The Bradley Stoke Journal

On Sunday 17th May at 1pm walkers from across the South West and Wales will meet at the Town Square, Willow Brook Centre, Bradley Stoke, for a spring walk in aid of NACC, the leading Colitis and Crohn’s Disease patients’ charity.

The route will take walkers through the Three Brooks Local Nature Reserve following the Three Brooks Way and will finish with refreshments at the Jubilee Centre.

More information about the walk:

• Suitable for wheelchairs and pushchairs
• Route distance 3 ½ miles / 1½ hours / 304 calories
• Marshalled route
• Dogs welcome
• Fun activities at the end of the walk

For further information or to register:

• Phone: 0845 4348513
• Email: avonnorthsomerset@groups.nacc.org.uk

or just turn up on the day.

Donations can be made at: www.justgiving.com/nacc/donate

This will be the final fund raising event of the year for Bradley Stoke Mayor Cllr Robert Jones, who has raised thousands of pounds during the year for his nominated charity.

Georgie Bigg, from the local NACC Group says:

“It’s been a fantastic opportunity for our group of volunteers to get involved in local activities and help fund raise. It’s good to know so many people will benefit.”

Friday (31st October) sees a performance of “Spoonface Steinberg” at Bradley Stoke Community School (7pm start). The event is intended to raise the profile of the performing arts within Bradley Stoke, an aim of the school since it was designated a Performing Arts and Languages College in September 2008. The play is suitable for children over 10 years of age. Tickets cost £8 for adults, £6 for concessions (children, OAPs, students) and £4.50 for BSCS students. Family tickets can be purchased for £25. Phone 01454 868840 to reserve tickets.

The Three Brooks Nature Conservation Group is holding its monthly workday on Saturday (1st November), when volunteers will be felling trees and clearing plantations. Meet at the lake (duck pond) at 10am.

Bradley Stoke Town Council’s annual Firework Display takes place on Sunday (2nd November) at the Jubilee Centre, Savages Wood Road. There is no entrance charge – instead there will be an entry point collection for the Mayor’s charity, the National Association for Colitis and Crohn’s Disease (NACC). Gates open at 4:30pm, with the display starting at 6pm. Hot food will be available from 4:45pm.

UPDATE: Tonight’s Bradley Stoke Has Got Talent show has been postponed due to “unforeseen circumstances”, according to information on the Southern Brooks Community Partnership website.

Related Links: What’s on in Bradley Stoke

The judging panel tasked with selecting a name for Bradley Stoke’s new town centre development has chosen “Willow Brook” as the best suggestion submitted in a public competition jointly organised by Bradley Stoke Town Council and Tesco.

The competition was held after a remarkable U-turn by Tesco, which had previously insisted on using the name “The Brooks Centre“, despite having previously promised the Town Council that residents of the town would be given a chance to choose the name in a public competition.

The winner has asked to remain anonymous and has donated the winnings to the Mayor’s Charity, the local branch of the National Association for Colitis and Crohn’s Disease (NACC). Tesco has also matched the sum so that the charity will benefit by a total of £100.

The entry-level personal computer that was also offered as part of the prize package will likewise go to the NACC.

The naming competition was open to all UK residents, not just those living in Bradley Stoke. Dan Bramwell, Tesco Public Affairs Consultant, has however assured The Journal that the mystery winner is a local resident.

Construction of the new town centre is now well under way and Tesco recently began advertising management positions available at the new Tesco Extra store that is scheduled to open in “late autumn [2008]“.

More information about Bradley Stoke’s new town centre development can be found elsewhere in The Journal:

• New Town Centre posts
• New Town Centre pages

Photos of the new town centre construction work can be seen in our PicasaWeb Gallery.

Warm and sunny weather saw crowds flock to the Jubilee Centre in Savages Wood Road for the main day of Bradley Stoke’s Community Festival 2008.

The day got underway at 11am with a demonstration of gamegoers’ dogs, falcons and ferrets and continued throughout the afternoon with events alternating between arena and stage. Highlights of the day included performances by Queen tribute band Monarchy and James Dylan Stuntworld (motorcyle riders). The day was rounded off by musicians and dancers from the South Gloucestershire Asian Project at around 5:50pm.

Over on Jubilee Green, the annual Community Fair took place between 1:30pm and 5:30pm, featuring stalls from local charities, community groups and businesses.

The Leisure Centre in Fiddlers Wood Lane was the venue for a skate park competition organised by Southern Brooks Community Partnership.

Fine weather is also forecast for tomorrow (Sunday 8th), when the main Festival event is the Bradley Stoke Festival Fun Run at 10am. The Journal’s interactive map of the race route shows you where (and when) you can see the runners go by.

The National Association for Colitis and Crohn’s Disease (NACC), Mayor Robert Jones’s nominated charity for his year in office, will benefit from the proceeds of the weekend’s events.

There are more than 140 photos of the day’s events in The Journal’s PicasaWeb Gallery:

• Jubilee Centre [album; slideshow]
• Skate Park Competition [album; slideshow]

Please contact us if you would like a free full-size copy of any of our photos. In due course, we plan to add captions to our photos, so please also let us know if you have any information (e.g. website address of your charity/group) that you would like us to include.

Bradley Stoke’s newly elected Mayor, Robert Jones, has chosen the National Association for Colitis and Crohn’s Disease (NACC) as the organisation to benefit from his charitable fundraising efforts during his year in office.

Last year’s Mayor, Julian Barge, raised £5823 for his his two chosen charities – the Bristol Urological Prostate Cancer Appeal and the Nicola Corry Support Foundation. The Mayor’s charity fund benefits from donations and special money-raising events held during the Mayor’s year in office – notably the Community Festival in June and the Fireworks Display in November.

In a press release issued by Bradley Stoke Town Council today, Councillor Jones reveals that he was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease five years ago. By choosing the organisation as his charity for the year, he hopes to raise awareness of Inflammatory Bowel Diseases as well as raising money to support the activities of the charity, which include research, information and support.