Features

Bourne: Friendly, vibrant place to spend some time

Bourne is a small historic market town just ten miles from Spalding, with a truly unique charm and friendliness. The town is fortunate to be situated in an outstanding location, which is both pretty and idyllic, with an abundance of green open spaces, woodland and water ways. This makes Bourne a great place to explore on foot or by bike, ...

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Tulip Talk with Jan Whitbourn

We recently had the pleasure of spending an hour in the company of the two stalwarts of the local branch of the Royal Naval Association, Keith and Yvonne Crawford. Keith told us of his early days in the Royal Navy and the square bashing he had to endure as part of his basic training. He later joined the Fleet Air ...

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Plan now to prepare pets for cold weather

Winter can be a tricky time for your pets, but a bit of common sense can go a long way to keeping them safe and happy through the long cold months. Dogs should always be kept on a lead when walked anywhere near frozen ponds or rivers for fear of falling through thin ice and, as they can easily become ...

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VETS COLUMN: Pets can make great teachers

In this increasingly digital life in which we live I believe that owning pets is more important than ever. They can give us, and particularly children, a grounding in the real (analog!) world. Keeping a pet should teach about care and responsibility, about relationships and emotions and ultimately the sadness and feelings associated with death. We have all seen and ...

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COLUMN: Community Champions – Pumpkin Festival offers something for all

This year’s Pumpkin Festival is set to be better than ever before. It is being held on Friday, October 9, in Hall Place and Sheep Market in Spalding. The Pumpkin Festival is a celebration of local horticulture and harvest. It is a wonderful opportunity to spend quality time with your friends and family and enjoy the abundance that the South ...

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COLUMN: Cruising for couples

Moving on from last week’s edition this week we are concentrating on cruising with couples in mind. At Holiday With Us & Spalding Travel we search independently for the best prices for our clients. We are able to match online prices and offers through various reader publications. So when you have a date and a destination in mind, call or ...

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FEATURE: A feature wall can bring a room to life

If all of the walls of a room are decorated in the same colour or pattern, it creates harmony but can be a bit plain. By picking out one wall and giving it a different, bolder colour, you can change the mood of a room or highlight a particular feature. Feature walls are most often used when the rest of ...

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VETS COLUMN: Get lumps checked

One of the most frequent problems that I am asked to look at during my consultations are masses on or just below the skin. I will discuss just some of the more common ones in this article. Many of these masses are benign or inflammatory masses, some are ‘’locally” malignant tumours and a few are highly malignant tumours. Warts are ...

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FEATURE: How you can make the most of school open days

Many schools hold open days to give parents and children the chance to look around and get a feel for the place and help them in their decision in which school to choose. During an open day prospective parents and pupils can visit the school during a working day. You’ll be able to visit classrooms, and often pupils will show ...

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FEATURE: Help your child get a headstart at primary school

Some parents start worrying about primary schools when their children are still babies. This may be unnecessary, but it pays to think ahead. For example, you may think about moving house to be closer to a particular primary school. Talk to local parents about the schools in your area – playgroups and children’s centres are good sources of information. But ...

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FEATURE: Help your child get a head start at secondary school

You’ll probably already have some ideas about your local secondary schools, through talking to parents at your child’s primary school. It’s important to include your child’s views about which secondary schools to apply to. Your child may be keen to continue school with current primary school friends and could be influenced by friends’ choices of secondary school. Consider your child’s ...

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A monthly column by Spalding Town Centre Manager Dennis Hannant

Following a successful food festival, we are now looking forward to events leading up to Christmas. This coming Sunday will see the second visit to the town of the Italian Piazza Market being held on the Sheep Market between 10am and 4pm, and will have 16 speciality stalls selling high quality Mediterranean foods including; freshly made Italian breads, olives, Salumi ...

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Give your horse the best care this winter

During the warmer months the rewards of horse ownership are obvious; whether you compete or simply appreciate spending lazy summer days in the company of your four-legged friend. For all the enjoyment your horse brings in those months it’s essential to provide the best winter care possible to reap these benefits again next year. The horse has evolved to eat ...

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VET COLUMN: A new arrival means a change in routine

There has been a major disruption this week to our household routine. You would not think that such a small little thing would cause so much trouble. Just over three weeks ago we decided that we would let one of our old and broody Buff Orpingtons sit on an egg. We kept this to one egg as we did not ...

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COLUMN: Students enjoy first few days at Sir John Gleed

The step up from primary school to secondary school is an exciting time for young people – if not more than a little daunting. Here are the comments of some of the year seven students who started at the Sir John Gleed School last week. Sophie Toynton Before the Sir John Gleed School’s summer school I felt excited and really ...

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Taz walks over hot coals to help others feel better

Few people familiar with the quiet, leafy streets of Cowbit would think the village might be home to an international empowerment expert, who helps people to step into their personal power with a trademark mix of deeply peaceful and extremely challenging activities. With TV appearances, national magazine mentions and a book deal under her belt, Taz Thornton is fast growing ...

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NEW HOMES: Why it can be best to buy a new house

With more than 160,000 new homes being built across the UK every year there is an enormous amount of choice when it comes to buying new. Here are a few good reasons why buying a new-build could be the right choice for you. 1. Energy Efficient – New homes are well insulated and include double-glazing as standard making them cheaper ...

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Column: Wildlife Voice

Hello again! Last time in my column I looked at wasps. This time, we’re back to the birds. I’d like to look at what is becoming an increasingly common garden bird, the woodpecker. Well, actually not just one woodpecker. Around Spalding there are two different kinds which we are likely to see. The green woodpecker, which is (oddly enough) green. ...

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Tulip Talk with Jan Whitbourn

Last weekend saw the first Food Festival in Spalding for three years and over 2,000 people came to enjoy the delicacies of South Holland’s micro food Industry. There were 53 different stalls, over 45 of which were food related, giving a good selection of produce. The venue provided by South Holland District Council had many people remarking on how good ...

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Tips to help you choose the perfect pre-school for your child

It is important to choose the right preschool (which could be a playgroup or a nursery school) for your child and the right age for your child to begin in this childcare setting. Most playgroups start taking children from two years, nine months although some are registered to take children from two years so it worth getting in touch to ...

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