Great Western Railway (GWR) services in Hereford and Worcester will be affected by essential engineering work next week.

Ensuring the safe and reliable operation of the railway, Network Rail plans to replace the tracks between Worcester Shrub Hill and Evesham stations.

As a result, GWR trains will be affected between Evesham and Hereford as well as between Cheltenham Spa and Worcester Foregate Street from Monday 22 to Friday 26 April:

Trains will still run between London Paddington and Evesham via Oxford

Trains between Bristol Temple Meads and Worcester will terminate at Gloucester, with other train services running between Gloucester and Cheltenham Spa

CrossCountry will still operate train services between Gloucester, Cheltenham Spa, Ashchurch for Tewkesbury and Worcestershire Parkway

West Midlands Railway will still operate train services between Worcester Foregate Street and Hereford

Replacement buses will operate between Worcester Foregate Street and Evesham or Cheltenham Spa

All parking bays will be suspended in the car park at Evesham station from midnight on Thursday 18 to midnight on Friday 26 April

Pershore Times

Kempsey Times

Powick Times

Upton Times

Engineering works to affect trains in the Worcester area next week

One thing we all have in common is that we all have a birthday. These are generally regarded as happy events to be celebrated. As a child, I was often disappointed by my

birthday as I was born in early January and after the Christmas/ New Year celebrations, it seemed that I was forgotten. I wished my birthday was later in the year, particularly as my mother thought it sensible to make me a second Christmas cake for my birthday which was not to my childish taste! My sister had a birthday two weeks later and I

envied her for the sponge birthday cakes she enjoyed.

Over the years, however, this situation improved considerably, partly due to the arrival our first son, also in January. He should have been a December baby, expected on Boxing Day but he didn't arrive then, or on New Year’s Eve or on my birthday the following week. He was reluctant to make an appearance and eventually, after waddling around looking

as if I had consumed the turkey whole and the Christmas pudding too, they decided to take pity on me and induce his birth. So here was another January baby but it proved to

be good news for me! Suddenly everyone remembered my birthday because it was days before his!! Admittedly my cards weren't up for long before they were replaced by his but it was always a joy to celebrate his birthday anyway.

January has proved to be a popular month for both friends and family birthdays over the years. We now lurch from Christmas to New Year then stagger from birthday to

birthday. Strangely enough, June is also well populated with birthdays so it is an expensive month too!

We have always enjoyed celebrating our two sons’birthdays as in the early days it was a good excuse to have friends join us for a beer or glass of wine while the children

tucked into their chocolate fingers, crisps, mini sandwiches and cocktail sausages. As they grew, ‘at home’ parties were replaced with party ‘ venues' such as Macdonalds. These were not cheap affairs particularly when most of the class from school were invited. ‘Goodie' bags were also obligatory- more expense! It all got easier when they reached the age where a visit to the cinema with a couple of friends sufficed. Even later, they had their own celebrations with friends at the pub and Mum and Dad were not even invited!!

Birthdays cease to have much significance as the years progress apart from the ‘milestone' birthdays. At first they have novelty value- 40 years old?? where have the years gone? A good excuse for partying and bringing together family and friends, these were fun. A few decades on and it is

not the same turning a corner into a new decade. I was disappointed not to be able to celebrate my last ‘big one' due to Lockdown ( together with many other people of course). I now have to wait for the next significant one but already three years have passed and I am not keen to rush to that one!

My father-in-law decided in his late sixties that he needed to celebrate his birthdays with a party in case he didn't reach the

next one. As only daughter-in law, it fell to me to lay on the food and drink for these events, transporting everything to

Somerset at the end of a working week. Needless to say he survived until he was ninety so there were a few good parties with lots of beer consumed!

Wishing someone a happy birthday is a nice thing to do but I always wish for many happy returns as it is wishing them lots more to come.

Meanwhile, I have just taken down my birthday cards even though they will not be replaced by my son's. A late bottle of champagne and a bouquet of flowers have

prolonged my celebrations this year. I will now look forward to celebrating everyone else’s over the coming months.

So here's wishing you all a Happy New Year and Many, Many Happy Returns for your birthdays whenever they may be. Always remember, growing old is not a bad thing  as long as you stay young at heart!

Women's hour

We may have a new project beginning in September to provide daily minibus transport for individuals to attend college. We want to assemble a team of passenger assistants so that we can provide this essential service on a regular basis. If you: Have the skills and empathy to support vulnerable adults Can spare 2 hours a week on a regular basis and be flexible to help cover holidays We will: Ask you to complete a registration and agreement form Provide full training, including Emergency First Aid Pay out-of-pocket expenses

To find out more, please contact Angi or Donna   By telephone: 

We may have a new project beginning in September to provide daily minibus transport for individuals to attend college We want to assemble a team of volunteer drivers so that we can provide this essential service on a regular basis If you: Have the skills and empathy to support vulnerable adults Can spare 2 or 3 hours a week on a regular basis and be flexible to help cover holidays We will: Ask you to complete a registration and agreement form Provide full training, including Emergency First Aid Pay out-of-pocket expenses

 We may have a new project beginning in September to provide daily minibus transport for individuals to attend college and we need volunteers to assist us.

