the online community newspaper for Nailsea people, their family and their friends

August/September 2017

Our town is a very nice town

BREAKING NEWS

The name and shame poor parking and bad driving examples are all here plus latest planning issues and other parish pump news and gossip. Email your parking pics for inclusion to nailseapeople@gmail.com

CHRISTMAS 2017

For films, fairs, festivals and the last of the summer flower shows go to the Flower Peeps page and the What's On page. For details of Nailsea Community Christmas Fair and to download stall/sponsorship and entertainment booking forms click HERE

GALLERY 2017

Sunrises and sunsets are among the images captured on this page from Nailsea and nearby residents this year - a photographic record of our town and more. Click HERE to go see for yourself

Nailsea is knitting for those in need.

The Blue Room at Nailsea is launching its annual community project in September.

The arts and crafts centre is at Crown Glass Place.

Owner Sharon Brown said, “So many people around the world are in desperate need, we wanted to do something to help.

"When exhibitor, Lesley Gleeson, suggested a knitting project, I knew our customers would love to get involved.

"We want everyone knitting and crocheting.

"We’ll send everything to Knit for Peace to distribute to their refugee programmes.
"We’ll collect new - not secondhand - knitted and crocheted items from September to November.
"Complete garments or just squares are equally welcome.

"Our volunteers will sew the squares into blankets and dressing gowns.

"To help with the sewing, please get in touch with The Blue Room.

"If you don't knit or crochet there are courses running at The Blue Room in September.
"Regular updates, ideas, and information will be posted on The Blue Room’s website and social media.

"Project information sheets can be collected from The Blue Room in Nailsea from Friday, September 1."

'We particularly need warm adult clothes, bed socks, scarves, adult hats and of course large sized blankets'

World's strongest man opens new Nailsea gym

The world’s strongest man Eddie Hall is coming to Nailsea for the grand opening of a new gym.

Eddie who has competed against the might of Games of Thrones actor Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson aka The Mountain and counts Arnold Shwarzenegger among his fans beat the Icelander who plays Ser George to be crowned the World's Strongest Man in May this year.

Nicknamed The Beast, Eddie won the title in Botswana, becoming the first British competitor since Gary Taylor in 1993 to earn the accolade.

The Blackfriars Road gym establishment is owned by personal trainer Matt Bembridge and his wife Charlie, 33, who will be running the office.

The busy couple who have a 20-month-old son called Archie will be employing five other staff members.

Matt, aged 37, who trades under the @TheGym tag has converted the industrial unit into a state-of-the-art fitness training centre.

He said: “We are thrilled to be welcoming Eddie to our new gym.

“It’s a delight to bring Eddie to Nailsea as he has been a great support to me in the past.”

A speaker and teacher Matt sells gym equipment worldwide through his online business The Gym Revolution and his new base will have an adjoining warehouse for stock.

Five years ago, Matt invented Globe Gripz to enable people with health problems to use weights and achieved worldwide sales.

His next invention The Deadlift Deadener, a load distribution device, also went global with top sales in the US and Canada.

An early advocate of The Deadlift Deadener was Eddie.

The 29-year-old Midlands professional strongman is the only man to deadlift 500kg under strongman rules smashing his own world record.

Eddie has also won on five occasions Britain's Strongest Man titles.

Matt said: “I grew up in Clevedon and although it would seem a natural choice to open in Clevedon and Portishead, they are well-served, but Nailsea is quite under-served.

“I’ve always been involved with gyms and I’m really looking forward to running my own.

“I'm excited for what we can achieve and I think Nailsea will be excited too.

“The facility is pretty big at 8,000 square feet and will not only offer exceptional equipment but a select bunch of local trainers and host regular events.

“The first major event being Eddie visiting us for our grand opening on Sunday, October 8.”

People taking up an earlybird £400 annual membership offer – with further discounts for juniors and senior citizens will be invited to meet Eddie at the grand opening which will be at Unit 2, behind Gould Signs.

For further details click HERE.

No-go Nailsea playground

A Nailsea playground has been out-of-bounds most of the school summer holidays after vandals set fire to a slide.

