Uckfield News - sponsored by Cathy Watson Associates http://www.uckfieldnews.com/ Uckfield News 2010 Businesses in East Sussex could find it easier to access loans thanks to an innovative multi-million pound partnership between East Sussex County Council and NatWest. This website gave news that such a move was likely in our Business Scene column published on December 1. We interviewed Cllr Peter Jones, leader of the county council, and asked him how the council was helping businesses through the recession. He revealed that the idea of the council starting its own 'bank' was off limits but said a deal with a commercial lender was likely. Now he has published details of how the scheme will work. The county council has agreed to deposit an additional £20 million pounds of its normal cash flow with NatWest. It will enable the bank to boost lending opportunities for local businesses as the county starts to climb out of recession. The additional deposit will be subject to the same security as the council's other existing deposits with NatWest and other banks but it enables ... http://www.uckfieldnews.com/news/latest_stories/business_loans.html Fri, 12 Mar 2010 00:00:00 UTC Fans of Eastbourne Speedway will be able to take part in a live fans' phone-in on BBC Radio Sussex next week. The Lifestyle Eagles are delighted to have secured a slot on Wednesday (March 17) between 7.05 and 8pm on the radio station. The format for the programme will initially take the form of a general discussion with the Eagles contingent of Trevor Geer, Mike Bellerby and Cam Woodward outlining their hopes and aspirations for the season ahead. But the session will be quickly handed over to the supporters to have their views and inquiries broadcast over the airwaves. The number for fans to ring in on to pitch their questions is 08459 570057, the lines will open at 7pm on the evening. Alternatively people can text from the same time to 07786 207070 or if preferred they can e-mail the station on sussexsport@bbc.co.uk It will also be possible to book a call ahead of the broadcast, to exercise that option, supporters are urged to e-mail sussexsport@bbc.co.uk at anytime between now ... http://www.uckfieldnews.com/news/speedway/phone_in.html Fri, 12 Mar 2010 00:00:00 UTC Struggling media company Johnston Press has reported an operating profit of £43.3 million in 2009. It slashed costs throughout the year and continues to do so, writes Paul Watson. Printing of newspapers is being consolidated at fewer and fewer sites and editorial staff are still losing their jobs as processes are streamlined. The profit before tax of £43.3 million becomes a loss of £113.8 million when write-down costs of the value of newspapers and closure costs are taken into account. Johnston Press, in this part of the country, publishes the Sussex Express, Eastbourne Herald and Mid Sussex Times. It has a further raft of papers in Sussex and also publishes in much of the Midlands, the north of England, Scotland and Ireland. It is one of the biggest regional newspaper groups in the country. In its heyday, Johnston Press was reporting a profit margin approaching 40 per cent. The profit for 2009 is an operating margin of 16.8 per cent. The loss of advertising and ... http://www.uckfieldnews.com/news/media_watch/johnston_hopes.html Fri, 12 Mar 2010 00:00:00 UTC Fresh arguments in favour of reinstating and re-opening the Uckfield to Lewes railway line have been discovered following a review of a study published by the Central Rail Corridor Board. Uckfield, Crowborough and Lewes Town Councils appointed consultants to undertake the review and representatives now want to open formal discussions with East Sussex County Council to continue a campaign to reopen the link. A report to a meeting on Monday, March 15, of the Uckfield Town Council environment and leisure committee says a draft media release has been prepared and will be circulated at the meeting. The report, from Cllr Ian Smith, says each town council is recommended to sign off the document, compiled by Jacobs Consultancy, and publish it on their websites. It is proposed there is nothing further to be achieved from retaining the consultancy but that the report has opened up new avenues for arguments in favour of reinstatement and re-opening of the rail link and that the three councils... http://www.uckfieldnews.com/news/latest_stories/rail_link.html Thu, 11 Mar 2010 00:00:00 UTC Uckfield town councillors are to consider selling a piece of land in Hughes Way, Uckfield. Other options include renting it out, in which case it could be used for parking, as an extension to gardens or as an allotment. Alternatively the council could continue maintaining the land in its present state. It is next to 22 Hughes Way and runs parallel with North Row. It measures four metres by 20 metres, is oblong in shape, covered in shrubs and maintained by council staff. A report to Monday's meeting of the environment and leisure committee says the council has been approached