Page 10 - April 2016 Issue 302

10 THE NEW COUNTESTHORPE HERALD
SHOULD WE PAY TO
USE THE TIP?
I was appalled at a notice I saw recently in the Leicester Mercury regarding our recycling ‘Tips’. All District Councils and the County Council want us all to recycle as much as we can to help reduce the amount of waste that goes to the landfill sites. I can agree with that idea but what I strongly disagree with is that they now want us to pay to recycle at our local ‘Tips’. Will this save the £670,000 they think it will?
Have they thought this one out? In my opinion, - NO.
Since the revamp of the local ‘tip’ at Whetstone the queuing time, particularly during the summer, has been greatly improved but now the clock is being turned back as we will have to queue whilst the staff search our vehicles to see what we are carrying and then weigh individual items that you will have to pay for!
Then you will have to pay! Card only, NO cash. Not everyone who goes to the tip takes their wallet/purse. Not everyone has a card as many don’t have, or can’t have for legal reasons a bank account with a card so only use cash. Then what contingency is there if the card paying system ‘crashes’ or there is no link to your bank? How much is being spent on training the staff to use the technology? Once in the complex, as a result of the above, there may well be no members of staff to help you unload your vehicle (unless they will be employing more staff, which will cost money!)
There will undoubtedly be the additional cost incurred by our District Councils, and/or landowners to clear up even more Fly Tipped rubbish. If the County Council think that fly tipping won’t increase then they are living in ‘cuckoo land’ I have seen an increase of rubbish abandoned in
hedgerows since the tips began closing for two days each week so I envisage seeing a further increase after April 1st.. Additionally, by closing tips for two days a week they are dictating when we should do our gardening and have a clear out at home. Householders do not relish doing these jobs and may have to store the rubbish for a day or two before being able to get rid of it. If people do a job they want to dispose of their waste as they go!! Open them up for 7 days a week in the summer. at least, please......
I thought that we paid our rates to the council to fund these services?
Don’t blame the parish council for these issues as they can only refer complaints on to the relevant departments at both District and County level. Go direct to those offices.
I did contact the County Council but those with full knowledge of the above were not available.
Full details of what can be tipped for free and what charges apply can be found on the Council’s web site. From April 1st it would be wise to check details before visiting the tip. Find out more call 305 0001, or check the website www. leicestershire.gov.
LEARN TO BE
MINDFUL AT LAUNDE
ABBEY
Stress and living a life with pain or illness can get us down, but the Revd Canon Julian Bowers has a solution for dealing with these life issues and he has combined with Launde Abbey to offer a course which will help to show delegates how. Mindfulness is a ‘simple’ skill, which has been shown to reduce stress and help practitioners to live well, even during difficult times, or through periods of pain or illness.
APRIL 2016
Mr Bowers says: “This is a powerful tool and although it is ‘simple’ that doesn’t mean it is necessarily easy. Mindfulness is all about cultivating the quality of being awake, present and accepting of a particular moment’s experience and this can transform how we are with ourselves, with others and with stressful, difficult and challenging situations.”
Mr Bowers, continues: “Research suggests that our minds wander about 50% of the time. We might for instance, replay unpleasant situations in our heads or sort out mental to do lists when we should be concentrating on other more positive things. Mindfulness can help us to stay in the moment, helping us to focus on the job in hand.”
The course starts with two free taster evenings on April 14th and 21st, followed by 8 weekly sessions on (mainly) Thursday evenings from 7.30 – 9.30 pm at Launde Abbey. There is also the opportunity to have dinner at the Abbey, so there will be plenty of opportunities for discussion, both before, during, and after the course. The cost is £200.00 per person for the entire course, with dinner extra.
For more information and to book a taster session, please contact Launde Abbey on 01572 717254, email: info@launde.org. uk or visit the Abbey’s website: www. laundeabbey.org.uk.
RICHARD REBURIED
REVISITED
A book detailing the process and planning for the Reinterment of Richard lll, plus a CD recording of much of the music sung in Leicester Cathedral at the services has been launched.
One year ago on 26 March 2015 the mortal remains of King Richard III were laid to rest in Leicester Cathedral with dignity and honour, before the eyes of a fascinated world. This extraordinary event has now been captured in a remarkable book by Pete Hobson, whose job put him at the heart of all the cathedral’s preparations for the reburial project. His book How to Bury a King gives a unique behind- the-scenes insight into events from the days the remains were first discovered, in the late summer of 2013, right up to the completion of their reinterment in the cathedral.
The CD ‘He lieth under this Stone’, featuring the choir of Leicester Cathedral with music sung during the reinterment week, including the haunting ‘Ghostly Grace’, composed especially for the occasion by the composer Judith Bingham. Two other books related to the reinterment will also be made available at the event for the first time: Flowers for a King by Rosemary Hughes, who oversaw all the floral arrangements for the week, and Richard III- his story by local artist Kirsteen Thomson.