News

The first homes offered for rent by Welland Homes are now fully occupied. The company was set up by South Holland District Council to provide rented homes across the district. It works in partnership with building firm D&R Homes and the Walters Close development in Spalding is now fully let. “It is a very attractive development built to an excellent ...

A national store with a branch in Spalding town centre has announced up to 3,900 redundancies. Wilko is currently consulting with staff on the shake-up. The company is looking to take out a level of supervisory roles across the UK but is also creating 1,000 new senior positions as part of the changes. The consultation is due to run until ...

A Long Sutton grandfather of ten died when a pensioner failed to see his motorcycle on the A16, a court was told this week. Jean Taylor (74), of Stickford, admitted causing the death of Terence Westrop (65) by careless driving following the collision on the A16 at Sibsey in December. Lincoln Crown Court heard Taylor was driving her husband to ...

Rail services need to be hugely improved in Spalding to justify any major increase in fares, according to the chairman of a local user group. George Scott, of the Spalding and Peterborough Transport Forum, said the price hikes announced this week were not helping economic development in the area. “We have two cathedral cities in Peterborough and Lincoln and you ...

Lincolnshire Police have laid out the force’s strategy on rural crime. Deputy Chief Constable Craig Naylor recently brought together stakeholders and partner agencies, including the NFU, from across law enforcement and the rural community in the first meeting of Lincolnshire Police’s new Rural Community Safety Multi-Agency Gold Group. The meeting was an opportunity to review last year’s rural crime and ...

Record crowds were in Spalding over the weekend when the clock was turned back to the wartime years. It was the era of ration books, Lindy Hops and the dreaded Doodlebugs. But visitors were In the Mood when they dressed in their finest for the occasion. The 1940s event held at Ayscoughfee Hall saw around 10,000 people enjoy the sunshine ...

A South Holland charity is celebrating after being awarded permission to stay in its current home. The Spalding-based Pennygate Foundation was in danger of losing its home. The centre was operating on temporary planning permission which was on the verge of expiring. Dr Azmeena Nathu submitted an application to allow the centre next to her surgery to become permanent, extend ...

Rural crime cost Lincolnshire a staggering £2.5million in 2016, up 5 per cent from £2.4million in 2015. The figures form part of NFU Mutual’s annual Rural Crime Report, published today, revealing that despite Britain seeing a 4 per cent drop last year, the cost of rural theft has risen sharply in the first half of 2017. According to NFU Mutual’s ...

Aldi’s Spalding supermarket will be closed for several weeks for major refurbishment to be completed. The Spalding shop in Winsover Road is expected to shut from 4pm on Sunday, August 27. An Aldi spokesperson said: “Our Spalding store will be temporarily closed while we extend the store and add more parking spaces. We look forward to welcoming our customers back ...

A planning meeting had to be cancelled because of a sound system failure. Members of South Holland District Council’s Planning Committee were due to meet last Wednesday evening (August 2). But it was cancelled at the last minute because of the issue. “The decision was made because, in the absence of the microphone system, not everyone in attendance could hear ...

The doors of a South Holland residential home closed for business for the last time on Friday. Residents of Hovenden House, Fleet, have already moved out and the home has ceased to operate. Charity Leonard Cheshire Disability announced the closure in April, saying the Grade II listed building needed renovation and a great deal of money spending on it. At ...

Air ambulance crews had one of their busiest days last week with five serious 999 calls last Tuesday. The final call of a hectic shift was to a motorcyclist injured in a crash at Gedney Hill. The day’s crew of Chief Pilot Paul Smith, co-pilot Llewis Ingamells, paramedics Neil Clarke and RIch Irwin along with Dr Dave Cookson started the ...

Budding artists in Holbeach can capture the majesty of the cemetery chapels on Thursday (August 10). The artwork created during Paint Out Day will then be displayed inside the chapels at the open day this Saturday. At Paint Out Day, art expert Phil Biggs will be on hand to offer free guidance and tips for painting the chapels. Phil ran ...

Police are still hunting three men believed to be involved in a ram raid at Crowland Co-Op on August 1. One man suspected of driving the Audi used as a getaway vehicle has been sent back to jail. The car was involved in a fatal crash at Ramsey Road, Whittlesey, around 4.20am on Tuesday, August 1. Police arrested the 31-year-old ...

The school holidays are now well under way, and Sea Cadets – a national youth charity with 400 units across the UK – is urging people to stay safe as it launches its Water Savvy campaign. More than 300 people drowned in the UK last year, and more suffered life-changing injuries through near-drowning. But many of these tragic incidents could ...

Visitors to Ayscoughfee Hall had a blast with the past at the Festival of Archaeology. The two-day history event transformed the gardens into Ayscoughfee “Jurassic” park. Staff from Cambridgeshire museum Fossils Galore brought along real dinosaur bones for visitors to handle. Remains from Indie, an eight-metre-long Iguanodon, and the skull of Stompy, a woolly rhinoceros, were on display. Stompy, who ...

The Holbeach Music and Beer Festival provided organiser Sean Taylor a moment he’ll never forget. Fireworks flew while 80s-style band Wild Boys topped off a triumphant Saturday night after an afternoon shower threatened to dampen spirits. “At 2pm, there was a sharp shower,” said Sean. “From three onwards, the sun came out. When Soft Tone Needles played with the sun ...

More than 800 hospital patients across South Lincolnshire, King’s Lynn and Cambridgeshire are assisting with medical studies. Medical research at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, King’s Lynn, has seen a 116 per cent increase in participants in the past 12 months. The increase in willing patients has resulted in Dr Antonia Hardcastle’s Research and Development Team setting up more studies to ...

A scheme aimed at getting more people in South Holland walking has celebrated its tenth anniversary. The Walking for Health initiative held a special event at the South Holland Centre which was attended by 130 walk leaders and volunteers. New members are always welcome to join the club which has eight walking clubs across the district offering 13 walks. A ...

More than half of Lincolnshire’s biggest businesses have highlighted a lack of skills as being a problem in the region. In the study by business and financial adviser Grant Thornton UK LLP, more than a third of businesses also said the county’s transport and infrastructure systems must improve if they are to continue to grow. Some 53 per cent of ...