by neighbours interested in buying the land. Most recently a resident in North Row asked if it could be bought for car parking. The committee is currently reviewing all its assets and the report says that if renting is considered then a notice would have to be placed on the site and in a local paper asking members of the public to register an interest together with their proposed use. If the council consider... http://www.uckfieldnews.com/news/latest_stories/hughes_way_land.html Wed, 10 Mar 2010 00:00:00 UTC Earth is being moved on the Sandpits site in Lewes Road, Ridgewood, where planning permission has been given to build 60 homes. Contractors are clearing the land ready to build the access road to the estate. Our picture, below, shows work in progress. Sandpits, a house built in the 1960s is due to be demolished to make way for the new homes. The developers are Charles Church. http://www.uckfieldnews.com/news/latest_stories/sandpits.html Tue, 09 Mar 2010 00:00:00 UTC Wealden councillors are being recommended to allow a covered waste paper enclosure to remain on the route of the former Uckfield to Lewes railway line for the next five years. The building is part of the Bellbrook Recycling Centre, in Bell Lane, owned by the district council. It was built in 1995 as a transfer station for recyclable household waste. It also has a purpose-built education room with viewing over the whole site which is used by local schools and community groups. A report to the planning sub-committee, north, which meets on Thursday says the enclosure provides an important waste paper storage facility and does not materially harm the character or appearance of the area. "Having regard to the position of the building on land safeguarded along the route of the former Uckfield to Lewes railway line, a further temporary permission of five years is considered appropriate in this instance," it says. http://www.uckfieldnews.com/news/latest_stories/recycling_centre.html Mon, 08 Mar 2010 00:00:00 UTC Freedom Leisure is to take on the running of events at the Uckfield Civic Centre for a trial period. A meeting of Uckfield Town Council on Monday, February 22, agreed to proposals in a report which showed how responsibilities could be allocated. The trial period should run from September to December 2010 inclusive. The aim is for the town council to retain running costs, staff costs, technician costs and personnel obligations.  It will waive venue hire costs. All the secondary income will go to the town council along with the merchandise commission income. Freedom Leisure will contract a minimum of three shows over a four-month period, be responsible for all show technical costs (other than technician costs), advertising and marketing, to include brochure inclusion, newspaper advertising and all the show income. The two organisations will share ticket agencies and trouble shooting, poster and flyer distribution and be responsible for their own box office co... http://www.uckfieldnews.com/news/latest_stories/civic_centre_events.html Fri, 05 Mar 2010 00:00:00 UTC Plans have been submitted to build a two-bedroom home on the end of a terrace on land adjoining 2A Cuckmere Path on the Manor Park Estate, Uckfield. Proposals for a three-bedroom detached house on the site were refused by Wealden Council and dismissed on appeal but a letter accompanying the latest application says it fully addresses previous concerns and would replicate similar developments approved on plots near the site. 'In addition the proposed two-bedroom dwelling would provide much needed additional modest-sized accommodation for perhaps a young couple or retired couple who wish to live in Uckfield and in close proximity to local shops, services and public transport facilities,' says the letter. The plans, submitted by Clearwater Property Investments on February 17, include removal of a tree and replacement with one of the same species elsewhere on the site. Here is a link to more detail on the Wealden Council website: http://bit.ly/diGpKf   http://www.uckfieldnews.com/news/latest_stories/cuckmere_path.html Thu, 04 Mar 2010 00:00:00 UTC Dawid Lampart has joined the Eastbourne Lifestyle Eagles for the 2010 season. The 19-year-old Polish rider takes the place that had been earmarked for Denis Gizatullin. The Eagles have given up hope on the Russian getting a visa in time for the start of the season in just over two weeks. As a result the club has moved for rising star Lampart, who rode at Arlington last year for Poole in the Draper Tools Trophy match. Lampart was a member of the winning Polish Under 19 team in the European championship and was in the Under 21 side that lifted the world Under 21 title. Eastbourne co-promoter Mike Bellerby commented: 'Our search for a number seven has proved something of a long drawn affair but we are delighted with the outcome. 