Volunteers needed!

Cyclists can help protect their bikes from theft for free next week.

Wychavon’s community safety team will be carrying out a series of bike marking events across the district during half-term.

Bikes are marked with a unique code using a special liquid. The number is then registered with the national BikeRegister database.

A warning sticker is applied to warn potential thieves that the bike is marked. This makes it less attractive as a target for theft as it will be easier for police to identify it has been stolen and who the rightful owner should be.

Bike marking sessions are taking place in Droitwich on Monday, 25 October at Droitwich Spa Railway Station between 7am and 9am and St Andrew’s Square between 10am and 12noon.

On Tuesday, 26 October the team will be outside Asda in Pershore between 10am and 12noon.

 Then on Thursday 28 October, bike marking is taking place at Evesham Adventure Playground from 10.30am to 12.30pm and Milestone Ground Car Park in Broadway between 1.30pm and 3.30pm.

Free bike marking sessions

Thanks to a wonderful response from the people of Pershore, our street collection on Saturday 5th March raised an amazing £2,483.88 for organisations supporting the Ukrainian refugees. Collections around the town were manned by Pershore Rotarians, Pershore Inner Wheel members and several volunteering friends. A huge thanks to all of them for supporting such a worthwhile cause and for standing out there on what was such a cold but rewarding day. With online donations and Gift Aid, the total funds received to date exceeds £4,000.

Finding the right organisations to receive the money has not been easy due to the local circumstances and the large numbers of refuges crossing the borders. However, we have sent £2,000 to ShelterBox, a Rotary Project Partner, and £1,000 to the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC), both of whom are on the ground in the area and helping to support the refugees. The remainder of the money will be donated once all funds have been received.

We are grateful to Asda and Tesco in Pershore for allowing us to collect outside their stores, to Hughes & Co Printers for sponsoring posters and to Wychavon District Council’s Regulatory Services for processing our street collection permit application in just 48 hours.

Rotary members and The Rotary Foundation play a unique role in disaster recovery and rebuilding efforts. Working closely with our partner ShelterBox and other organizations that specialize in disaster relief, Rotary members lead projects to support every phase of a community’s recovery.

To join us or for more information about Rotary in Pershore, contact Kit Carson

Thanks to a wonderful response from the people of Pershore, our street collection on Saturday 5th March raised an amazing...

Ukraine refugee crisis - Emergency Appeal

Crowds are expected to the line the streets when the Birmingham 2022 Queen’s Baton Relay visits Wychavon next week.

The Baton will be making its way through Broadway and Pershore on Friday 22 July on its way to the Second City for the start of this year’s Commonwealth Games. Baton bearers, each with inspiring backgrounds and stories of service to their community, will carry the Baton as it makes its way through the district

About 2.31pm the Baton will arrive in Pershore Town Centre. Starting from the residential area on Bridge Street, four Baton bearers will take it in turns to carry the Baton up the High Street to the junction with Cherry Orchard at 2.41pm. There will be activities to enjoy from midday with the chance to meet Pershore Plum Festival mascots Prunella and Eggbert as well as this year’s Plum Royalty, along with face painting and samba drumming.

Road closures will be in place along the routes while the Baton is making its way through Broadway and Pershore. These include Station Road in Broadway, from the Cheltenham Road junction to the roundabout on the High Street for 20 minutes between 12.35pm and 2.05pm. All High Street parking will be suspended from Springfield Lane to the roundabout during these times.

In Pershore, Bridge Street up to the Cherry Orchard junction on the High Street will be closed for a maximum of 20 minutes between 2pm and 3.30pm. All roadside parking will be suspended on the High Street from Broad Street to the Cherry Orchard junction from 1.30pm up to 3.30pm. There will also be delays on the B4084 by Pershore College and the Pensham Hill Junction as traffic control measures will be in place to allow the Baton relay convoy to depart Pershore College and enter the road closure area.

Although the Baton relay organisers are confident they will arrive at the advertised times, they can be anywhere from 30 minutes early to up to one hour late. This could affect relay and road closure timings.

The Baton will be making its way through Broadway and Pershore on Friday 22 July on its way to the Second City for the start of this year’s Commonwealth Games.

News

Engineering works to affect trains in the Worcester area next week

Women's hour

Volunteers needed!

Free bike marking sessions

Ukraine refugee crisis - Emergency Appeal

Get Set for Queen's Baton Relay