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Thursday, May 20, 2021

Newbury Weekly News

NEWBURY NEWS

Volunteering opportunities Make a difference to your community

Obituary Jack Nickson 1926-2021

Jack loved gardening, natural history, travel and, above all, had a passion for birds, especially migrants. In 1954, Jack married Betty (née Kift) and had two children, Martin and Jacqueline. After divorcing in 1979, Jack married Elly (nee Ivarsson) and had two more children, Annika and Steven. He is survived by his wife, ex-wife and all four of his children. The funeral will be held on May 24: 1. Funeral service in church https://vimeo.com/ event/993269/1106521849 2. Burial in church yard https://vimeo.com/ event/993274/2269f6ddb0 3. Wake at Ye Olde Red Lion https://vimeo.com/ event/993277/b89ed0379c We are fundraising for two charities close Jack Nickson’s heart – Sightsavers and the RSPB. If you wish to donate please do so via PayPal to annikanickson@gmail.com. We are also collecting memories of Jack for a book of remembrance. If you would like to contribute, please email Annika Nickson at the same address. JACKIE SULLIVAN

JACK was born in East Sheen to Clifford and Violet Nickson (nee Keen). He lived in various parts of London before leaving school at 14, when his family were evacuated to live with relatives in Newbury during the war. In Newbury, Jack taught himself French and algebra, going on to tutor both subjects to sixth-form girls, much to his delight. He then joined the Air Training Corps and became a Senior Flight Sergeant. After the war, he embarked on a career in architecture, but soon followed his lifelong friend Norman Beisly to Kings College medical school. He, Norman and Dave Arnold, who subsequently became one of his GP practice partners at Chieveley, indulged their quirky, and sometimes outrageous, senses of humour in the medical school pantomimes. After working in both Sutton and Luton, Jack embarked position in Godalming. For his next locum job he went to Chieveley, his mother’s home village. One of the partners became ill, and Jack stayed on, remaining there until his on a career in General Practice with a locum

HERE is the latest selec- tion from Volunteer Cen- tre West Berkshire, which is situated at Broadway House, 4-8 The Broadway, Northbrook Street, New- bury, RG14 1BA. Anyone interested in vol- unteering and helping to make a difference to the lives of others should contact the centre for details or visit www.volunteerwestberks. org.uk, (01635) 49004 or email info@vcwb.org.uk Adventure Leaders (Newbury) – Ref: NY2194 HELP young people in Newbury explore outside safely and have a great time. Volunteers are required for a Cub group (ages 8-12) on a Wednesday evening and a Scout group (ages 10-14) on a Thursday. Newbury Scout groups would like to hear from vol- unteers who could assist young people with gaining skills for life through prob- lem solving, team work and leading. Training will be pro- vided. Volunteer shop assistant – Ref: NY2152 A CHARITY that supports life-limited and life-threat- ened children and their fam- ilies is seeking volunteers for its shop in Newbury. The shop specialises in sec- ond-hand books, furniture and children’s toys. This role

retirement. They were a dynamic and progressive group of doctors. Jack was particularly proud of the Mobile Surgery – the first in the country – which allowed the rural population of the practice, many of whom did not drive, to access their services. While on rounds they communicated with ‘Base’ via a CB radio and they were the first medical port of call for serious accidents on the A34 and newly-opened M4. Jack, and his partners, were also pioneers in the field of spinal manipulation and injection, challenging established medical thinking. Jack continued practicing in this area well into his 80s, relishing that he was still a thorn in the ‘establishment’s’ side, even on retirement.

involves assisting and serving customers, pricing stock and operating the till. The role would suit someone with excellent communication skills who enjoys being part of a team. Crowd funding specialist lead – Ref: NY2166 A SPECIALIST gym with power-assisted exercise equip- ment operates for the benefit of local people with disabili- ties. The centre is currently planning a new hydrotherapy premises. Fundraising has been achieved mainly through grants and contact with regu- lar supporters. The centre would also like to raise funds through social media. It is looking for a volun- teer with a sound knowledge of crowd funding and using it to generate significant charitable income. The role would suit someone with social media expertise with fun on the way. Trustee – Ref: NY2004 DO you have an interest in

