Follow the lead to help Mimi and her pooch

Town unites to raise funds for girl who craves independence

 

THE generosity of local people is helping a Tring girl overcome severe disabilities.

Naomi, Mum and dog

Naomi Bray, eight, known as Mimi, suffers from cerebral palsy and epilepsy and requires a wheelchair and frame to aid walking.
Despite these difficulties, Mimi has shown a determination to keep busy and active.
Mum Sally Bray said: “It’s amazing how much people want to help. Berkhamsted Round Table provided £420 to help buy a car seat so Mimi can travel in the car safely and comfortably.”
Mimi, of Longbridge Close, attends Dundale School and has just had an operation on her legs but still manages to attend Brownies and go riding twice a week.
Sally said: “The riding is brilliant for her because it helps her muscles. She doesn’t use all her muscles correctly but on the back of a horse the movement really helps.”
Joan Penning, who runs the riding school in Ashley Green, where Mimi goes, organised a sponsored jump which raised £430 towards a specially adapted mobility scooter.
Sally added: “Some of Mimi’s friends have also been raising funds and we now have £800 towards the scooter which will cost £1,700.
“It’s quite frustrating for Mimi because she still can’t come for a dog walk with us.
“She really wants to be independent and she knows her sisters don’t need any help and she thinks why should she?”
Mimi will require further operations throughout her life and the scooter will help her gain a bit more independence.
Sally said: “We want to thank everyone who has helped us.
“ If any charities or business are able to help out it would make such a difference to Mimi’s life.”
Anyone who wants to help  can contact Sally Bray on 01442 827982.

TRING Curtain up on changes at popular theatre

PROPOSALS for backstage improvements at Tring’s popular Court Theatre have been given the thumbs-up by Tring Town Council.
Tring business Grass Roots has owned the theatre since 1984 and wants to invest £70,000 in a single-storey extension to provide changing facilities, backstage toilets and a private room to be used by well-known stars performing at the theatre.
During a Tring Town Council planning meeting on March 6, Councillor John Allan said: “I support this very strongly, particularly because of the disabled access aspect. I think it is very important we have this.”
Cllr Olive Conway said: “I think anything they can do to improve it will be an asset.”
Tring Town Council decided to support the application because it will improve disabled access, improve the appearance of a listed building and will provide better facilities for the community and the provision of the arts.
Dacorum Borough Council will now make a decision on whether to give the plans the go-ahead.

Charity shop looks even better

VOLUNTEERS in Tring opened their new-look Save The Children Shop last Friday as part of a nationwide re-vamp of the charity’s stores.
The shop had been shut for about two weeks while workmen gave the store a much-needed facelift said regional manager Jane Harris.
“The shop does exceptionally well and it just needed a facelift. It was looking a bit old and tired,” she explained.
“Now it is looking absolutely lovely, all bright and up to date.”
The shop in High Street, Tring, has been treated to new flooring, more lighting, new logos, a new counter and new fixtures and fittings.
About 30 volunteers, who work short shifts, run the Tring store from 9.30am to 4.30pm on Mondays, Tuesday, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays and Wednesdays from 9.30am to 1pm.
If you would like to volunteer with the charity contact the shop on 01442 826317. 
 

Dolphin Square – it’s all change at former supermarket site Three into one equals good news for shoppers

THREE new shops are set to replace the old Budgens supermarket in Tring.
Andrew Smith from leaseholders the Lear Group confirmed: “We are hoping to
divide Budgens into three new stores. One of these will be a food store if possible.”
Budgens moved out of Tring last October after more than 25 years in Dolphin Square, leaving shoppers with no central supermarket.
The move came after store bosses failed to reach an agreement to renew the lease.
However rumours that Marks & Spencer could be moving into the town have been quashed.
A Marks & Spencer spokesman said there was no record of plans to move into the town and could not comment on any rumours.
Another retailer tipped to be interested in the site is clothes store Mackays and the company has already advertised for staff to work in a new shop in Tring.
However a spokesman from Mackays said: “It is company policy not to divulge whether we will be opening stores.”
The news that three retailers plan to join the town will be a great boost for shoppers and traders, who saw many businesses either close down or move out during last year.
High Street business owner Martin Cheshire, from Almar Printing Services, said new retailers in the town would help local businesses - especially if a new food store moved in.
He said: “Trade in the High Street is terrible. As long as we get something decent in there people will start coming back.
“Although people said they never used Budgens they did.
“Most people go to a big supermarket for their main shop but during the week there is always things you need.”
Lear Group’s Mr Smith  added: “We are hoping to be in a position to announce who is going into these shops within two months.”
“We have got agents who are dealing with the retailers on our behalf so we are very much in their hands.”

