Archive

Date

Dog owners should take out insurance

WITH reference to the article in last week's Winsford and Middlewich Guardian, regarding Pauline Evans and her dog, Susie, who is going blind with a cataract. I am a dog owner, and would hate anything to happen to my pet, so I have taken out the insurance

Date

Christopher goes on the record...

WHEN Christopher Downes stumbled on an original accident report of a tragic train crash in Winsford at a railway fair he couldn't believe his eyes. He has been collecting railway memorabilia for years, but never had he come across something so close to

Date

When tragedy came to town

Local historian BOB CURZON continues his look at Winsford from days gone by, comparing and contrasting it with life in the town as it is now IT MUST have brought back memories to many Winsfordians on reading Mr Dickenson's letter in last week's Winsford

Date

No Poynton travels for Town

Poynton 1 Middlewich Town 0 MIDDLEWICH dominated this match from the start, but again suffered from poor finishing, which has been a thorn in boss Dave Twite's side all season. Five clear-cut chances in the first 20 minutes were missed, Mike Twite, Les

Date

Winsford man in Balkan war action

A FORMER sea cadet from Winsford is among the crew serving in the submarine HMS Splendid, at the heart of the allied attacks on the former Yugoslavia which began last week. Marine Engineer Mechanic Martin Law, aged 20, was due to be heading for Dubai

Date

Tax plan rejected

PROPOSALS to allow Winsford residents to pay their council tax at post offices using a swipe card have been turned down by Vale Royal Borough Council. The offer of introducing the new method of payment has been made by Girobank in partnership with Post

Date

New spy cameras in place

NEW security cameras offering 24-hour surveillance have been launched in Middlewich to help crack down on town centre crime. The video cameras, which have been set up in the Bullring and Southway to monitor and record movements, are part of a £170,000

Date

We're on the road to bad health

A LEADING county councillor has warned that increased road traffic is taking a heavy toll on the health of Winsford and Middlewich people. Cty Clr David Lloyd-Griffiths, chairman of the county's environment committee, says that Cheshire urgently needs

Date

All the fun of the fair comes to town

ALL the fun of the fair will be riding into Winsford next weekend when the town holds its first Town Festival. The biggest fun fair Winsford has seen will be the centrepiece of the three-day extravaganza, running from Friday, April 9, to Sunday, April

Date

LORRY DRIVER IN FATAL CRASH

A FATHER-OF-TWO died at an accident blackspot after his car was involved in a head-on collision with a lorry being driven by a Winsford man, an inquest heard. Computer technician Philip Rossiter, aged 32, of Lunt Avenue, Crewe, died at the scene of the

Date

I WAS interested to see your recent report about the 'tramp' from Rochdale who visited Northwich on

I met Frank Brierley around 1977 to 1980 when we were both in hospital in Rochdale - Frank had not taken to the road at that time. He was a most interesting and intelligent man, passionate about archaeology and local history - his spare time on the ward

Date

ON two occasions I have read in the Northwich Guardian about a boy who has been stopped by the polic

I have three sons and one daughter, all in their early or late 20s. One son in particular, the youngest, has been pulled up far more than 20 times. Frustrating as it might be sometimes, we have never complained. I think the police do a good job and they

Date

I READ the letter in the Northwich Guardian on March 24 regarding the two-year-old child who slipped

What right has this parent got to criticise people for not coming to her aid when it was her own responsibility - allowing this child to slip away in the first place. I can imagine how that poor child felt when she discovered that her own family had let

Date

BEFORE finally deciding to close Marbury Lane one would have thought that the county council would h

Already the temporary visitor centre near the lift receives 30,000 visitors a year and a restored lift would attract several times that number by boat and car. Clearly the Winnington Swing Bridge would be quite inadequate to cope with this level of extra

Date

GUARDIAN COMMENT

WHETHER they like it or not, politicians are elected to carry out the wishes of people. There may be occasions when their expertise gives them extra insight into an issue. But when the public delivered its verdict on the fate of Marbury Lane, the response

Date

NORTHWICH MEN WARM UP IN STYLE

NORTHWICH Rowing Club's men warmed up for their club's Head of the River this weekend with a stirling performance in the London equivalent. The Northwich senior men's eight finished 118th in a field of 420 crews which included Europe's finest. It was

