On this week’s Winchester Now:
- This year marks the 100th anniversary of St Peter’s Catholic Church in the city-centre, and next week the building in Jewry Street will be illuminated both inside and out to celebrate the occasion. There will also be live music, refreshments, and space for quiet reflection – and anyone from the city is invited to go along. Mary Blaxland spoke to Father Mark Hogan, Parish Priest of St. Peter’s and the Winchester Martyrs, to find out more.
- News-in-brief:
- The M3 between Junctions 8 and 9 will close from 9pm on Friday night until 6am on Monday morning, and diversions will be in place. Engineers are working on the installation of steel beams for the new roundabout at Winnall. A second full weekend closure will take place in two weeks time.
- Two Hampshire firefighters, Dan Eves and Chris Ammundsen, are part of a 36-strong UK International Search and Rescue team, who have been deployed to Maputo Province in Mozambique after devastating flooding there.
- Local residents are being asked for their views on the future of recycling in Winchester. A new facility, being built by Hampshire County Council, will allow the City Council to be able to collect a wider range of materials such as plastic tubs, pots and trays. It is expected that this will be up and running in 2028.
- Police were called after a teenage boy with a catapult was seen firing at ducks in the River Park. A local councillor who was passing by, intervened and the boy ran off. Residents are being asked to be vigilant and to report any criminal behaviour.
- Scaffolding will go up around the Buttercross at the end of February/start of March, as work starts to restore this historic monument. It’s taken several years to get the funding in place, specialist surveys completed, and formal approvals from Historic England – as the Buttercross is a scheduled ancient monument.
- Volunteering opportunities:
- Charity ‘Emmaus Hampshire’ has a residential community in Winchester, providing a home and tailored support for up to 40 people who have experienced homelessness. They are seeking volunteers to help in a range of roles. To find out more, visit their website.
- Winchester City Mill, which is part of the National Trust, are actively seeking volunteers to assist them in their second-hand bookshop. From restocking shelves to chatting to visitors, this is a fun and sociable opportunity to help support the charity. You can find out more by checking out the volunteering opportunities listed on the National Trust website, or why not pop in and speak to a member of the team about this volunteer role at Winchester City Mill, next time you are in the city-centre.
- Charity ‘Hearing Dogs for Deaf People’ are looking for volunteer puppy-trainers in the Hampshire area. To discover more, and to express an interest, please visit their website.
- The Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust is hoping to recruit some ‘Volunteer Livestock Lookers’ to assist in the regular livestock checks on land managed by the Trust at St Catherine’s Hill. Also at St. Catherine’s Nature Reserve, there are volunteer opportunities to help with practical conservation work. To learn more about these and other volunteer vacancies with the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust, visit their website.
- Hundreds of people attended an event at the Guildhall in Winchester to hear more about the future of the derelict River Park Leisure Centre. Twelve options have been revealed for the site. Mary Blaxland went along and chatted to visitors about what they would like to see on the site, and also put some of their questions to the Leader of Winchester City Council.
- Shout-outs:
- To the winners and all the nominees for this year’s Hampshire Changemakers Awards, which honour and recognise the outstanding achievements of individuals, organisations, and businesses dedicated to creating positive impact across the county. There were over 170 nominations this year, across 10 different award categories. Amongst the winners were Winchester-based organisations Munch CIC (Healthy Futures Award) and Winchester Action on the Climate Crisis (Sustainability Award).
- To Becky Toms, Community Nursing Team Leader at Hampshire Hospitals, who has been awarded the prestigious title of Queen’s Nurse from the Queen’s Nursing Institute, which honours nurses who demonstrate high levels of commitment to providing outstanding care to patients, as well as continuous learning and development.
- To Jake, Joe, Callum, Ronnie, and Scott who generously give their time to make sure matchdays at Winchester City Football Club run smoothly and safely, whatever the weather.
