There is currently an exciting project going on in Ross. Residents are being asked to propose ideas to be included in the town plan which will help to shape Ross in the coming years. The consultation period is now drawing to a close, however, residents are still welcome to come forward with proposals and a report based on residents ideas will be compiled.

To date the responses have trickled in but the steering committee are sure there are more great ideas out there. They would love to hear from all, but particularly the younger residents as they have been very quiet so far. Only ideas that are proposed will have a chance of moving forward and at the moment kids and young adults aren't being represented. This is everyone's chance to have a say about how Ross should develop!

Do you have any thoughts? Perhaps you'd like to see better sports facilities, a change in public transport, pedestrianization of the high street or something else? If so your voice needs to be heard. There are a number of ways to make your views known. You can either write to Jane Roberts, Rowtop, First Floor, The Corn Exchange, 7 High Street, Ross-on-Wye, or email issues@ross-on-wye.org. You can even discuss your views on line at http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=6355952404. The steering committee look forward to hearing from you, and remember if you don't speak now, don't moan later.

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Chris, I know that you are a regular 'Wyenot News' reader in Holland as you introduced yourself last week at Broome Farm, however I do not have your contact details. Would you please email me?

The reason I am asking it that Sean, another regular reader in Australia wrote to me this week. . .

'G'day Alan and Happy New Year to you.

I’ve just read the latest “Wyenot News” and see that Chris from Holland is mentioned a couple of times. I'm a member of the Price family (as well as the Prossers) and I met Chris as a young feller back in the early 90’s and we spend a summer getting up to no good and having a good time when he visited from Holland.

Unfortunately over the years we haven’t managed to keep in touch although when I was back in the UK last year I did get to meet up with his mum and dad. Anyway, the reason to get in touch with you was to say if he emails you at all would you mind passing on my email address as I’d love to make contact with him. Thanks Alan - Sean'

If you contact me, Chris I shall reunite the pair of you via the wonders of modern technology.

Happy New Year to you also, Sean. Hope all is well with you and your family down-under!

The body of a man which was discovered on Wednesday morning, in a pond at Much Marcle has now been formally identified as that of 81-year old Roland Ivor Williams.

Mr Williams had previously been reported missing on Tuesday by his family and an extensive police search was mounted. The media are thanked for their assistance during the search for Mr Williams.

Many churches will have had Christingle Services in aid of the Children's Society. A Christingle usually consists of a candle to represent the light of Christ and an orange to represent the world. Christingle services are very popular with children and families.

At Kings Caple they introduced a Herefordshire innovation - instead of an orange the Christingles were made using apples. The PCC had decided that, living as we do in the middle of a fruit growing area, it was more appropriate to use local apples as the basis of the Christingles - and it was much less messy to make them!

Herefordshire Council is on the hunt for village shops that want to take advantage of a grant to provide free business advice. The £15,000 award from the Herefordshire Access to Services Partnership (HASP) will provide practical support to village shops, helping them to develop their businesses for the 21st Century and improve their service to the communities that depend on them.

HASP was established through a contract between Herefordshire Council and the Regional Development Agency, Advantage West Midlands. The council is working with the Rural Shops Alliance, a national trade association representing over 7,000 independent village shops across England, to help ensure Herefordshire's village shops get access to the latest thinking on business improvement and possible funding streams for village enterprises.

The council is looking for 15 village shops within the county borders to each take advantage of in-depth business advice tailored to their individual needs.

'The village shop is often the hub of a vibrant village community,' said Councillor, Roger Phillips, leader of Herefordshire Council. 'When they prosper they provide an excellent and valuable service, especially to members of the community who do not have transport or cannot travel easily, but many of these small shops face a day-to-day struggle for survival. This is why the council is working with its partners to encourage them to get together and learn from and inspire each other to make the most of every business opportunity. Thanks to a grant from HASP, and the expertise of the Rural Shops Alliance, we are in a position to offer this valuable business advice without charge to 15 village shops.'

Steve Burgess of HASP added, 'We are delighted to be able to offer a grant, using funds provided by Advantage West Midlands, to owners of village shops who, despite working long hours and providing a valuable service, often find themselves isolated. This money will help 15 village stores and their communities to grow the businesses and thrive.'

Owners of village shops wishing to learn more about the grant are asked to contact Anthony Bush, parish and rural services officer at Herefordshire Council, on 01432 260611 (e-mail; abush@herefordshire.gov.uk), as soon as possible.

A "must read" for organizations seeking funding for projects across Herefordshire has just been published. The 20th edition of the Herefordshire Funding Directory is hot off the press!

The community regeneration team at Herefordshire Council has produced the directory, which lists the main funding opportunities that may be available to those living and working in Herefordshire.