All the fun of the circus

A circus fair marks the start of spring this weekend.
The event, where performers will entertain youngsters in workshops, will be officially opened by Tring mayor Mike James
There will be a guest appearance from Gully Mouse from Gulliver’s Land and lots of fantastic prizes on offer.
The fair will be at Goldfield Infants and Nursery School in Christchurch Road, Tring on Saturday, March 18 from 11am. to 2pm. Entry costs 50p.

Kids show is no secret

YOUNGSTERS interested in singing and dancing are being invited to take part in a special Tring Easter production of The Secret Garden.
Perform, a drama, dance and singing school that runs workshops across London and the South East, is looking for youngsters aged between four and eight-years-old to take part in the show.
The children will work with enthusiastic actors, singers and dancers who will give support and encourage little ones during rehearsals, to be held at Grove Road Primary School, Grove Road, Tring from 10am to noon on Monday, April 10, Tuesday, April 11 and Wednesday, April 12.
The Secret Garden show will be held on the final day from 11.30am to noon.
For information or to secure your child’s place call 0845 400 4000.

Click on to website to save youth hostel

CAMPAIGNERS fighting to save Ivinghoe Youth Hostel have posted their crusade on the web in a bid to get as much support as possible.
People are being urged to back the drive to save the hostel by putting their opinions on a special section of The Ivinghoe and Pitstone Village website.
Bucks County and district councillor Avril Davies, who is heading the campaign, has put a poster on the website for people to print and stick in their windows at home and work.
Mrs Davies, who is due to meet with YHA officials, said: “We will be raising all of the questions that we had at the village meeting and asking them if they have got the evidence for their reasons for closure, because at the moment the evidence they give doesn’t stand up.”
An emergency meeting called after the announcement that the hostel would close, saw more than 40 people from Ivinghoe and Pitstone turn out last month to voice their objections.
People from London and Oxfordshire have also joined the fight.
Ivinghoe Youth Hostel - set in a Georgian mansion -could be shut down as early as October as part of cost-cutting plans that will see 32 of the YHA’s least popular sites closed.
The charity says the move will enable £18m to be invested in upgrading facilities at 200 other hostels across the UK.
Campaigners are also asking people to write with their objections to Chris Boulton, chair of the board of trustees, Trevelyan House, Dimple Road, Matlock, Derbyshire, DE4 3XB.
To print the campaign poster visit The Ivinghoe and Pitstone Village website on www.pitstone.co.uk

High Street study ends

SURVEYS into the condition of Tring High Street are due to be completed by the end of this week.
Herts Highways has been investigating the High Street to find out what needs to be done to permanently fix the sinking road blocks.
Spokesman for Herts County Council, Lara Hejazi said: “We need to get all of the results in and analyse them all and then look at what sort of scheme can be designed.”
Work to improve the road is not expected to start until towards the end of the next financial year, which runs from April to April.
Workmen have done several surveys, including a radar survey of underground utilities and digging trial holes to give an indication of the underlying state of the town’s busy street.
This is the early stages of plans for fixing the High Street after years of problems, including fractures to underground piping, sinking roadblocks and potholes.
Miss Hejazi said: “It depends on what sort of scheme they are going to do. If there are structural problems there is no point digging up the pavement and putting more paving slabs down.
“They are trying to explore every avenue.”

Wow! - there’s a lot going on round here

A PREVIEW of the ‘Your Tring’ website, put together by local schoolchildren, was on show during the recent Chilterns Exhibition and Dacorum CVS Charities Fair.
The website, especially for young people in Tring and youngsters thinking about visiting the area, is expected to be up and running by the end of the month.
Tring School has been working on the website with the Market Town Tourism Project for about a year.
The website includes fun places to visit in Tring and the surrounding villages. Local primary schools have also contributed to the website.
Tring Cllr Peter Coneron from the Market Town and Tourism Project said: “The preview went extremely well and there were good comments from all those that viewed it in terms of its contents and particularly the way it has been put together by young people for young people.”
The joint exhibition and fair was held at the Desborough Hall at Tring School, Mortimer Hill on Saturday, February 25.
It raised about £1,200 for charities, including the Hospice of St Francis; Tring Child Contact Centre and local churches.
During the exhibition
visitors got to find out more about local heritage groups, such as the Chilterns Conservation Board, Friends of Tring Church Heritage and Tring Local History and
Museum Society, all of which had information stands. The event, pictured above, was organised by Tring School, Tring Market Town Tourism Project and Dacorum CVS with sponsorship from Stephen Hearn at Tring Market Auctions and the East of England Development Agency.

To go to the Tring homepage, click here