Archive
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Expansion hits right note for piano firm
Every Good Boy Deserves . . . well the F has been a matter of debate over the years. But the EGBDF initials have been drummed into would-be piano pupils over the years sometimes with a ruler over the knuckles. So if you were or are one of those
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Law firm bolsters its team
Swindon-based law firm Withy King has promoted three senior solicitors to partner level in its construction and commercial property teams to help meet increasing demands. The teams have also taken on three additional lawyers, taking the total number
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Communications specialist called on
Global memory manufacturer, Kingston Technology has brought in retail channel specialist Catalus Limited of Aldbourne to help with its expansion. Kingston is the world's number one memory vendor with sales of $3bn in 2005. It has chosen Catalus,
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‘I want people to be proud to say they come from Swindon’
Mike Bawden has been involved in local government for nearly 40 years but his work isn't finished yet, as he tells LEIGH ROBINSON. THE number of people who have had a real influence on Swindon are few and far between. First there was Brunel, who
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Honda strengthens its green credentials
The environmentally-friendly PR team at Honda (UK) has been strengthened by the arrival of John Kingston as environment manager. John's move to the PR department highlights Honda's continued commitment to environmental issues. His role involves communicating
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Buy-to-let market recovering after slump
A FAVOURABLE market for landlords, with rising rents, yields, increasing numbers of tenants and gradually rising house prices, has contributed to a healthy start to 2006 in the buy-to-let sector. This is according to a report issued by UCB Home Loans
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A new embrace as creative company changes name
Swindon-based company, Embrace Communications has a new name. It is now known as Embrace Creative Ltd and has expanded existing services to offer customers the complete creative agency experience from concept to delivery. Not only will Embrace continue
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Crime prevention Trust cheques out bank’s donation
A charity four wheeled police initiative that aims to prevent and reduce the fear of crime for the vulnerable and elderly living in Swindon and Wiltshire has banked a welcome boost from high street bank, Barclays. The Wiltshire Bobby Van Trust is a
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Staff race in to raise cash
A four hundred legged team of npower staff flexed its foot power during the biggest weekend of charity fundraising in Swindon this year. Teams took part in two challenging events, Walk Wonders followed by a demanding 24 hour Le Mans-style carting race
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Accountants’ award
The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) has awarded Monahans with approved employer professional development status, which is regarded as a significant accolade for their organisation. Under this ACCA initiative, only around 100 organisations
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Sponsorship deal for motor trader
CIRENCESTER and Wroughton-based Suzuki dealers, Pebley Beach, has announced it has renewed its sponsorship of south west golf's most lucrative pro-am tournament. This will be the seventh year that Pebley Beach Suzuki has sponsored the tournament at
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Swinton looks to buy brokers
Swinton, one of the UK's leading high street insurance brokers, is looking to buy brokers in the Swindon area as part of its plans to increase its presence in the region. The company, which has 355 high street branches across the UK including one
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No debate as new chamber takes over
THE new Swindon Chamber of Commerce is up and running and has been formed without any local businesses having the chance to say yes and no. The Thames Valley Chamber of Commerce Group, which has nine other chambers under its umbrella, moved in to take
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Howell putts a small fortune
WHEN Swindon golfer David Howell won the BMW Championship at the weekend it took his career earnings close to the £10m mark and made him one of the town's wealthiest residents. At the age of 30 he is at his peak and the chances are he will double that
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Village life is a slice of heaven in the spring
HAVING been town and city dwellers, my wife and I now live in the beautiful village of Broad Blunsdon. And what a difference, after 75 years we have now found the perfect place to spend our autumn years, amongst happy and friendly people. The village
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Homes query
IF the half a million illegal immigrants get an amnesty and can stay in Britain permanently will they be allowed to bring in their families here? If they do, then Britain will need an additional half a million homes to accommodate them. Will they then
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Plan new arena
COULD we have a complex in Swindon with a Roman-style arena with shops like H&M Hennes, Clarks and Laura Ashley and Next, Gap, Warner Bros, coffee bars, theme bars around it? The Roman-style arena would be Swindon's concert hall/sports complex. We need
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Town is big, bad and ugly