historical buildings and the local community? Could you assist in the promotion and preservation of a Thatcham building hired out to leisure and education groups? A trus- tee is needed for an organi- sation that looks after this building, which has a 700-year history. You will play an important role in promoting and support- ing the organisation’s work. The time commitment is ap- proximately five meetings a year, plus ad hoc business be- tween meetings. Peer support mentors – Ref: NY1767 WOULD you like to use your experience of mental health distress to support others? A charity that supports people with mental health conditions is seeking a volunteer mentor, involving one-to-one support sessions, facilitating social meet-ups, providing support with delivering training and promoting services. Training given, time com- mitment is three-10 hours a week. tions. Ms Blakesley added: “Technology is the future. We aim to help children thrive in an ever-changing digital world. “By teaching them the fundamentals of coding we hope they realise that tech- nology isn’t as daunting as it seems. “We develop ninjas to think and solve STEM prob- lems using software and games that they’re already familiar with, like Scratch, Minecraft and Roblox. “The ninjas can attend sessions up to twice a week, but the timings are flexible, which means you don’t have to come at the same time or on the same day. We offer something very different to what’s taught in the tradi- tional curriculum and af- ter-school clubs, so I’m sure we’ll be popular with both students and parents.” Visit bit.ly/3hwJwPt for further information.

The last word in the NWN

NEWBURY Weekly News welcomes tributes or obituaries submitted by readers for possible publication. Contributions should be in the region of 350 words in length and an accompanying photograph of the deceeased is also welcome. Submissions should be sent to The Editor, Newbury Weekly News, Newspaper House, Faraday Road, Newbury RG14 2DW or by email to editorial@newburynews.co.uk. Those contributions selected for printing will be featured in NWN as soon as possible when space allows. Such obituaries should not be in lieu of Death or Funeral arrangements notices. Those should be submitted to the advertisement department for publication in the family announcements section of the newspaper please.

New school for young coding ninjas

Care home risk mitigation praised by CQC THE Donnington Bupa Care Home was recently awarded a ‘good’ rating by the Care Qual- ity Commission (CQC). and distribution, particularly in the light of the coronavirus pan- demic.

A CODING school is to open in Newbury at the end of May. Code Ninjas, in London Road, will teach game and app-building knowledge to children aged five to 14. It officially opens on May 29 and lessons there will take a fun, engaging ap- proach to a technical sub- ject. Its students – the ‘ninjas’ – are to be taught by ‘sen- sei’ Marcus Brind, a former teacher, postman and Scout volunteer. Mr Brind has started the school with his partner, Heather Blakesley. He said: “I recognised that Code Ninjas was a success- ful brand in the US and Can- ada, plus I’ve always had a strong belief in helping chil- dren gain skills in a creative and fun environment. “Before training as a sec- ondary school teacher, I spent close to 20 years with local accountancy firm

Home manager Roseann Sweeney said: “Achieving a ‘good’ CQC rating is a real testament to our continued commitment in de- livering the best-quality care for our residents, and we’re excep- tionally proud to have our efforts recognised within this report. “Management and staff have worked ever so hard to implement a range of new systems over the past 12 months.”

In a report released at the end of April, regulators praised the home for its efforts to mitigate risks to the health and wellbeing of resi- dents. Among the measures praised by the CQC were personalised as- sessments for specific health con- ditions, including epilepsy and diabetes and for taking special pre- cautions around medicine storage

TVP warn of rogue traders THAMES Valley Police Pangbourne Ne i g h b o u r h o o d Team visited Cal- cot and Tilehurst on Monday to warn of the risks posed by rogue traders. It followed reports of rogue traders op- erating in the area.

Special Birthdays

Code Ninjas in London Road

Happy 18th Birthday Matthew Cox 21st of May Our sporty Grandson

ing skills, both of which will help them later in life. “The sessions are avail- able after school and on weekends and aim to devel- op not only their tech skills but also their ability to com- municate, work as part of a team and, of course, nurture their sense of self-belief over the course of the pro- gramme.” Code Ninjas will initially operate under Covid restric-

Griffins Accountants as IT manager. Within that role, I saw so much potential in the future of the technology in- dustry and just how neces- sary it would be for children to be equipped with digital literacy. “As well as teaching chil- dren how to design and build their own games and apps, Code Ninjas offers them the chance to learn analytical thinking and problem-solv-

Love From Nan, Gramp, Dad, and all the Cox’s xxxx

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