'There are many organizations across Herefordshire which carry out vital work in our communities. We're delighted to be able to publish this directory which highlights opportunities for funding,' said Councillor Adrian Blackshaw, Cabinet Member for Economic Development and Community Services. 'We all know that money can very often dictate whether a project goes ahead or not, so we'd encourage them all to get in touch and get hold of a copy of the directory.'

The directory helps locate appropriate funding for particular projects and, where possible, gives details of local contacts. As well as information on funding, it also has contacts for advice and support from local organizations The types of funds available have been categorized under different headings for business, community and voluntary organizations

The Herefordshire council project development team is available to help anyone planning a project and needing help to find funding, or wanting help to fill in an application form. The team will try to help people find suitable grants for their project, and signpost other people who may also be able to support work.

The team received 575 enquiries from organizations which were looking for funding for projects during 2007. The Funding Directory is available on the council website under community, people and living www.herefordshire.gov.uk. Alternatively, to receive a paper copy of the directory, or if you have any funding queries, please contact the project development team by telephone on 01432 261793 or e-mail the team at projectdevelopment@herefordshire.gov.uk

The Olympics roadshow will be in Ross on Wye to highlight how Herefordshire firms can gain work from the London 2012 Games.

West Midlands Business Council – in association with the Herefordshire and Worcestershire Chamber of Commerce and the Leadership Trust will be holding a free workshop with free refreshments at the Leadership Trust in Ross on Friday, 1 February from 1pm.

West Midlands Business Council Executive Director, James Watkins, said, 'Herefordshire firms could be in the front line of getting work from the 2012 Games and our roadshow in Ross-on-Wye is designed to help local firms to see if they can get work from the Games and so boost their bottom lines.'

There will be a range of experts at the event who will be on hand to give practical advice about the business opportunities for the county’s small and medium sized businesses. However, places are limited for this free event so local business people are asked to register their place by contacting Val Day at the West Midlands Business Council on 0121 245 0142 or on v.day@wmbusinesscouncil.org.uk”

A meeting to discuss the proposed formation of an independent Sports Council for Ross-on-Wye is to be held at the Larruperz Centre on Friday, 1 February at 7.00pm. Representatives from local sports clubs and organizations are being invited to attend. However, it is an open meeting at which individuals with an interest in sporting activities will be most welcome.

Councillor John Edwards, Chairman of the Town Council's Finance & Administration Committee, plans to put forward a draft blueprint for the establishment of an umbrella organization to co-ordinate the development of sporting and communal activities in Ross-on-Wye and surrounding districts. This would then be subject to comment and discussion before deciding on the next stage.

Councillor Edwards emphasized that the proposed Sports Council would not seek to interfere with existing individual sports clubs, many of which are highly successful. Instead the Council would aim to provide any support that might be needed especially in identifying grant giving bodies to raise funds for expansion and development. As an independent organization, with an Executive comprised of local people with financial and management expertise, it would be in a strong position to tap into the many sources of grants and funds available.

An immediate priority would be to deal with the present run-down state of the Sports Centre at Wilton. A spokesman for Herefordshire Council, which owns the Centre and surrounding grounds has indicated that it would be prepared to hand over responsibility for running the Centre to a properly constituted Ross-on-Wye based organization. It is planned to seek both short and long-term measures to exploit the full potential of this important centre for local sporting activities.

At the same time the new Sports Council would look at other possibilities for expanding sports facilities elsewhere in the town including the possibility of a purpose built sports complex catering for a range of leisure activities including perhaps a cinema.

Councillor Edwards said that Ross-on-Wye had fallen behind neighbouring towns in the development of sporting facilities because of a lack of direction and leadership, including the Town Council. That is about to change. The Sports Council will give the town the chance to control its own destiny in deciding what is best for Ross-on-Wye. The provision of more sporting and communal activities will not only benefit younger people, with energy to burn, but also improve the whole status of Ross-on-Wye as a place to live, visit and invest.

A hard fought table top clash took place on Saturday between Ross 2nds and Ledbury 2nds. The match was played at John Kyrle High School as the usual pitch was flooded, so neither team was on home ground. The game resulted in Ross 2nds winning the match 11 points to 5. Well done guys.

Coverage of the match can be seen in this week's edition of WNTV News.

Ross-on-Wye Weather Station is located by the tennis courts and bowling green at 'Crossfields' and is one of the important stations around the country which regularly sends data to the Meteorological Office. This is why Ross-on-Wye is sometimes mentioned on the BBC weather reports. It is currently still a manually monitored station and readings are taken twice per day by husband and wife team, June and Rex Swallow.

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