WHAT a sad day when the first sod was cut on our Front Garden project. I actually hate Swindon and once my children are settled I'm out. Coming here at the start of the 1970s it was a small to medium-sized town. Walking through its centre you would
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The parties are all now corrupt
I HAD to write to say how much I agreed with Mr G Scott's letter on Thursday. We have all become used to believing that we must vote for one of five parties, and to me now, especially Tory and Labour, they are corrupt and out of touch with the average
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Residents will pay students’ tax bill
SWINDON residents might rue the day if proposed plans regarding the new university ear-marked for Coate Water finally materialise. Householders in university towns are paying an extra £80m a year in council tax to subsidise students who are exempt from
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My decision was not taken lightly
I AM writing in response to Shirley Mathias' comments regarding my four-year-old son Zachary being let off the school bus. It appears obvious she has no understanding of the situation. The school bus is for children living in West Swindon whose designated
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Team’s great moves
A TEAM of chess players from Swindon is celebrating after winning a national tournament. The team believes that it could be the first time a junior chess team from Wiltshire has won a national competition. Earlier this month the Wiltshire under-18
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Volunteers wanted to transform courtyard
A PROJECT to bring a school's courtyard to life with colour has been launched. The Commonweal School in The Mall, Old Town, is inviting families to help create artwork to breathe new life into its courtyard. There are two sessions which people can turn
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Parking warning
OFFICIALS at the Great Western Hospital are warning staff and visitors that they risk a fine if they park outside the marked bays following the introduction of extra parking spaces. Initial problems with a shortage of bays meant that previously people
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Youngsters get all arty at the gallery
PUPILS from Lethbridge School, in Old Town, have been taking it in turns to visit Swindon Museum and Art Gallery. The visits were organised to coincide with the school's art week. The children each chose a painting in the gallery that they liked and
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Mothers’ group gets a council cash boost
A GROUP to help new mums to breastfeed their babies has received a cash boost from Swindon Council. Breastmates has received one of the council's sustainable development team grants. The group, which received a grant for £150, was founded in November
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Watch the birdie
BIRDS of prey and a Time Team-style excavation are among the highlights of the Hinton Parva and Bishopstone country garden fete. The event, on Saturday, June 17 from 2pm to 4pm, will be held in the gardens of Prebendal Farm in Bishopstone and will also
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On your bike for polo match
A TEAM of army personnel is planning to entertain crowds with a bicycle polo competition. The 94 Stores Squadron of the Queen's Own Gurkha Logistic Regiment based at Buckley Barracks at Hullavington is holding the event on Saturday, June 10, to raise
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Boat speeds off to the air show
A BOAT being built with the help of two Swindon firms is to appear at the Royal International Air Tattoo. Quicksilver, which builders hope will return the world water speed record back to the UK, will be appearing at the show as part of its speed theme
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Radio station on the right wavelength
SWINDON'S new radio station has moved to a step closer to launch. Brunel FM, which was announced as the winner of Swindon's new FM licence last year, has received confirmation of its allocated frequency space from Government regulators Ofcom. The radio
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How to get a bus to the games
BUS firm Thamesdown Transport is running special bus services for the Corporate Games this week. The games are running from Friday, to Sunday, at a number of different venues across the town. On Friday night extra Service 1 journeys will operate from
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Grant leads to fresh start
A CHARITY that helps Swindon's ethnic minority communities will re-open tomorrow. The Millen Advice Point, in Manchester Road, provides advice for those who do not speak English as their first language. The charity is back in business after three years
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Morrissey’s warning to vivisection supporters
CULT singer Morrissey has waded into the controversy over the new Oxford animal research laboratory by warning those working on the site "we'll get you." The singer, pictured, used a concert at the city's New Theatre last week to hit out at the £20m
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Session for women
THE next Well Woman Centre menopause support group session is being held next month. The free session, held at the Milton Road Health Hydro, will take place on June 21, from 5.30pm until 7.30pm. A specialist nurse will attend the session. If you would
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Your chance to make a point
RESIDENTS in Walcot can meet their local police officer on Saturday, June 10. PC Paul Phelps is the community beat officer for Park North, Park South and Walcot, and the meeting will be at 10am in the Walcot Dome. Coun Mavis Childs (Con, Walcot), pictured
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Who’s watching BBC show?
