On Winchester Now this week:
- The Government has announced delays to the new hospital building programme. It means work on a new hospital for Basingstoke won’t start until 2035 at the earliest, and a refurbishment of the Royal Hampshire County Hospital has also been delayed. We hear from Alex Whitfield, Chief Executive of Hampshire Hospitals.
- A prison reform group has described Winchester Prison as a truly squalid and overcrowded jail following an HM Inspectorate of Prisons report. Winchester Now spoke to Andrea Coomber, the Chief Executive of the Howard League for Penal Reform.
- News-in-brief:
- Winchester residents have been urged to be on their guard after three burglaries were reported on Tuesday which police believe are linked.
- Police in Hampshire have announced that they made a total of 322 arrests during a month-long campaign targeting drink and drug driving.
- A project to build hedgerow linking the South Downs with the New Forest has reached a significant milestone.
- This year marks 80 years since Victory in Europe and Victory over Japan. The Royal British Legion is calling on World War 2 veterans to join them for their historic VE Day and VJ Day commemorations.
- It’s an exciting year for the Gurkha Museum in Winchester with plans underway for huge redevelopment. And they are starting the year with a special exhibition entitled “Through the Lens of a Gurkha”. We discover more from Assistant Curator Doug Henderson.
- Shout-outs:
- To a young lad called Hugo who brought a tray of cakes to The Winchester Beacon.
- To a number of local businesses and local people who brought gifts to the hospital during the winter challenges.
- To the team at the Chesil Theatre for stunning reviews after their production of the play “Life x 3” last week.
- To 101 year-old Joyce Ward from St Catherine’s View care home who enjoyed a special gathering bringing together five generations of her family.
- Have you got an hour to spare this weekend? Then how about joining the Big Garden Birdwatch? We hear from Jolene Orlowski from the RSPB Winchester group about what people might see and why it’s so important.