'We are sure that our loyal supporters will play their part in welcoming Dawid Lampart to the Arlington fold and now with everything signed, sealed and delivered we can finally look forward and focus our efforts totally on the season ahead, the forthcoming m... http://www.uckfieldnews.com/news/speedway/gizatullin.html Wed, 03 Mar 2010 00:00:00 UTC Father David Sutcliffe, Catholic parish priest in Uckfield for more than ten years died on Saturday aged 77. He retired four years ago. The funeral is due to take place on Monday at 11am and will be conducted by the Bishop of Arundel and Brighton, the Rt Rev Kieran Conry. Fr David's body is due to be received into the Church of Our Lady Immaculate and St Philip Neri at 6.15pm on Sunday and there will be a requiem Mass at 6.30pm where the same hymns and readings chosen for his funeral will be heard. After the funeral, on Monday, he will be buried in the Snatts Road cemetery, Uckfield. Fr David was described by the current priest Fr David Buckley as a "people person". "This was his parish and his house and I tried to keep it that way. Until the day he died he had his own keys to the church and the priest's house here. "He was able to come in, sit down, read his paper and make himself a cup of tea. In a way he never moved away," said Fr David Buckley. Parishioner Cathy K... http://www.uckfieldnews.com/news/latest_stories/father_david.html Wed, 03 Mar 2010 00:00:00 UTC A coach house at Waldron could be turned into a village shop, farm shop and tea room. The Grade 2 listed building, within the grounds of The Star Inn, has been 'unused and inaccessible' for many years, according to documents submitted with a planning application before Wealden Council and the village has been without a shop for seven years. They say the shop would stock local produce and the tea room would provide a meeting place for residents and visitors to the community. 'The main motivation for this proposal is not a massive profit margin (though a small profit will be most welcome) but more a desire to reinvigorate a sense of community within this traditional Sussex village.' The application has been submitted by Mr Andrew Tyler who, in conjuction with the pub landlord, is planning to open the shop. It's opening hours would dovetail with those of the pub and the two businesses would complement each other, each creating additional trade for th... http://www.uckfieldnews.com/news/latest_stories/waldron_shop.html Tue, 02 Mar 2010 00:00:00 UTC Uckfield's new railway station building will be formally opened on March 16 at 10am, it has been announced this lunchtime (Monday). It will replace a portable cabin which is just used for selling tickets. The new station building will have seating for passengers, more room to leave bicycles, a small retail facility and there will be additional shelters on the platform. http://www.uckfieldnews.com/news/latest_stories/station_opening.html Mon, 01 Mar 2010 00:00:00 UTC Bellbrook Business Park is becoming a magnet for shoppers. More and more people are finding they can get just what they want on their doorstep from the showrooms and 'trade counters' that are open to the public, writes Paul Watson. It's not a retail park but there's plenty of retail going on. There was some resistance in the past to allowing such businesses on to industrial estates but without them Uckfield would be a much poorer place. Some would say the amount of business being transacted on the estate is one of Uckfield's best kept secrets but it is a sign of the times that retail is thriving as the Bellbrook lives up to its Business Park name. Exhaustive What follows is by no means an exhaustive list of what you can find on the estate. T.R. Fastenings is the latest business to open a trade counter. Manager Scott Aley said they opened in November and were getting busier. There was a wide range of products, aimed particularly at builders and DIY-ers, including everything from... http://www.uckfieldnews.com/news/business_scene/business_park.html Mon, 01 Mar 2010 00:00:00 UTC Did you know that today is the start of national Welly Week or that it is World Book Day on Thursday 4th or that Alice in Wonderland will be in cinemas from March 5? We all have some dates fixed firmly in our minds but the one you really must remember this month is Mothers Day on Sunday the 14th. There are some really tastly menus available locally so why not take Mum out and save on the washing up! Another big date for my family is today, Monday, March 1, because at long last Minnie, our Yorkshire Terrier puppy, is allowed to go out, writes Uckfield News Personal Shopper Julie Brice. Having said last month that Minnie's pet tags were made in anticipation I hadn't quite expected we would wait this long. It turned out that the vet recommended we delayed giving her jabs as she was so little and I am glad we did. Everyone in the vets could hear her squealing! And that was at ten and 12 weeks so what would she have been like at eight weeks? Poor... http://www.uckfieldnews.com/news/personal_shopper/mothers_day.html Mon, 01 Mar 2010 00:00:00 UTC Uckfield Town Council is keen to get a lease settled