Date

INTERNATIONAL SUCCESS

ALEX Carter made a promising debut for her country in last Saturday's World Cross Country Championships in Belfast. The Vale Royal middle distance runner from Hartford, currently studying at Loughborough University, has been a regular in the England and

Date

NEWCOMER IS SHOCK TROPHY WINNER

A WEEK of competition in the Mid Cheshire table tennis championships reached a dramatic conclusion on Sunday, with relative newcomer Nigel Rafferty clinching the singles title. The Lostock player overcame Winnington Park's George Abbott in an attacking

Date

SURVIVAL HOPE

Carlisle 10 Northwich 13 NORTHWICH made sure of avoiding relegation with their best performance of the season on Saturday. Robbed of influential number eight Dave Briggs and back Steve Campbell through injury, the reshaped team battled from start to finish

Date

WORRIES EASED

Winnington Park 45 Aspatria 23 WINNINGTON Park moved off the foot of the table with this fine victory, thanks to a 20 minute spell after the interval which saw sparkling rugby producing five tries without reply. It was the best rugby the team has played

Date

NORTHWICH VICS 0

KINGSTONIAN 2 FA Umbro Trophy quarter-final NO more dreams of Wembley way for Mark Gardiner's side writes Scott McLeod. Instead, it is Kingstonian going into the two-legged semifinal against Cheltenham, and deservedly so. Vics never seemed to be at the

Date

LOCAL historian Colin Lynch presented me with evidence last week to back up his claim that Northwich

It included letters from the Football Association, the Scottish Football Association, Sheffield United FC and Hallam FC. There were also photocopies of newspaper pages from early editions of the Northwich Guardian and the Sheffield & Rotherham Independent

Date

WITTON ALBION 4

ALFRETON TOWN 0 UniBond First Division LOVE him or loathe him, you can't argue with Nathan Comley-Excell's scoring record writes Scott McLeod. The tall, unconventional striker took his scoring record to four goals from three starts on Saturday with two

Date

WITTON Albion chief executive Mike Worthington meets with the club's receiver tomorrow to begin the

The move comes after Mr Worthington agreed terms for the repayment of £50,000 of debts with Witton's main creditor, the Inland Revenue, last week. He said: "This is a major step forward but it's certainly not party time yet." Indeed, the remainder of

Date

NORTHWICH Vics goalkeeper Dean Greygoose looks set to leave the club at the end of the season.

The 35-year-old, who has been at Northwich since November 1993, was due to meet with chairman Rod Stich last night, Tuesday, to confirm his desire to move on. It seems Vics only chance of keeping the goalkeeper rested with the persuasive powers of the

Date

MARTIN BELL RETURNS FROM KOSOVO AS NATO STRIKES

MARTIN Bell has warned the British government that it faces tough choices over the Kosovo crisis. The MP, whose BBC broadcasts brought the plight of the Kosovars to light, says Britain must either fight all the way into the province, or stay out. And

Date

£3.3. MILLION TO RESTORE ANDERTON BOAT LIFT

ANDERTON Boat Lift is to be restored thanks to a multi million pound grant from the National Lottery. The news was revealed on Monday - with the Heritage Lottery Fund donating £3.3 million to British Waterways which will carry out the repairs. Members

Date

IT'S SKATE GLADNESS AS PARENTS LAUNCH RESCUE

DEDICATED parents have launched a bid to save SK8 Madness. The in-line skating rink closed suddenly last month, as owner David Gunton struggled to keep the business afloat. But Carrie Laugharne and her friends say the centre was their children's second

Date

LONG WOOD SAFE - AT LEAST FOR A DECADE

CONTROVERSIAL plans to build a huge warehouse complex at Lostock have been dropped - at least for the time being. Borough officials this week shelved plans to build on the 100 acre greenfield Long Wood site - copying the county council who bowed to pressure

Date

£1.25 MILLION NEEDED TO KEEP MARBURY LANE OPEN

OFFICIALS have admitted they shut Marbury Lane - because they didn't want to be sued. County council chiefs were worried about facing legal action if cars using the road were involved in an accident. "If we were put into court after reopening the lane

