New Milton Advertiser 1st Jan 2021

4 · Friday 1st January 2021

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News

£240k grant ‘saves theatre for next year’

Lucky escape for supercar driver A MOTORIST had a lucky escape after a sports car careered off the dual car- riageway near Cadnam and ploughed into a tree early on Tuesday morning. The incident involving a McLaren took place on the A31, near the junction with the M27, at around 4.15am. It prompted police to urge other road users to be wary of the hazards posed by standing water following torrential rainfall. 17 months’ ban for drink-driver A LYMINGTON woman who admitted driving while over the legal alcohol limit has been banned for 17 months. Sara Tabb (42), of Spar- tina Drive, committed the offence in the town on 10th January last year. South- ampton magistrates fined her £120 and ordered she pay costs of £119. A COCKEREL dumped in a Christchurch layby is being cared for by the RSPCA following a spate of chickens and chicks being abandoned. The animal charity said rescue centres could be over- run by unwanted poultry due to a combination of bird flu warnings and inexperienced owners who bought chickens early in the pandemic. In 2020 the RSPCA has dealt with 1,594 chicken-re- lated incidents in England and Wales. There were 19 birds abandoned in Hamp- shire and 23 in Dorset including the cockerel found in Christchurch on 17th November. 19 Fir Avenue, New Milton Cockerel left in town layby

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Cash will allow Regent Centre to recover from 95% drop in income

BY JON WALLER

A CHRISTCHURCH thea- tre boss said he was “over the moon” after its survival for at least the next 12 months was se- cured thanks to a near-£240,000 government grant. Regent Centre general man- ager Matthew Vass-White said the funding from the Depart- ment for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport will allow it to keep going, although on a “reduced budget”. He said: “We are over the moon to finally have 12 months of room to help our charity try and recover from the effects of a 95% drop in income following the effects that Covid-19 has had on our industry. “We will need to continue to take different approaches to the way that we plan and budget for some time to come but we’re feeling really hopeful about the next 12 months. “I want to thank my team and board of directors for all their help in putting the CRF grant application together, which was a mammoth task in itself.” The money will be adminis- tered through the British Film Institute as part of a £1.57bn cultural recovery fund package. It has been divided between 200 major cultural institutions LIBRARIES in the New Forest closed their doors to the public before Christmas with no prom- ises they will reopen soon as the district entered Tier 3 restric- tions on Boxing Day. The closure from Christmas Eve was set to last until “after the festive period” when coun- ty council chiefs promised to review the situation in the dis- trict. Branches are guaranteed to remain shut elsewhere in Hampshire, however, as long as the rest of the county remains under the highest Tier 4 restric- tions. Under government guidelines Hampshire County Council could have kept Tier 3 libraries open, but HCC said it had tak- en the “proactive decision” for safety reasons. The closures followed the new tiers announcement made last week by health secretary Matt Hancock. Cllr Edward Heron, HCC cabinet member for recreation, MORE than £30,000 is set to be handed out to help so-called “wet pubs” in the New Forest, which get less of their income from food. A one-off £1,000 payment is being made available to the watering holes by the district council after it was greenlit by the cabinet member for fi- nance, Cllr Jeremy Heron, as a response to the pandemic. As of last Tuesday, 36 pubs had applied for the Christmas support payment – which is solely for establishments that derive less than 50% of income from sales of food. To qualify, the premises must under normal times be open to the public, allow free entry, drinking without requiring food to be consumed, and permit drinks to be purchased at a bar. Businesses already in receipt of other restrictions support can receive the grant. It is the latest tranche of help distributed by NFDC, which was handed £3.6m by the gov-

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across the UK affected by the Covid-19 crisis to enable them to stay afloat. Gary Trinder, chair of the Re- gent, was absolutely delighted, saying: “The Regent Centre like other arts venues across the UK has been unable to gener- ate any profit since lockdown in March, with many fixed costs

and a proportion of salaries still being paid, putting the charity into a severely loss-making sit- uation. “The uncertainty with the 2021 outlook and the slow re- lease of new films compounded the situation and we’ve been able to forecast precisely when our reserves would run out.”

He added: “The Regent is incredibly important to Christchurch, and indeed the whole of the BCP and wider en- virons. “In normal times, we are very well supported, and the much-needed grant will provide stability for the charity for the next 12 months.”

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New tier sees libraries close doors

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areas for the time being. “We are confident that, with the range of services still avail- able, New Forest residents can continue to enjoy access to books and resources in other ways. “We will closely monitor the situation and review our deci- sion for libraries in Tier 3 after the festive period.”

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For Tier 3 areas the government suggested decisions on libraries be made “in light of local circumstanc- es”, he said. “We have therefore tak- en the proactive decision to also suspend browsing in libraries within the New Forest for the festive

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NewMilton library is one of many to have shut. Inset, Cllr Edward Heron

heritage, countryside and rural affairs, said: “For our libraries in the New Forest, while we are confident that our premises re-

main Covid-secure, we feel that it is in the best interests of staff and customers alike to restrict access to our buildings in Tier 3

£30k boost for Forest’s ‘wet pubs’

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ernment. The pot is aimed at businesses not previously el- igible for the Local Restrictions Support Grant (LRSG) that have been affected, but not nec- essarily closed, by national re- strictions. BCP Council was given £7.9m of help, which it decided to hand out in three separate tranches. It has now started Stream 2, which will award up to £2m comprising grants of between £2,500 and £25,000 to firms within the night-time economy, events, aerospace, travel and cultural industries. The application process runs to 15th January, with payments made to successful applicants after the closing date. Cllr Philip Broadhead, BCP deputy leader and holder of its economy portfolio, said the in- dustries played a “vital role”. He added: “Across our area these sectors employ over 18,000 people and in Bourne- mouth alone this generates an estimated £134m annual reve- nue for the local economy.”

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‘Wet pubs’ make less income from food than traditional pubs

Thousands receive food vouchers

NEARLY 4,500 New Forest chil- dren and their families received holiday food vouchers from Hampshire County Council over Christmas. The vouchers, worth £15 each, were given out as part of a £2.89m winter grant scheme to help poor children and their families this winter, following a campaign by footballer Marcus Rashford. Nearly £200,000 of vouchers were sent out to families in the New Forest who are facing

hardship due to the pandemic. Cllr Patricia Stallard, HCC’s cabinet member for children’s services, said: “With this food voucher scheme, we aim to help avoid children and young peo- ple in Hampshire having to go hungry during the school holi- days. “I am grateful to all those who have gone further than the ex- tra mile to deliver this scheme in time for the end of term. “I am deeply appreciative of the role that early years pro-

viders, schools and colleges have played in this – without their support to purchase and distribute vouchers to eligible families, we would not have managed this enormous task within the unavoidable tight timescale.” Eligible households received a voucher for each child, for both weeks of the holiday, and families will also get them ahead of the February half-term week. The vouchers, which went

out to more than 35,000 chil- dren across Hampshire, can be used at a wide range of super- markets. Schools and colleges across the county have also been giv- en a discretionary grant fund this winter, which they can use to help families who may not be immediately eligible for food vouchers but who may be struggling financially. For more information about HCC’s scheme, go to connect4 communities.org

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