Profit before care

YOUR report (September 10) “Parking fears over hospital flats plan” is a sad indictment of mismanagement by the property arm of the NHS.

In their desperation to make money from the old cottage hospital site they seem hell-bent on alienating everyone!  They have alienated the doctors in the Abbotswood Medical Centre by making it very difficult for the centre to enlarge to cope with increasing demand and provide essential car parking.  They have alienated townsfolk by refusing to retain even the frontage of the old hospital, built by public subscription in the 1890s.

They have alienated local residents by failing to ensure proper car parking provision at Abbotswood or enable access from Defford Road.

There are likely to be an extra 1,000 patients attending Abbotswood within 10 years. Most will come by car.

The 16 new parking spaces planned are likely to be taken by the 21 staff cars that use the old hospital site at the moment. Otherwise they will be displaced into Nogains and other roads.

The old hospital is to be demolished and re-developed for 24 retirement flats, but with only 11 car parking spaces.

It’s a nice looking building, but it’s trying to get a quart from a pint pot! Once again, extra cars will be looking for parking spaces in Nogains and other roads.

It really is unfair that local residents should be forced to deal with the congestion and dangers caused by this lack of proper planning.

NHS Property should allow Abbotswood the space for a proper car park, with access from Defford Road. The retirement flats should be scaled back to perhaps 15 in total. with space for the cars that will use them.

Wychavon should reject the current planning applications for both proposals, in my view.

NHS Property should act in the spirit of the NHS charter and put the health needs of Pershore before profit from the site.

Charles Tucker Wychavon and Pershore town councillor  

Our caring town

IT was interesting to see that Liz Dacbugamiie (Letters, September 24) was unaware of the Caring Hands food bank in the Vale of Evesham Christian Centre.

I have never watched the TV programme, but if Evesham has now been featured more than once, it is exactly because we are a very caring community, and this sort of exposure often has good consequences too.

I would like to assure Liz that the generous food parcel was not just for the TV programme, or because we have no takers.  Diane Bennett, who started Caring Hands 12 years ago, keeps very good records.

Last year we received a total of 601 referrals for 316 different families or individuals from 45 different referral agencies.

We provided a total of 519 food parcels for 967 people, which provided 20,151 meals.

Perhaps Liz would like to come along on a Monday or Wednesday and see the work being done by our dedicated volunteers (perhaps join our team of volunteers? and meet Diane, who was not expecting to be in the TV programme at all!

At this time of year, we are especially grateful to those who donate the proceeds of their harvest festival celebrations.

Money collections are also made and last year donations saved Caring Hands over £5,000 which would otherwise have had to be spent on food supplies.

Our thanks go out to all those who donate to collections at Tesco and Morrisons, and to those stores for their practical support.

Ruth Bull Evesham Steve Wilderspin Evesham Christian Centre  

Sermon unease

MALCOLM Meikle letter (Letters, September 24) disputes my interpretation of Clare Lording’s sermon. She made clear her opposition to the Bomb at an event marking its greatest achievement: ending World War Two.

If the criticism was unintended, it did not make it any less apparent. That this manifest insult to the dead escaped Mr Meikle’s attention does not mean it escaped mine.

This was not the first political sermon I’ve had to suffer at the abbey. The 2013 Remembrance Service was marred by a lay preacher who absurdly claimed that the world wars were fought to establish multi-culturalism.

And there I thought they’d been fought to defend the nation.

In closing, I must take exception to Mr Meikle’s risible suggestion that a priest was encouraging her parishioners to think independently.

I thought that rather undermined the point of priests.

Rex Jonathan Hyke Pershore

Enough now!

WELL, that’s it. Some of the councillors voted onto Wychavon District Council are planning on selling this town down the river.

Enough is enough! The roads are gridlocked, you struggle to see a doctor when you want one, the schools are full and the air we breathe is filthy, Is this what you want for your children’s future?

Anyone who wants to spend the rest of their days living in and around Evesham must go against this housing madness .

The council is allowing building without any thought for the misery and problems it is causing.

Everything that has been done has, step by step, messed this town up.

It is time the planning people stood up to the developers.

If enough people shout, then someone has to listen.

Bruce Beckley Evesham

Hospital help WE offer a big thank-you to everyone who bought produce from our vegetable tables in Badsey Lane and Childswickham this summer.

The final amount raised was a whopping £209 for Birmingham Children’s Hospital through the sale of vegetables, fruit, plants and jam.

We would particularly like to thank Adrian, Dave, et al, for their kind donation of produce.

The sum raised will be added to the proceeds from our annual charity craft fair on Saturday, November 14, from 10am at Leedons Park, Childswickham.

Last year’s event was tremendously successful, raising £2,000 for the hospital.

Mandy Edwards Evesham bethan.org.uk

Coffee cash

ON behalf of the Vale Of Evesham Macmillan Cancer Support Committee I would like to say a big thank you to everyone who supported us at our coffee morning in Offenham on Saturday, September 26.  Special thanks to everyone who helped to make it such a great success, and especially to the young volunteers who worked so hard.

The event raised over £1,400 for Macmillan Cancer Support.

Pauline Smith Chair Vale of Evesham Macmillan Cancer Support Committee

Dogs delight

DAVID Baker Funeral Directors of Bidford-on-Avon would like to express their sincere thanks to all those dog owners who took the trouble to attend and participate in the fun dog show on Sunday, September 20, as part of the Bidford Bridge Bash.

Particular thanks must also go to Sarah, who organised the show; Anne, who did most of the judging, and her daughter Abbie, who put on a dancing/skateboarding dog display.

In total £46 was raised for the guide dogs plus many items, including dog shampoo, were donated, the remainder of which will be given to the local dogs trust.

Gabby Sanchez David Baker Funeral Directors

Treasured guests

HAVING read your hedgehog article in the Journal (September 24), and also received The Last Hedgehog in Worcestershire booklet, we feel honoured to have been visited by a male and female hedgehog in July. They built a nest in our garden before producing a baby hedgehog in August.

The baby would be out exploring in the middle of the day – no doubt when its parents were sleeping.

We would watch one of the parents every early evening scurrying around the garden.

Not sure if they were looking for food, or trying to find the little one.

They have now disappeared again and we do hope that they will be back next year.

Steve and Nina Bullen Honeybourne