NEW POLICE CHIEF SETS OUT HIS PRIORITIES WISBECH: Cracking down on anti-social behaviour and reducing crime are the priorities of new Wisbech sector inspector Robin Sissons.Inspector Sissons, who has been an officer for 13 years, began his role th

NEW POLICE CHIEF SETS OUT HIS PRIORITIES

WISBECH: Cracking down on anti-social behaviour and reducing crime are the priorities of new Wisbech sector inspector Robin Sissons.

Inspector Sissons, who has been an officer for 13 years, began his role this week taking over from Inspector Malcolm Graham.

Starting his career in Hertfordshire, Inspector Sissons worked in the drugs squad before moving to Cambridgeshire in 1998, during which time he has worked as a reactive officer and a CBM (Community Beat Manager) in Wisbech.

For the last 18 months he has been sector inspector in March where he was involved in tackling drugs, targeting anti-social behaviour and introducing neighbourhood panel meetings to the town.

Inspector Sissons said: "I want to put Wisbech sector at the forefront of police work, cracking down on anti-social behaviour, reducing crime and dealing with the issues facing the public.

"Over the next few months I will be introducing a number of new specialist tactics that will help to reduce crime.

DRIVER WHO COLLIDED WITH A FRIEND IS BANNED

MARCH: A lorry driver who collided with a friend who was walking across a road in March was given a six month driving ban this week.

Adrian Lavender was behind the wheel of a Ford tipper when he pulled out of a junction, and hit the man, who suffered multiple minor injuries.

"Ironically the pedestrian was a friend, and he remains a friend," Fenland magistrates were told on Tuesday by solicitor Anita Waterman.

Lavender, 34, of Heathcote Close, March, admitted careless driving. He was £100 and must pay £35 costs and a £15 surcharge.

"There was a misunderstanding with the pedestrian, he was crossing the road at the junction, and there was an unfortunate collision," added Mrs Waterman.

FRIGHTENED WOMAN LOCKED HERSELF INDOORS

MARCH: A frightened woman locked herself indoors when Addam Draven turned up on her doorstep, demanding to be let in.

And when his former partner Sophia Draven refused him entry to her March home, Draven smashed a window, after kicking and punching at a door, and climbing over a fence.

"The woman and her son were petrified," prosecutor Andrew Williams told Fenland magistrates. "The police were called."

Twenty-three-year-old Draven, who is homeless, admitted causing £200 worth of damage to a window on March 18

"There had been an argument earlier in the day and he went to the house, wanting to sort matters out," explained solicitor Anita Waterman. "There has been an on/off relationship.

"She would not let him in, he became frustrated, and accepts he smashed the window, he should not have done it.

"By the time the police arrived he was sitting on the sofa with his son in his arms."

Draven was given a 12-month conditional discharge, and must pay £200 compensation.

FENLAND RESIDENTS GET CHANCE TO BUY INTO HOMES

FENLAND: Residents are to be given the chance to buy upwards of a quarter of a new home- and rent the rest!

The idea will be on offered at an open day being held to launch the first affordable homes built by newly-formed housing association, Roddons.

Residents are invited to Finkle Lane, Whittlesey, on Saturday and have a look at the 10 homes built by Circle Anglia, the parent association of Roddons.

The homes, all two-bedroom and three-bedroom, will be available under Roddons' New Build Home Buy scheme, previously called shared ownership.

Residents will be able to buy a share in the homes of between 25 and 50 per cent and rent the remaining share of the property. The maximum annual household income to be able to buy a home through the scheme is £26,975.

Booking is not necessary for tomorrow's open day, being held from 11am-4pm.

• For more information about the new Roddons developments at Gorefield and Whittlesey, contact Karen Barber on 01223 202710.

£700,000 FOR HOMELESS PEOPLE IN FENLAND

WISBECH: Homeless people in Fenland have been given a £700,000 boost after Fenland District Council teamed up with the Ferry Project in Wisbech to bid for funding from the Government's Places for Change Programme.

The bid to build new accommodation for 24 homeless people to replace the current hostel accommodation in Mill Close, secured funding support despite the fact that applications to the programme were hugely over-subscribed.

The aim of the joint initiative is to deliver a much better quality physical environment for people who find themselves homeless. The new accommodation will set a benchmark for the provision of services and activities for homeless people, including professional staff on hand at all times and greater involvement from those who use the service.

A major aim of the new-build initiative is to increase the number of people who are able to move on positively and with prospects from the new accommodation.

The new facility will place greater emphasis on developing educational training and work-related skills to better equip people to rebuild their lives.

The new building will enable the hostel-style flats in Mill Close to be redeployed as one or two bedroom move-on units, providing residents with greater independence and responsibility.

COUNCIL NEEDS A CATERER FOR PRESTIGE BOATHOUSE

WISBECH: Fenland District Council is pulling out all the stops to attract the best possible catering company to take on the café and catering service in the iconic Boathouse business centre, when it opens in the autumn.

The stunning Boathouse complex on the banks of the Nene in the town is not due to be open for business until about October, but the council is already marketing the café and catering service as a superb commercial opportunity.

Efforts are so far paying off handsomely, with more than 18 companies already expressing keen interest in moving in. Several of those who have contacted the council so far are national household names.

However, even with such an early level of interest, Fenland is still aggressively marketing the opportunity. Officers spent last weekend at Foodex and Meated, the giant trade exhibition for the catering and food industry at the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham.

They attended the exhibition with one mission: to promote Fenland, the Boathouse and the café and catering contract. The deadline for expressions of interest has been extended in order to give people at the exhibition the opportunity to formally express their interest. Council officers are expecting a great deal of further interest in the light of their visit.

FIRE CAUSED BY ELECTRICAL FAULT IN TUMBLE DRYER

WHITTLESEY: An electrical fault in a tumble dryer started a fire in a garage in Whittlesey on Tuesday.

Fire crews from Whittlesey and Stanground were called to Snowley Park at 6.10pm to reports of the fire in the garage.

Hose reels were used to extinguish the fire by 6.35pm. The extent of damage is unknown.