with the town's football club for use of the first-floor and bar store in the pavilion at the Victoria Pleasure Ground. The club's lease on the area expired on April 1, 2009, and since then the council and its solicitors have been trying to get a new lease signed and accepted. Members of the town council's general purposes committee, meeting tonight (Monday), will be recommended to send a recorded letter to Uckfield Town Football Club regarding the renewal of the lease and giving it seven days to reply. If a response is not received, the council will assume Uckfield Town Football Club no longer requires the first floor and bar store. Advice will be sort from the council's solicitors to terminate the lease. *Members of the committee will also be weighing up the value of the council having 'Quality Council' status. A report to members says there are no financial benefits in belonging to the scheme. It says the costs are £10,7... http://www.uckfieldnews.com/news/latest_stories/football_club.html Sun, 28 Feb 2010 00:00:00 UTC Circulations of weekly newspapers in the East Sussex area continue to slide. Latest figures were issued yesterday (Thursday) by the Audit Bureau of Circulations. The Courier series (from Tunbridge Wells) remains the biggest selling weekly, covering much of west Kent and East Sussex. The Eastbourne Herald has put in a creditable show but its sister weekly, the Gazette - out on Wednesdays - is down ten per cent. The Sussex Express slipped by 6.6 per cent. Thanks to Press Gazette for the details. You can read the full list at http://tinyurl.com/yhlda87 Kent and Sussex Courier 27,920 (-4.5%) Eastbourne Herald 24,039 (-1.8%) Hastings & St Leonards Observer 19,177 (-3.0%) Sussex Express & County Herald 13,158 (-6.6%) Mid Sussex Times 11,427 (-4.0%) Eastbourne Gazette 9,570 (-10.3%) Bexhill Observer 9,013 (-2.4%) Crawley Observer 8,047 (-9.9%) Rye & Battle Observer 6,192 (-2.2%) The daily Argus from Brighton is also down at 27,161 (-9.7%). http://www.uckfieldnews.com/news/media_watch/circulation_slide.html Fri, 26 Feb 2010 00:00:00 UTC Room hire charges at buildings owned by Uckfield Town Council are set to rise from April. Councillors are recommended to increase prices by three per cent. This figure is in line with the expected increase in running costs for the Civic Centre in the next financial year. For example, the cost of hiring the Weald Hall at the Civic Centre would go up for non commercial use from £18.25 per hour to £18.80 and for commercial use from £43.25 per hour to £44.55. Adult groups using the main part of the Foresters Hall would see the cost rise from £7.75 an hour to £8. The recommended rises will be discussed on Monday (March 1) by members of the general purposes committee. http://www.uckfieldnews.com/news/latest_stories/room_hire.html Fri, 26 Feb 2010 00:00:00 UTC More than 500 sites suggested for housing in Wealden have been assessed by district council planners and a report on their suitability is to be published next month. An 'expert panel' of senior development control officers, planning policy officers, housing officers and an independent private consultant - employed to provide valuation advice - considered results of site surveys and assessments before the study was completed. A report to a meeting yesterday, of the Wealden cabinet local development framework sub-committee, stressed the identification of sites as suitable did not imply the council would support their development. The document, the Strategic Housing Land Availability Assessment, was described as an initial snapshot of housing potential on sites that could be deliverable for housing over the period covered by the adopted South East Plan and by the forthcoming Wealden Core Strategy. 'It is not a static document but a starting point for identifying the rolling five year ... http://www.uckfieldnews.com/news/latest_stories/housing_sites.html Thu, 25 Feb 2010 00:00:00 UTC Forty people are on a waiting list for allotments in East Hoathly and the parish council is hoping to provide some on land at Long Pond, next to Thomas Turner Drive. The land, on the London Road just before the entrance to East Hoathly, is currently used as public open space but the council has applied to Wealden District Council to vary a covenant and allow it to be used as allotments. Documents say a previous attempt to provide allotments at Long Pond in 2003 failed and a second request for allotments was made in 2008. The parish council investigated other possibilities such as local landowners leasing land and also approached the district council about the possibility of using Broomy Lodge Field but without success. There is pedestrian access to the Long Pond site and a car park nearby and the East Hoathly Community Allotments association said the intention was 'not to have any sheds, structures or facilities on the site so that the visual impact of the ... http://www.uckfieldnews.com/news/latest_stories/east_hoathly_allotments.html Wed, 24 Feb 2010 00:00:00 UTC