The Friends of The Garth School (FOGS) are looking for the community to get involved with a sponsored bike ride to Skegness this summer. The Spalding special school’s charity hopes to raise money for a new sensory room and equipment for its hydrotherapy pool. FOGS wants to hear from: people wanting to take part first aiders people to be marshals ...

A question and answer session in Spalding on Monday is aimed at helping people make an informed choice in the EU referendum on June 23. The panel for the “What Does The EU Mean For You?” debate will comprise: Dr Angus Armstrong (National Institute of Economic and Social Research) Prof Catherine Barnard (University of Cambridge) Prof Simon Hix (London School ...

A row between two women in Gedney Hill on Tuesday (May 17) included an alleged assault. It happened outside the McColl’s shop in Hillgate between 9am and 9.30am. Police are appealing for witnesses. Contact PC Lewis Putman at Spalding Police Station by dialling 101 and quoting incident number 74 of May 17.

A former Lincolnshire police officer has today (Tuesday) denied carrying out a string sexual offences against boys. John Edward Bates denies offences against four youngsters in the 1970s and 1980s when he was a scout leader in South Lincolnshire and Cambridgeshire. Bates (68), who faces a total of 22 charges, denies the matters and says the incidents never happened. The ...

Lincolnshire Police are hoping to convince South Holland district councillors to turn down an application for a premises licence in Spalding. Ernesta Tamutyte wants permission to sell alcohol at Global Foods in Winsover Road. But police say they believe Miss Tamutyte, of Hallgate, Moulton, is involved in the distribution of smuggled goods. And they also claim she is living with, ...

A drug dealer who left the country instead of turning up for a court hearing has escaped an immediate jail sentence after a court heard he is terminally ill. Campbell Weir was found to have the drug M Cat when he was stopped by police in Spalding. He had been due to appear before Lincoln Crown Court for sentence in February ...

Spalding menswear shop Mann and Son has announced its closure date next month. The Hall Place shop is closed until Thursday (May 19) when it re-opens for a final retirement sale ahead of its last day of trading on Saturday, June 25. The business has been trading from the same premises for 105 years, under the guidance of three generations ...

A former scout has told a jury that he was repeatedly sexually assaulted by an ex-Lincolnshire police officer. The complainant, now in his 40s, told the jury at Lincoln Crown Court that John Edward Bates abused him over a six-year period. Bates, who at the time was a scout leader in Spalding, is currently on trial facing 22 charges involving four ...

Small, not-for-profit community groups operating within ten miles of The Grange Wind Farm site, near Tydd St Mary, should apply now for a grant of up to £5,000. The Community Benefit Fund, which is generated by The Grange Wind Farm located between Sutton Bridge and Tydd St Mary, is in its fourth year of awarding around £30,000 annually to fund ...

South Holland businesses are invited to join a weekly referral marketing event in Spalding. Business Network International says its system ensures that every member business has equal opportunity to grow their business and support each other through a trusted referral network. It said: “Businesses such as Moore Thompson, Mossop & Bowser and Newton Press have already seen the benefits of ...

Year Ten students at The Priory School in Spalding took part in a Dragons’ Den-style experience before a panel of judges from the Rotary Club of South Holland. Six enterprise teams from the special school each showcased a product of their own design with a presentation using multimedia and visual aids. One pupil with speech impairment was applauded by the ...

Before people vote either to leave or stay in the EU, here are some facts. Five more countries are seeking membership of the EU and its rights to come to countries like ours. They are as follows: Albania (population) 2,831,700 Montenegro (621,000) FYR Macedonia (2,085,500) Serbia (7,164,000) Turkey (77,696,000) Given the ‘indisputable’ fact that we are already an overcrowded country, ...

I have read the news item about the King’s Road apartments project (The Voice, April 28). As the proposals are for apartments and retail, both of which are normally subject to a lease agreement, I can see no reason for selling the land to a developer. A 99-year lease would not only mean that the land – a public asset ...

Mr Wall`s lengthy treatise on the value of the EU system of payments to our farmers (Letters, May 5) tells just part of the story. The “Single Farm Payment” system is so complex, not only do the farmers struggle to understand it but also the Rural Payments Agency who are failing to administer it properly in this country. As such, ...

The president of the AA says the high percentage of drink-drivers in and around South Holland being foreign nationals might be due to them not being aware of British laws. Current data shows that about one in three offenders is an immigrant. Edmund King said: “We know that the drink-driving laws are very well understood by UK citizens because of ...

On Tuesday, April 26 I had a heavy fall in Spalding. I had been to the Post Office and was heading back to my car to join my wife. I was nearing the steps leading to the main car park near Sainsbury’s when I tripped over and landed on my head. After a few minutes I got up and noticed blood ...

My wife and I took a stroll through our home town of Spalding on Bank Holiday Sunday. The town was busier than normal with the fair attracting the normal bank holiday crowds. Our stroll in the spring sunshine took us some three miles through the centre of Spalding from east to west and a return via a differing part of ...

Important safety advice for young people in a fire situation was given to 3rd Holbeach Cubs during a visit to the town’s fire station. Watch manager Gary Burton, crew manager Simon Smith and firefighter Graeme Capps, then gave the youngsters a chance of first-hand experience with a fire hose on the training ground. The cubs (age eight to ten) meet ...

Hip, hip hooray it’s the 14th of May, Eurovision Song Contest night array. The night of many coloured flags from across Europe that will be seen. From Romania to Iceland, to Cyprus and our neighbours in the west, Ireland. Yes, yes – Mr Graham Norton will say: “Look at all the colours.” He will make a comment on this and ...

Staff at Johnson Community Hospital are set to be paying to park at work soon. However, the two NHS bodies associated with the site in Spalding Road, Pinchbeck, both say they have “no plans” to introduce car parking charges for patients and visitors. That is despite payment furniture being in place in the main car park since the hospital opened ...