village walking day
by David Skentelbery
VILLAGERS at Grappenhall, near Warrington have been forced to make major, last minute changes to their annual Walking Day.
The walk, on Saturday June 24, will be replaced by a short act of worship at St Wilfrid?s Church, followed by a short procession to the school field for the crowning of this year?s Rose Queen and Rose Bud.
Fundraising events which have followed the Walk in recent years will take place as normal on the school field.
The changes ? forced on the organisers by the borough council and police ? have caused considerable anger and disappointment in the village.
Organisers point out that Grappenhall Walking Day has existing for more than 100 years without causing any problems.
They claim there has been a change of attitude since the council elections in May.
A spokesman said: ?It is clear that there was some political capital in ?saving Warrington?s walking days? back in February, but there has been a change in policy following the elections.
?All local Walking Days have had to live with the stop-go approach to policing and supervision over the last few years, but the council was adamant earlier in the year that funding was in place for policing and that the Walk should go ahead. Based on this advice, plans were set in place and submitted and Rose Queens elected, bands contacted, etc.
?There has been considerable unhappiness within the village community as people have learned about the changes imposed on their traditions. Many of the walkers have taken part for all their lives, some of 60 or 70or seventy years.
? The Rose Queen and attendants had been so looking forward to their special day, planned over many months and that now their opportunity to lead the Walk, and show people their beautiful dresses has been taken away from them.?
The spokesman added that organisers of the Walk were only informed at the beginning of June that police and the borough council would not give approval for the route for this year?s walk ? in particular the use of Chester Road and Knutsford Road.
?As any meaningful Walk of Witness in Grappenhall would use these roads, and the police and borough council had not left sufficient time for further discussions, the churches have had no option but to plan a different format for their Witness.?
The Act of Worship will be a joint service for St Wilfrid?s Church and Grappenhall Independent Methodist and it is hoped music will be provided by the brass band which would have played for the Walk.
Organisers plan to try and review the occasion next year and come up with some form of Witness reflecting the traditions of Walking Day.
Football fever at
May Queen Festival
by Gary Skentelbery
WORLD cup fever gripped Lymm May Queen Festival’s annual parade as local school children entered into the spirit of the occasion.
Several floats had an England Wolrd Cup fever, similar to the Cherry Tree Primary School one pictured above.
Regular updates on the England match were announced on the May Queen Field over the loud speaker system – much to the annoyance of those who were recording the game.
Thousands still turned out to support the event, although there was a general consensus that figures were still slightly down on last year, despite glorious sunshine – in fact if anything it was too hot!
Laura Fitzgibbon aged 11 from Cherry Tree Primary School was crowned May Queen, while seven-year-old Laura Ocego, who attends Statham Primary School was crowned Rose Queen.
It was a special day for two local people who had the honour of crowning the queens.
Ramond Massey and Joanne Brown were given the honour in recognition of their tireless work for charity. Raymond is pictured crowning the new May Queen on what was his 79th birthday while Joanne, also pictured crowned the Rose Queen.
Challenging time
for sports students
by Lesley Wilkinson
SPORTS students from Priestley College, Warrington, took part in a variety of challenges when they visited The University of Chester’s Warrington campus.
The 45 BTEC National Sports students from Priestley were welcomed at the Padage campus.
They took part in three workshops including VO2 max testing using a treadmill and bike and enjoyed a talk on psychology, which focussed on attention and concentration skills.
The youngsters were then given information on the range of higher education courses at the campus that they may apply for.
Sports tutor, Kathy Yates said: “The Priestley students found the workshops of great benefit and were particularly interested to learn from those at the university who had opted to study sports at an even higher level. On the back of the event we hope to build even more productive links between both of our organisations in the future.”
Man arrested after
fatal road crash
by John Hendon
A MAN has been arrested and charged with assault following a fatal road accident at Lymm, near Warrington.
The 28-year-old from Manchester has also been questioned on suspicions of a drink driving offence.
He was released on police bail pending further enquiries.
The fatal collision involved a motor cycle riden by a 30-year-old man from Partington a vintage Morris car driven by a 53-year-old Warrington man and it occurred in Mill Lane, Lymm on Saturday afternoon.
Paramedics treated the car driver at the scene and he was later allowed home, having suffered only minor injuries.
Police are appealing for witnesses of the crash and, in particular, anyone who may have seen three motor cyclists riding together in the area shortly before the crash. Anyone who can help is asked to call PS Mike Jones on 01244 613813.
Signed World Cup
tickets on show
by Lesley Wilkinson
A PAIR of World Cup Final tickets from 1966 signed by football legend Geoff Hurst are featured in an exhibition at Warrington Museum.
With football fever hitting the town the museum is staging a special exhibition of memorabilia from the game.
There are many exhibits from the 1966 tournament, which belong to a Warrington collector, in the display. It is expected to be popular with fans.
A souvenir ice bucket and sweet tin, programme from the final and a framed newspaper bearing the headline “England Champions of the World” are featured. There is also a 1966 souvenir autograph book with Bobby Moore, the West Ham team and the 1966 World Cup team included.
And museum organisers are urging young fans to collects tickets, stickers books etc, from the current tournament – which could be exhibited in the future.
The display is part of the Warrington People exhibition, which celebrates people from Warrington, present and past, including Pete Waterman, Kerry Katona, Pete Postlethwaite and musician George Formby.
Coun Roy Smith, Executive Board member, said: “As world cup fever approaches people really shouldn’t miss out on this fabulous exhibition. And there is plenty of other memorabilia and interesting displays including a feature on Warrington’s famous people from the past and present for everyone to enjoy.
“The museum is a great attraction for all the family or those with specialist interests such as art from home and abroad or natural history,” he added.
Soccer legend “Brucey”
will be guest speaker
by Terry Johnson
SOCCER legend, Bruce Grobblear, will join Warrington Wolves’ players, past and present, at a Testimonial dinner for RL forward Mike Wainwright.
‘Brucey’, whose goalkeeping career has been marked by massive controversy, will be the keynote speaker at the dinner at the Halliwell Jones Stadium on June 24.
The ex-Liverpool club great who became the first African to lift the European Cup, will be recounting some of the ?inside? stories of the game.
The event is backed by comedian Gary Skyner and compared b
y Lenny Lowe.
Tickets for the showpiece evening are ?40, with tables ?400.
Police students
meet the public
by staff reporter
POLICE students are stepping out to meet the Warrington public – to advise on crime reduction and recruitment.
The ?rookie PC’s? will spend a day in two local supermarkets as part of their 27-week learning and development training.
They will be at Morrisons’ Stockton Heath supermarket on Tuesday and also Sainsburys? Manchester Road store.
The students are just four weeks away from completing their training programme.
