Sold on idea of Flog It!

TRING Auction Rooms had a bumper day of business last weekend when TV’s Flog It! crew pulled into the town.
Hundreds of excited locals turned out for the special auction on Saturday to see lots go under the hammer for the BBC show.
Auctioneer Stephen Hearn said: “We always have a big crowd, but it was a tremendous day. It was a great atmosphere.”
The day was such a success that Tring could see Flog It! returning to the town in the future. Mr Hearn said: “About 1,000 people visited. We gave out more than 900 tickets to buyers.”
The auction rooms also came up trumps in their own estimates of the lots’ value. Tring Auction Rooms are open every day 9am-5pm and offer free valuations and home visits. For more information contact the auction rooms on 01442 826446.

New poems inspired by old museum

TRING School pupils have put pen to paper for this year’s Gerald Massey Poetry Competition set up by the Tring and District Residents’ Association.
TADRA disbanded last year, but decided to continue the annual competition and renamed it after Tring’s very own poet, Gerald Massey.
The task this year was to write a short lyrical poem on the subject of Tring Museum.
The best 10 entries will be sent to the former chair of TADRA, Ian Petticrew. These will be whittled down to the best five poets, who will all receive prizes.
A presentation will be made to the winners by Tring Mayor Mike James at the Vestry Hall in Tring on Monday, March 27 at 8pm.

Town is too affluent to win funding grant for ball park

YOUNGSTERS in Tring have been turned down for a £30,000 grant to help pay for a top quality ball park in the town.
Tring Youth Town Council applied for the cash, on offer from the East of England Development Agency, but narrowly missed out to a less affluent town planning a similar project.
Teenagers from the town’s youth council have been working towards a ball park in Miswell Lane since October 2003 and are hoping to see it come to life later this year.
If they had been awarded the massive grant, the play area could have been up and running by March, but now the plans have stalled while other funding opportunities are explored.
Tring Youth Town Council teamed up with Tring Together to put forward their application for the EEDA grant, which would have covered nearly all of the bill for the state of the art park.
Jane Randrup from Tring Together said: “Initially the fund was terribly over subscribed, but our application was considered to be very strong. We got down to the final shortlist, but then we were up against a town with a similar scheme, but in a much more deprived area. It was a tough decision and we just lost out.”
The special park, which will include a five-a-side football pitch, a basketball court, cricket stumps, seating and litter bins, will cost £38,000. So far the youth council has managed to save £8,000 through fundraising for the facility.
Clerk of Tring Youth Town Council, Emma Cave, said: “It is a bit disappointing, but not wholly surprising.
“The other area was very much a more deprived area, so the decision was made and quite rightly. It is one of those things really. When we did the skate park we went up blind alleys, it is all part of the process and it is quite a good learning curve for the youngsters. We will carry on and get the money together, probably in small chunks from different places.”
The ball park proposals have been met with positive comments from local residents and Tring Town Council has given its full backing to the project.
Mrs Cave said they still plan to have the ball park up and running this year. Tring Youth Town Council will be applying for grants from other organisations, such as the Big Lottery Fund.

Pole position

THE SEARCH has started to find a replacement for popular Tring School head teacher Julia Trueman.
Applications have flooded in for the position and the school’s governors have whittled down 25 written applications to a shortlist of about five.
The first set of interviews were held on Tuesday (February 21) and will continue today (Wednesday).
A group of school governors have been appointed along with an advisor from Hertfordshire County Council’s education department to carry out the interviews.
Miss Trueman announced that she is set to leave the school this summer after 10 years as head teacher.

Get in the running
for hospice

CALLING on all Flora London Marathon runners, who have not yet chosen a charity to run for - the Iain Rennie Hospice at Home needs you.
This year the charity is celebrating the end of their 20 year anniversary and is hoping to have a team of 20 runners for the 26.2 mile course.
Runners from the London Marathon Iain Rennie team brought in more than £48,000 in sponsorship last year. That is enough money to fund two specialist support nurses for a year.
So far the charity has 14 runners for the marathon on Sunday, April 23.
Runners for the Iain Rennie Hospice at Home will get lots of practical help and support with training, personalised sponsor forms, a running vest and a special meeting point after the race.
The charity’s runners also have the chance to get together before the big day at a special Pasta Night in Tring.
Volunteer London Marathon co-ordinator, Tony Yates, said: “We also provide lots of support and encouragement on the day.
“We have highly visible support teams along the marathon route with snacks for our runners and megaphones to cheer our team on.”
For details call Tony or Louise on 01442 890222, email tyates@irhh.org or lbreen@irhh.org or visit www.irhh.org

Pupils vote peers in power

BUDDING politicians at Tring School will be keeping their fingers crossed, when pupils vote for who will take seats on Tring Youth Town Council this week.
School pupils will get first hand experiences of the democratic process when they elect 12 pupils for the youth town council.
Two youngsters from each year group will be elected and will replace students who are busy with exams and will be leaving school later this year.
This is the third year the youth town council has held elections at Tring School. Voting will be as realistic as possible with real polling booths and voting slips.
Clerk for Tring Youth Town Council, Emma Cave, said: “The school likes doing it because they cover elections and local government in the curriculum.
“It is a really useful exercise.”
The results of the election will be announced on Monday, February 27.

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