THE BBC has said it was pleased with Doctor Who's performance even though the viewing figures for the cult show have dropped. The seventh episode in the second series of the show, which was relaunched last year, had a 32.8 per cent audience share and
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Teens stride out to boost charity funds
A GROUP of youngsters are appealing for more sponsorship as they prepare to pull on their walking boots for charity. The team, who are all service users at Sandalwood Court in Stratton, will set off from Lechlade on Friday. They hope to arrive at Portmeadow
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P-p-p-pick up a t-t-t-ticket!
THE Oscar winning film, March of the Penguins, is coming to the Wyvern Theatre. The film, which details the lengths that Emperor penguins go to every year to breed, will be shown tomorrow and Tuesday, June 6, at 7.30pm. The theatre is running a special
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Slowdown in housing market is continuing
THE housing market is still sluggish, according to Swindon's Nationwide Building Society. Its report for May has found that prices rose on average 0.2 per cent in the month more than the 0.1 per cent increase in April but still not a strong rise. The
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They need old daps...
A SWINDON historian is appealing for the loan of a pair of white plimsolls. Rosa Matheson is producing a display looking at the history of the GWR works annual trip holiday and is keen to get hold of a pair. "They all used to wear white daps when they
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Kids are nuts for fruit
PUPILS at a Swindon primary school have been going bananas and strawberries and apples. As part of a campaign to highlight the need for healthy eating, children and staff at Robert Le Kyng primary school were encouraged to find out more about and try
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A419 lorry blaze
FIREFIGHTERS were called to a lorry fire on the A419 outside Cricklade. The alarm was raised just after 6pm last night. Two engines from Cirencester and one from Cricklade attended the lorry fire, which was on the southbound carriageway. The lorry
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Two charged after accident
TWO men have been charged with dangerous driving after a collision involving a Porsche and a high-powered motorbike. The accident, which police described as serious, happened on the southbound A419 in Swindon at about 4pm on April 8. At the time, the
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MP pilloried at spring fete
JAUNTY tunes from the Broad Town Belle fairground organ set the tone for Wootton Bassett's Spring Bank Holiday Fete in the grounds of Sacred Heart Catholic Church. Town crier Owen Collier, who helped to publicise the event, also enjoyed the attractions
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Uphill challenge
A FORMER professional footballer is gearing himself up for the biggest physical challenge of his life when he takes part in a charity bike ride through the Pyrenees. Paul O'Driscoll, of Oldlands Walk, Coate, is cycling from Hendaye in the Bay of Biscay
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You call for Islan to stay
SUPPORT for a family of Chechen asylum seekers is growing. Some 130 Adver readers have filled in a form printed in the paper urging the Home Office to let the Eltuyev's stay. And a residents' petition backing Islan, Zarina and their three young children
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Where you can get answers to vital questions
PEOPLE with concerns or questions about cancer are being urged to drop by a mobile Macmillan information point in Swindon today. The charity which the Adver teamed up with three years ago to raise £1m for the Swindon Cancer Appeal is taking its support
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All systems are go
THERE are just two days to go before Princess Anne opens Europe's biggest corporate sporting event in Swindon. The Corporate Games will be officially opened at Lydiard House at 11am on Friday. Following the opening, Swindon Council has organised a free
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Cameras are set to cut crime
CUTTING-EDGE CCTV has been installed in Swindon catch criminals. Two new cameras in Fleet Street use broadband technology and will be monitored by staff at the Brunel shopping centre who are in constant touch with the police via radio. The camera system
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In the driving seat
FILM lovers across Swindon will be revving their engines and speeding their way to see what looks set to be one of this summer's biggest films. And visitors to the Trains, Planes and Automobiles film festival, from June 30 until July 2, will have the
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On the track of the rail vandals