Date

MILLIONS OF POUNDS SET TO GIVE TOWN A 'LIFT'

NORTHWICH has plenty to celebrate this week - with news that millions of pounds is set to be pumped into the town. On Tuesday, Lottery bosses unveiled a £3.3 million donation to restore the historic Anderton Boat Lift. And the town's salt mining crisis

Date

CHILDREN FLEE BURNING BUS

TWENTY children had to flee from a school bus which was engulfed in flames. The pupils - all aged between four and 11 - were on their way home to Delamere Park when the blaze broke out. Children sitting at the back of the bus saw smoke coming from the

Date

Chris makes waste case

in TV debate A SCHOOLBOY who has warned that Winsford could have a large scale disaster on its hands, has gone head-to-head on television with the man spearheading the plan to store industrial waste at the salt mine. Middlewich High School pupil Chris

Date

Farmers on mink invasion warning

FARMERS in Winsford and Middlewich have been warned to be on their guard against a mink invasion. Last September, animal rights activists released 7,000 of the ferocious creatures from a farm in Onneley in Staffordshire. Around 4,000 of the mink were

Date

Please help to find my missing Kitty

I AM writing to say that my white cat, answering to the name of Kitty, has disappeared. She never goes out of the garden except nightly, when cats normally do. What is different about Kitty is that she has one green eye and one blue, so is quite distinguishable

Date

Human failings caused crash

I WRITE in reply to the recent article in the Winsford and Middlewich Guardian regarding the first Winsford rail disaster, which occurred in April, 1948. The cause was a succession of events and human failings. The communication cord was pulled in the

Date

Animal sanctuary needs your help

ARTIS, the charity that cares for wild animals and small pets, is appealing to the public to think twice before buying a small animal as a pet. We are asked to take in so many animals which were once loved as babies. Rabbits in particular, are bought

Date

John rides to victory

THE Winsford and District Motor Club held its Cliff Dickinson Trophy road trial,incorporating the third round of the Cheshire Centre Championship, last Sunday. The trial was based on four main groups of sections of mainly wooded and slippery-cambered

Date

STOCKING UP

MARK Came is looking for more goals from his Winsford United side when they go into their Easter programme this week. The caretaker boss has brought back Alan Hockenhull to Barton Stadium from local football. The striker played alongside Came when John

Date

Police issue

M-way warning POLICE have warned Middlewich parents to be on the alert following a spate of incidents on the county's motorway network where children have been throwing stones and bricks at passing cars. Last month there were five incidents across Cheshire

Date

James swims in memory of mum

A 12-YEAR-OLD Middlewich High School pupil, who lost his mum to cancer last year, has swum three miles to raise money for St Luke's Hospice. James Townley completed the mammoth task at Winsford baths in just three hours after swimming 192 lengths of the

Date

Party time for pensioners

MORE than 150 pensioners enjoyed a musical treat on Saturday in an outing organised by Middlewich councillors and members of the area's talking newspaper. The council organised a coach to pick up the over-70s from around the town and take them to the

Date

Defeat on the cards in new homes battle

A GROUP of Winsford residents are facing defeat in their battle to stop a new housing development from going ahead. Barratt Chester has submitted a planning application for 69 new houses on the undeveloped part of Rookery Rise, at the rear of existing

Date

Mother and daughter in miracle escape

A WINSFORD mother and her four-year-old daughter cheated death by a matter of inches when a lorry overturned onto their car last week. Joanne Rimmer, of Turnberry Close, Winsford, and her daughter Jasmine were travelling on the A562 Ditton flyover in

Date

Police step up seatbelt campaign

POLICE in Cheshire have launched a campaign to ensure that motorists and their passengers belt up when getting into a car. The wearing of seat belts in the front seats of cars has been a legal requirement since 1983, and it is estimated that this has

Date

Darnhall school's art for art's sake

THE Tate Gallery could soon be exhibiting art work by Darnhall Primary School pupils! The famous gallery has requested to see the school's paintings in the style of abstract artist Jackson Pollock. Within the next couple of weeks, Tate officials will

Date

I AM very disappointed by the statements made by Superintendent Johns in the Northwich Guardian.