The fire brigade was called at the beginning of August when a fire was lit at Hannah More Road play area.

The heat from the flames melted the black tar surface which has proved impossible to remove from the clothes of any of the children who attempted to use the equipment.

Nailsea Town Council has spent many thousands of pounds maintaining and installing modern play apparatus at the park next to the allotments and backing onto Blackfriars Road industrial estate.

It was forced to put up a notice saying 'This equipment has been vandalised and should not be use'.

Parent Angela Daynes took the photos and posted on Nailsea People Facebook page.

She said: “I'm assuming it has made the playground unsafe.”

Mum Rebecca Dugdale said: “Yes, it is unsafe and also whatever the floor surface is made of gets all over clothes and doesn't come off.”

Angela added: “There was also something red which looked sticky all over the other slide so my son couldn't go down that one either.

“Such a shame we ended up walking to the park on the top of The Perrings.”

Nailsea Town Council clerk Ian Morrell said: "The equipment at Hannah More play area is not unsafe, it is just that debris from the burnt area gets on clothes and the equipment, so it is better that it is not used.

"We are getting repairs done as soon as we can, at a cost in excess of £500, but unfortunately the company we use is busy doing work at schools during the summer holiday.

"Clearly it is very disappointing that we have had this vandalism.

"It is a shame that some of the equipment is temporarily out of use, but thankfully this type of wilful damage is unusual in the town."

UPDATE: Dad Dan Snowdon reported a few months ago that the zip wire at Millennium Park was broken and a swing while the sandpit climbing tunnel is blocked off. He was told the North Somerset Council who are responsible for this park knew and hoped there would be budget at the end of the finanicle year (March 2018) to fix the zip wire. Nailsea district council Jan Barber has taken up the cudgels and she has been told to fix the zip wire will cost thousands of pounds. Mrs Barber was told 'the zipwire is decommissioned as being structurally unsound'. She said: "I am told it would cost in the region of £11-12K and that would include supply and installation. I cannot see North Somerset having that sort of money at the end of the year so will try to convince the town council to pay towards repairs. It is such a shame as that is the best piece of equipment and just so much fun." And that is the situation too date...

New crossing at Wraxall CofE school

A new puffin crossing is going to be installed outside the school at Wraxall.

Work will start on Monday, August 21, and temporary traffic lights will operate.
Since June 2011 seven cars have been involved in accidents outside the village school – one serous.
The narrow B3130 country road from Bristol to Nailsea is a busy commuter and bus route.
Parents, staff and governors at Wraxall CofE Primary School have been campaigning for years for safety measures.
As well as recorded accident statistics a number of near misses with cars and lorries mounting the pavement have been witnessed.
The school currently has a crossing patrol funded by a local charity.
North Somerset Council stopped funding lollipop men and women some time ago.
This is when Wraxall Parochial Charities stepped in to fund the continuation of the crossing patrol.
Work on the new pedestrian crossing is expected to take two weeks to complete.
There will be no work on August Bank Holiday Monday, August 28.
Temporary traffic lights will be in place so the crews can work safely and working hours will be between 9.30am-3.30pm.
As well as the new crossing, the length of the existing 30mph zone will be changed on the approach to the crossing in order to encourage motorists to adhere to the speed limit.
New signage will be put up marking the 30mph zone and to advise road users of the new crossing.
The cost of the scheme is £50,000 and it is being paid for by the Department for Transport through the Local Transport Fund.
The works are being carried out by Skanska on behalf of North Somerset Council.
Wraxall Primary School headteacher Ben Tucker said: "It has been a long held vision of the school, governors and parents to have a pedestrian crossing on the B3130 outside the school.
"Having a crossing will help us continue to make sure our children get to class safely."

GOING UNDERGROUND: National Grid has started surveying land between Nailsea and Tickenham to find a suitable route for removing the overland cables and putting new 132kV cables underground. During the next couple of months, NG will be carrying out ground investigation surveys at around 90 locations along the route which will link the new nuclear power station at Hinkley C currently under construction to Avonmouth. Nailsea residents took to social media voicing fears that developers were surveying the land for more houses. To view the interactive map in full click HERE.