On this week’s Winchester Now:
- Christina Dolding, from Winchester, has embarked on a 1200 mile walk from Land’s End to John O’Groats to raise £10k for brain tumour research in memory of a 13-year-old boy who died from a brain tumour. Mary Blaxland caught up with them both a few days into the start of their challenge.
- News-in-brief:
- Revd Canon Chris Palmer, previously Canon Treasurer at Exeter Cathedral, will be installed as Dean of Winchester Cathedral this weekend. Canon Roly Riem, who has been Interim Dean of Winchester Cathedral since Catherine Ogle’s retirement last year, retires in July.
- The Mayor of Winchester, Cllr Sudhakar Achwal, has signed a twinning agreement with the city of Nizhyn in Ukraine. A ceremony took place at Abbey House with city councillors and representatives from Winchester Ukrainian Cultural Association, during which the Mayor and the Mayor of Nizhyn City, Oleksandr Kodola, met online to sign the agreement simultaneously.
- Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust has purchased land at Junction 7 of the M3, to ensure the site remains an option on which to build a new hospital in the future. The land was bought with funds from the National New Hospital Programme – although a decision on the new hospital has not yet been made.
- Winchester Boxing Club is preparing to move from its current building in Barfield Close to new premises in Hillier Way, opposite Winchester City Football Club, allowing it to expand. The club has classes for men, women and children, and for those with additional needs, and hopes to offer courses to adults with Parkinson’s Disease.
- The City Council’s Town Forum has allocated £110k to install a new Multi-Use Games Area for young people at St. Matthew’s Field in Weeke. The plan has been supported by residents, the local primary school and youth groups.
- It has been revealed that the Cathedral Christmas Market attracted almost 120,000 visitors last year, including 11 coaches on one day in December. And it may only be March, but applications have already opened for the 2026 market – traders only have till the end of the month to apply.
- The ‘Small Talk Saves Lives’ campaign from the Samaritans, in partnership with Network Rail, is encouraging people to start a simple conversation with a stranger if they think someone is not OK at railway stations or other public places, if they feel safe to do so. Anne-Marie Alderson from the Samaritans, spoke to Anna about the campaign.
- Shout-outs:
- To various participants at the Winchester Junior ParkRun, who have reached significant milestones. These include: Fedi, who completed his 250th junior parkrun; Evie on earning her half-marathon wristband, and to Graham, Archie, Zoe, and George on achieving their marathon wristbands. Despite muddy and slippery conditions, 87 participants completed the course last Sunday, with 25 achieving personal bests. Well done all and special thanks to all the dedicated volunteers!
- To Home Instead Central Hampshire who marked 15 years of community care with an anniversary celebration for clients, staff, supporters and community partners. This home-care provider organises many local, free community activities including the ‘Singing for the Brain’ sessions and the monthly ‘dementia-friendly’ film screenings at the Everyman cinema on Southgate Street.
- To the team involved in organising the Spring Greening Community Fair held last weekend at the Colden Common Community Centre. The fair was a family-friendly celebration of sustainability and community creativity, featuring Eco-Friendly Stalls, Community Swaps, and information on solar power and battery storage together with practical sustainability tips on home energy matters.
- To the students at Peter Symonds College, who achieved a record-breaking 57 Oxbridge offers, the highest in the college’s history. Students secured places for 26 different courses across 31 different Oxbridge colleges and successful applicants originated from 27 different secondary schools.
- To all those involved in ‘Sound Winchester’, which took place at The Arc last Saturday. The event (now in its third year), provided a free, day-long celebration of music and the spoken word with plenty of audience participation and creativity, as well as live performances of music and poetry from performers such as Swan Samba, Winchester Uke Jam, Winchester Jazz Collective, the Poetry Platform, the University of Winchester Music Centre, and Winnall Rock School.
- To everyone honoured with a Mayor of Winchester’s Community Award! Around 70 individuals and local groups were nominated and invited to a special ceremony with the Mayor at the Guildhall on Thursday evening to recognise their dedication and service to the Winchester community. The winners included our very own Val Moore and Jeremy Goldthorpe, who are Winchester Radio’s befriending volunteers – spreading cheer round the wards of the hospital each week visiting patients.