VANDALISM and graffiti on the Wiltshire rail network jumped by a third last year, it has been revealed. New figures show the number of incidents in which police recorded damage to trains, stations, tracks and depots increased from 21 in 2004-5 to 32
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It'll be three and easy
SWINDON ROBINS go seeking their sixth league win in a row when they visit Cowley Stadium tonight. They face their oldest adversaries Oxford Cheetahs looking to hand out another caning to their A420 neighbours the third of the season. The Pebley
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Tench and carp to the fore, despite the weather
ANGLING: SOME of the larger tench showed at Ridgeway Fisheries at the the weekend, despite appalling weather. Simon Jones caught three in his second place bag on Monday. Odd larger carp showed, with a common of 7lb 7oz caught by Elick Paine on Sunday
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It's double delight for cool Topcats
SWINDON TopCats are the Eng-lish Ice Hockey Association Women's League One Trophy winners, writes DAVE EATON. In the final they followed up their 7-1 semi-final win over Billingham by defeating the northern section winners Nottingham Vipers 3-1 to
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Cannabis destroyed my family says mum
A MUM has spoken out about the damage cannabis has done to her family in a 20-year battle with the drug. Mary, not her real name, says it has made her son mentally ill and torn the family apart. Her comments come after Keith Thompson, of Wootton Bassett
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Newman in eighth spot
MOTOR RACING: Roger Newman from Swindon competed in the British championship at the famous Brands Hatch circuit in Kent. Newman, who works for BMW, was looking to get some more points after his exploits at Thruxton recently. With a 15-minute qualifying
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Patients are happy with our hospital
MORE than three-quarters of patients are happy with their treatment at Great Western Hospital. The findings come from the Healthcare Commission's latest patient satisfaction survey. Almost 500 patients who stayed overnight at GWH were surveyed, with
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Magical Moore!
MOTOR RACING: Ed Moore from Bradford on Avon won a thrilling 12-lap Melton Concrete Products Castle Combe FF1600 Championship race in his Van Diemen RF99-01 at the Spring Bank Holiday Raceday, crossing the line two tenths of a second ahead of Worcester's
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Extension after ticket demand
TOWN chief executive Mark Devlin has cited demand and customer care as the reasons for a spot of extra time on the season ticket front. The club have extended the early bird deadline until noon on June 10. Almost 2,000 fans have now purchased tickets
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Too close for comfort!
AN elderly resident at a sheltered housing complex had a lucky escape after a car crashed into her ground floor flat. But staff at Margaret Matthews Court, in St Albans Close, Even Swindon, said the accident could have been 10 times worse and they are
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'Favourites? It makes no odds to me'
DENNIS Wise's arrival at the County Ground will go some way to providing Town's missing' ingredient yet Andy Gurney warns against blindly accepting the bookmakers'' hype. Labrokes, Coral and Bet365 all have the Wiltshire men installed as favourites
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The gloves are off
RHYS Evans insists he has exited the County Ground with his head held high' and hopes the Town faithful will understand his reasons for joining Blackpool. The 24-year-old goalkeeper has penned a two-year contract with the Seasiders after passing a
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The £100k gamble on a good report
SWINDON Council is to gamble £100,000 on a report card that it hopes will show it's doing a good job. The council will spend the money, part of its nearly £500,000 audit bill, to bring forward the corporate assessment that normally occurs every five
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Don’t be a victim of phone thieves
A GROUP of thieves are stalking Swindon's pubs and clubs and stealing mobile phones from women enjoying a night out. Police are keen to make people more aware of the thefts after a recent spate of women losing out. PC Georgina Packford, of Swindon police
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Why would anyone try to hurt our cat?
A FAMILY has spoken of their disgust after their cat was used as target practice by an air rifle-welding attacker. When 18-month-old Figley started to act strangely the Grey family of Grange Park knew that something had to be wrong. Concerned that he
