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Thursday, October 29, 2020 4

NEWBURYNEWS

Newbury Weekly News

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Mayor walks with 104-year-old Ruth NEWBURY mayor Elizabeth O’Keeffe joined 104-year-old Ruth Saunders on her latest walk yesterday (Wednesday). Mrs Saunders, from Shaw, originally set herself a target of walking 104 laps of the streets around her home – one for every year she has been alive – to raise money for the Thames Valley Air Ambulance charity. She has so far raised nearly £30,000.

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Reporbt y SARAHBOSLEY email sarah.bosley@newbuyrnews.co.uk

Each walk has covered a fifth of a mile, meaning she has walked a total of nearly 21 miles. But she’s now determined to complete an extra 26 walks to make up the official marathon distance of 26.2 miles. Mrs Saunders has been inspired by Captain Sir Tom Moore, who raised £32m for the NHS by walking 100 laps of his patio in the days leading up to his 100th birthday – an achievement which also earned him a knight- hood. Her story was first published in the Newbury Weekly News three weeks ago and has since been picked up by a number of national newspapers. The centenarian has also made numerous television and radio appearances in the last fort- night. Just as it did with Captain Tom, her story has captured the hearts of the nation and, as a

IF you’re up early enough in the morning, you may recog- nise Rachel Ward. The East Ilsley doctor has been dispensing medical advice to the nation on BBC Breakfast throughout the coronavirus crisis. The GP, who will turn 40 years old this week, is one of the BBC flagship show’s team of eight doctors who regularly appear to help explain and de-myth the latest developments in the pandemic. And now she is preparing to answer your questions too, in a Covid Q&A in the Newbury Weekly News . “My time on BBC Breakfast started when we were having the daily Downing Street briefings and we would reflect on what was said the following day,” she explained. “Things can change pretty last minute, which to start with was a bit daunting. “You get to know the presen- ters and they are all very, very nice and make it very easy.” Outside of her BBC appear- ances, Dr Ward has been work- ing tirelessly at her practice in Didcot and admits that things were “really stressful” back in March. “We weren’t seeing loads of cases, but we had to change our whole service offering,” she said. “The PPE shortage was incredibly stressful because we have a responsibility to protect our staff. “I spent one weekend phoning around any local vets, dentists, trying to get any masks I could. “It shouldn’t have been happening. “I also found it really sad that we weren’t able to see many patients face-to-face and I

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result, donations have been flooding in. Mrs Saunders, who was born in Shaw in 1916 and has lived in the Newbury and Reading areas all her life, said: “You could say that Captain Tom is my role model. “I saw what he did in the paper and just thought that if he could do it, so could I, even though I am four years older.” Mrs O’Keeffe, who also

attended Mrs Saunders 100th birthday in 2016, said: “What Ruth is doing at 104 years of age is absolutely extraordinary.” Mrs Saunders was also joined on the walk by her grandchil- dren, great-grandchildren and the deputy mayor of Newbury, Billy Drummond. Donations for any amount can be made online at www.justgiv- ing.com/fundraising/ruthsaun- ders104

Greens call for 1,000 new homes for social rent WEST Berkshire Green Party is calling for an additional 1,000 new homes for social rent to be provided in the district over the next five years. councils to build new social housing and have reduced fund- ing costs for this. homes they need at prices they can afford.” The party also wants all new homes to meet much higher envi- ronmental standards, with low carbon construction and energy efficiency built in.

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that if you have a health concern don’t delay it; you must get medical advice.” Dr Ward, who lives with her husband and two young chil- dren, added that her family are ensuring her television appear- ances don’t go to her head. “The children had a tough time of it at first as my husband and I were both incredibly busy,” she said. “They were very into the clap- ping, but they are completely over the whole BBC Breakfast thing now.” If you have a question you would like us to put to Dr Rachel Ward, please email sarah.bosley@newburynews.co. uk The questions and answers will be printed in the NWN next month.

missed that. “The whole impact of Covid on mental health is something we will be seeing more of. “I do a lot of training and teaching too, but we couldn’t have any students or juniors in the practice.” But, thankfully, she said that everyone is more prepared now, with the logistics already in place to better deal with what- ever the winter may bring. She is concerned still, however, that people are ignor- ing potentially serious symp- toms. “There is still quite a lot of concern that people are more reluctant to go and ask for healthcare advice,” she said. “There’s certainly a fear that people are presenting later with cancer symptoms and my plea is

“Many councils are construct- ing imaginative new social hous- ing developments and we want West Berkshire to step up and grasp that opportunity.’ The Green Party says: “Aver- age house prices in West Berk- shire are nearly 10 times average income, which makes buying a property unaffordable for many people. “However, the district has less social housing than average, and private rents have risen by more than 20 per cent in the last five years. “The Green Party believes that providing high-quality homes for social rent is crucial to ensure families can find the

The party made its comments as part of West Berkshire Coun- cil’s new housing strategy, which is currently out for consultation. The strategy identified that in August 2019 there were 2,300 West Berkshire households in need of social housing. The Green Party believes only a substantial investment by the council will help many of the district’s families find suitable accommodation. Carolyne Culver, Green group leader on West Berkshire Coun- cil, said: ‘The Government has opened up the opportunity for

It adds that any new develop- ment should be properly inte- grated to the public transport network and support walking and cycling as alternatives to car-use. Residents who wish to partici- pate in the council’s draft hous- ing strategy consultation, which can be found at https://info.west- berks.gov.uk/consultations, have just a fewmore days to have their say. Comments must be submitted before the consultation closes on Sunday.

Rememberat home WEST Berkshire residents are being encour- aged to ‘Remember From Home’ for the 2020 Armisticeand Remembrance days. The message is being issued from Thatcham, Newbury and Hungerford town councils as the district prepares to honour its war dead. Covid-19 restrictions means residents will not be able to attend remembranceparadesand services. ThatchamTownCouncilwill live-streama service for people to watch while they Remember From Home on RemembranceSunday, November 8. Thatcham mayor Mike Cole said: “We recognise that this occasion is a very important one for Thatcham residents who wish to honour those who gave their lives during past and current conflicts, but we are faced with the reality of a new threat and Government restrictions. “To adhere to Government guidelines, we have had to take the decision to ask that, this year, resi- dents RememberFromHome.” Members of the public wishing to pay their respects at ThatchamWar Memorial are welcome to do so only after 11.30am on Remembrance Sunday, but must observe social distancingguidelines. The town councils are asking people to pay their respectsthis year by printingoff a Poppy to colourin and place in their windows at home. The Newbury Weekly News is joining the initiative and a poppy to colour in is available on page 23. A template will also be available in the Thatcham Town Council Newsletter which will be delivered to residentsbefore November 8. Tune in to Thatcham Town Council’ s YouTube channel (http://bit.ly/ThatchamTC) fr om 10.45am on Sunday, November 8, to watch the service live.