Older people from Patchway, Filton and The Stokes can now enjoy a free tea party once a month thanks to Southern Brooks Community Partnership and Coniston Community Association. The tea parties are held the last Sunday in the month from 2:30pm to 4:30pm at Brooks Café, Coniston Community Centre in Patchway.

Karen Cheal from Southern Brooks said:

“Weekends can sometimes seem long for older people and we wanted to give the over 60s in the community a chance to catch up with old friends, meet new friends and find out what’s going on in their neighbourhood. Brooks Café provides a safe, clean and pleasant environment for us to offer free tea and coffee and plenty of cake to keep the conversation flowing!”

Speaking about the February tea party, people said:

“A really nice atmosphere, met old friends.”

“Very enjoyable and friendly afternoon.”

“It was really enjoyable, and the cakes and tea were very good. We will come again.”

The tea parties are run by volunteers from Coniston Community Association with transport provided by Four Towns & Vale Link Community Transport. Volunteers are always welcome, especially drivers.

More: Could you help by donating a raffle prize? »

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Murder, magic and madness – the murky themes of Macbeth were explored by children from two Patchway primary schools at a creative learning workshop.

Year 6 pupils from Coniston Primary School and Callicroft Primary School were invited to the Merlin Housing Society-sponsored workshop last week. The youngsters took part in games and exercises designed to explore some of the play’s issues in a fun and engaging way.

One pupil said:

“It was wicked! The masks helped us imagine the characters, the games were great fun and the witches’ scenes were really exciting – Shakespeare isn’t boring!”

Head Teacher at Coniston Primary School, Nigel Isaac, said:

“During the session, the pupils asked important questions about themselves, their motivations, ambitions and their role within their community.”

“They then took this back to the classroom to see where these issues fit into their wider citizenship and social studies. I believe the things they’ve learnt will have a significant impact on the pupils going forward.”

More: Project was designed to enhance the Coniston community »

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A Patchway man who allowed his garage to be turned into a makeshift cannabis factory has been jailed for 15 months at Bristol Crown Court, reports the Evening Post.

Paul Townsend, 36, of Kestrel Close, had been arrested after his garage caught fire in September last year.

Firefighters attending the blaze alerted the police and Townsend subsequently admitted growing 34 plants on behalf of a friend, who had promised to pay him £10,000 from the sale of the drugs.

Townsend pleaded guilty to production of cannabis and one count of abstracting electricity.

The court was told that Townsend had run up debts of £20,000 after losing his job in 2010.

Judge William Hart said:

“This was a sophisticated set up and clearly a commercial enterprise and an immediate prison sentence is unavoidable.”

The judge ordered the forfeiture and destruction of the drugs.

Read more: Father let his garage be used as cannabis factory

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Today (Monday 20th) is the last day for residents to comment on plans by South Gloucestershire Council (SGC) to install raised table zebra crossings at two locations on Coniston Road.

The Council wants to upgrade existing crossing points near Waterside Drive and Martin Close that were originally installed as part of the Cycling City Route 4 (Cribbs Causeway to Bradley Stoke) in 2010/2011.

The alterations are needed, says the Council, in order to “improve the safety of existing uncontrolled crossing points”.

Concerns over the safety of one of the crossings were voiced at a recent meeting of Patchway Town Council, where one Councillor reported that there had been a number of accidents involving cyclists at the Martin Close location.

Another Councillor, Brian Hopkinson, urged his fellow Councillors to fight for light-controlled toucan crossings in preference to the zebra crossings being suggested by SGC.

The existing crossing point near Waterside Side is already a raised table and it is proposed that zebra crossing features are added, while a new raised table and zebra crossing are recommended for Martin Close.

Related link: Consultation on Proposed Pedestrian Crossings (SGC)

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