Fury fuels road protest petition

Dangerous potholes and ruts in a Tring road have prompted local residents to make a stand.
Herts Highways are to look at the road surface in Frogmore Street and Dundale Road after furious residents formed a petition in protest over the poor state of the roads.
Cyclist Dr Douglas Doughty of Dundale Road headed the petition. He said: "This road is quite a busy suburban road. At the bottom of the hill the road has been dug up and filled in and repaired so many times that it is dangerous.
"When I get to the bottom of the hill on my bike I have to stop and sometimes get off."
He says the worst area is outside the Black Horse pub on Frogmore Street.
The petition containing 18 signatures, was sent to Tring Town Council, Herts County Council and Dacorum Borough Council.
It calls for the whole of Frogmore Street and the lower end of Dundale Road to be completely resurfaced.
82-year-old Dr Doughty, who is a retired chartered engineer, cycles along the roads up to three times a day and fears a cyclist could have a serious accident.
A spokesman from Herts County Council said: "We received the petition on June 14.
“We are going to look at the surface on both roads and assess the situation and then get in touch with Dr Doughty and let him know what we plan to do with it."

New name for fiesta

TRING’S Victorian Fiesta will be relaunched with a new name this November.
Organisers have decided to name the popular event, which draws thousands of people into the town, the Tring Christmas Festival.
Doubt was cast over the future of the Christmas event, when long standing organisers Martin Cheshire, Carol Lawrence and Ben Cartwright decided to step down.
Tring Together, the group dedicated to improving the town, has taken over the organisation of the Christmas event with the support and help of Tring and District Chamber of Commerce.
The festival always take place on the last Friday in November.
Tring Town Council pledged £500 towards the cost of the festival during a finance and policy meeting on Monday, June 19.

Celebration of Irish heritage

Youngsters will show off their dancing skills during a special Irish Dancing show in Tring to celebrate everything Irish.
The Claddagh School of Irish Dance will put on a show of Irish dancing along with acts from an Irish comedian, a harmonica player and Irish singers at the Court Theatre, Pendley on Monday, June 26.
The evening is part of Tring Festival’s Fringe Week held annually at the Station Road theatre.
Dance teacher Sandra Hartford, 21, runs the Claddagh Dance School with the help of her mum Margaret.
She said: “A lot of the children have choreographed their own dances. It is quite a big deal for them because they have never taken part in a big dance show before.”
Sandra set up the Tring dance school in March 2004. She dances for an Irish variety show, which tours America.
Dance lessons are held on Tuesdays  and Fridays at Tring Community Centre, Silk Mill Way, from 4.30pm to 6pm. To find out more about lessons call Sandra on 01442 381241.
Tickets to the Irish Dancing Show cost £6 and doors open at 7.30pm. To book tickets call the Court Theatre box office on 01442 824673.

Car boot total

A charity car boot sale on Bank Holiday Monday, May 1, raised £1,600 for good causes.
Held in the Forge Car Park, off Tring High Street, the boot sale organised by Dacorum Council for Voluntary Service was a big hit.
There were 25 different stalls, of which 15 were raising funds for local charities and voluntary groups.

Inner city pupils enjoy Tring countryside treat

Youngsters from London got a taste of the countryside when they visited a Tring school.
Nine and ten-year-olds from St Mary and St Pancras School in Camden spent two days with pupils from Grove Road Primary School.
During their trip they walked along The Ridgeway National Trail and spent the night in Ivinghoe Youth Hostel, which locals are fighting to save after the Youth Hostel Association earmarked it for closure next year.
Grove Road deputy head teacher Fiona Masters said: "It was so good. They couldn't believe it. When we walked up The Ridgeway they said 'look, real live rabbits'. This is the sort of thing our children take for granted.
"They just said it is so green and it is so quiet and there is so little traffic. They were so impressed with it and they couldn't believe we are just 30 minutes from London."
The visit gave the youngsters a chance to stretch their legs. Most of them live in flats with no garden and their London school has a small playground with no playing fields.
During their action packed stay the children took part in a traffic survey of Tring High Street, went swimming, had a picnic, visited Ford End Water Mill in Ivinghoe and the Walter Rothschild Zoological Museum in Akeman Street, Tring.
Ms Masters said: "The children were really impressed with it and said next year they would like to stay longer. We are really hopeful that we can build up the link and have more to do with them and also hopefully other schools in the London area will have more links with schools in this area."

Katie’s voice rises high

Budding politician Katie McManus from Tring School has debated her way into the finals of the prestigious National Youth Parliament Competition.
The 16-year-old, who is vice-chairman of Tring Youth Town Council, entered the competition with about 50 other A-Level students from Tring School.
They competed against almost 200 other schools, with just 18 schools making it through to the final shortlist.
The students were split into teams, each taking on roles within the Government, the opposition and backbench MPs, recreating the parliamentary chamber at the House of Commons, for a debate about introducing identity cards in Britain.
Each school made a 20 minute video of their debate to be judged.
English teacher at Tring School, Jennifer Greenald, said: “The pupils gain an understanding of parliament and how it works and also gain some public speaking skills and an understanding of the issue they debate.”
Katie is one of six in her category as opposition spokesperson to get through to the final stage.
She said: “I’m known to be quite opinionated, so I really enjoyed the parliamentary debate. I was delighted to hear I had done well as I’m very interested in politics and considering a career in that area.”
The shortlist of entries will be judged by a panel of MPs at Westminster and winners will be invited to attend a reception at Westminster to receive their awards followed by tea at Number 10 Downing Street.
Mrs Greenald said: “Katie is very interested in a political career so it is very important to her. She is a very articulate young lady.”

Beavers need colony leader

A leader is needed to help young Beavers from First Tring Scout Group enjoy lots of fun activities.
Group scout leader Ian Hines is appealing for a volunteer to come forward after their Beaver leader of nine years, Pat Williams, moved away from the area.
The group of 24 six to eight-year-olds is being run by assistant leader Jill Cornell, but she needs help or the group could close.
Mr Hines said: “The group has been very successful, but if we don’t get a leader by the end of July it could close.”
The Beavers meet every Thursday at the Scout Hut in Longfield Road from 5.45pm to 7pm. Mr Hines said: “It is fun without a doubt, but the problem is funding someone who has got the time to spare.”
If you are interested in becoming a Beaver leader call Ian Hines on 01442 381606.

Cocktail of fun at church

Pimms and strawberries will be on offer during a special Open Door Festival at the Corpus Christi RC Church in Tring.
The church in Langdon Street is opening its doors for a family fun day on Sunday, July 16 from noon to 4pm.
There will be a BBQ and plenty of activities to keep the children entertained, including a bouncy castle, a large Connect 4Four game, foam building bricks and space hoppers.
There will be a cake, plant and home grown produce stall with teas and coffees on offer. Everyone from the area is welcome and the entry is free.

Village show

A traditional village show is on offer in Wigginton this weekend.
Classic cars, stalls and a pet show are among the attractions at the 14th Wigginton Village Show on Saturday, June 24.
Entry is free and the show is from noon to 4.30pm.