Despite the assurances made to Hartford Parish Council on the appointment of PC Rod Stokes as our community policeman, it has now been made abundantly clear that community policing as understood by the public at large is dead; a high visibility police

Date

I READ with deep concern in last week's Northwich Guardian the police chief's message for village le

Following the Brixton riots in 1981, it was recommended that formal procedures for police consultation with representatives of the local community be set up. Section 106 of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984, implements this proposal to the extent

Date

WELL done police Superintendent Ian Johns for finally bringing some sense into the debate about poli

It is about time people realised that the police are stretched to the limits with dwindling resources. If the public are not 'on their side' and willing to stand up and be counted - what hope have any of us got in beating crime? Name and address supplied

Date

MICHALSKI ON THE UP

MARK Michalski has shown a marked improvement in form during his second season of competition. Last year, racing on an 80cc bike, the 12-year-old Weaverham High School pupil finished 5th in the West Midlands Championship, 7th in the North West and 8th

Date

GORSTAGE netball star Alex Garnett played in all four of England's matches in last week's Federation

The England Under 18s won each of their matches against Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland, Scotland and Wales in the Cardiff based event. Now Garnett, 16, looks to have booked her place in the England squad set to jet to the Cooke Islands, New

Date

THE winter break doesn't appear to have taken its toll on Glynn Cookson, the country's top crown gre

The Wharton Cons player has qualified for the final 32 of the Tipton & Coseley Open at the West Bromwich Supporters Club as he bids to regain the title he last won in 1996. The final takes place on Sunday, April 11 and is one of the biggest events

Date

PAUL Hulse's bid to become a professional goalkeeper is proving a real rollercoaster ride.

But, having overcome a demoralising rejection from Stockport County, the 16-year-old from Castle has bounced back better than ever, determined to prove all those who doubted him wrong. After almost two years with the Nationwide Division One club, he was

Date

NORTHWICH Vics manager Mark Gardiner responded to his side's Trophy defeat to Kingstonain by saying:

"ALTHOUGH I was obviously disappointed with the result I wasn't despondant because the better team won. It wasn't that we were poor or not trying because the lads gave 100 per cent, but Kingstonian were on top form. I doubt they will play better than

Date

WHAT ON EARTH WOULD MR. B HAVE MADE OF IT ALL?

CONTROVERSY has arisen over plans to name a night-club after one of Northwich's most famous sons. Developers plan to name the club Mr B's Chemical Factory in honour of John Brunner and ICI. But according to historian Paul Lavell, that's the last thing

Date

POLICE DEFEND RACE CLAIMS

POLICE chiefs have met Tony and Ben Kershaw, the father and son who accused them of racism. In a meeting at the Kershaws' home, Inspector Peter Hulse, who is the race relations officer at Northwich, heard the pair's claim that Ben, who is black, was pulled

Date

WIDOW DIED AFTER FALL AT HOME

AN elderly widow died from head injuries she suffered in a fall at her home, an inquest heard. Emily Wakefield, aged 94, of Hodge Lane, Hartford, died at Leighton Hospital last November 19 after slipping into a coma. A post mortem found that Mrs Wakefield

Date

MINE CASH PUT UP FOR GRABS

TOWN leaders have finally been given the chance to get the £20 million needed to stop Northwich sinking. The government has set up a fund to help towns suffering from subsidence - and Northwich is expected to be one of the first to benefit. "I am extremely

Date

SOARING CIRCULATION FOR THE NORTHWICH GUARDIAN

THE Northwich Guardian is number one in town - and that's official! Thanks to you - we've seen our circulation rocket over the last six months. And the latest figures released by the Audit Bureau of Circulation (ABC) confirm that the Northwich Guardian

Date

BRIDGE DISRUPTION LOOMING

TRAFFIC delays look set to return to Northwich town centre - as yet another bridge faces refurbishment. Drivers will face 12 weeks of diversions as work is carried out on the Victoria Bridge, on Chesterway, beginning in the summer. The bridge, which is

Date

ALL the pupils were from St Bede's Primary School, in Weaverham.

Betty Williams, chairman of governors at St Bede's, joined fire officers in praising the bus driver's quick thinking. "Thank God for the driver. If he hadn't been so quick we could have had a disaster on our hands," she said. Nova Scotia boss Richard