How did I have time for a full-time job?

WHEN I walked in to Weymouth Pavilion Ocean Room to give a short speech at full council confirming my semi-retirement and thanking everyone for their help over the last 40 years I never expected to get such a welcome.

People came on foot, by taxi and by car, some of them travelling considerable distances. There were nearly 80 of us there and I’d like to think that some of those attending were due to me and not to the popularity of an agenda item on public complaints about dog poo!

Whatever the reason for people being there, it was nice to be able to thank so many different groups I have worked with down the years.

Inevitably I will have missed some people and organisations simply because of the volume of people who know me, but I meant no disrespect.

When I sat down I was given a standing ovation and I was also grateful and touched by the number of kind comments made about my coverage of the Weymouth and Portland area since I first moved down here in 1980.

The Mayor even presented me with a vintage bottle of wine and a special retirement card on behalf of the council, a nice and very unexpected touch which I really appreciated.

It was a true evening of nostalgia and I never realised just how many stories I’d written which had struck a chord with the community until the same members of that community reminded me of them when we met later in the Piano Bar or The Boot for a drink and a natter.

A particular thank-you must go to the council itself which, because of the circumstances, allowed me a little more licence time-wise than the normal three minutes given to public speakers. I hope I didn’t overrun that much!

Finally I’d like help answering a question that apparently a lot of other people have asked when they became semi-retired or retired. How the devil did I have the time to hold down a full-time job as well as all the things I seem to be doing now?!

A barbaric way to kill a fox however you change the details

PROPOSALS which would relax the ban on fox hunting have been hastily put on ice by the Government which feared getting a bloody nose.

The postponement came after the Scottish National Party said it would vote against the proposals meaning the reforms were unlikely to win a majority in a free House of Commons vote where three Dorset MPs said they would support the change.

The proposals would make it legal for foxes to be hunted with packs of dogs instead of just two, provided it was “appropriate” for the terrain and done “efficiently”.

One of the grounds for this change is to bring England and Wales in line with Scotland which already allows dog packs.

The first point to make is, why bring us in line with Scotland? Why not bring Scotland in line with us? And the answer is, because the hunting fraternity don’t want it done this way.

What they do want is a chance to widen their ability to hunt foxes in England and Wales.

This particular fox hunting gambit is a wolf disguised in sheep’s clothing with all sorts of reasonable arguments from the need to protect livestock to what is claimed to be a simple desire to level an inconsistency between English and Scottish law.

But the bottom line is killing foxes.

Three Dorset MPs back the proposed move, one of whom claims it is only a “technical” change. I suppose that depends on whether you are technically going to get savaged to death or not.

As with all these things, the Devil is in the detail because what is “efficiently”? And who decides what is “appropriate”?

The ban was brought in on a wave of public support because people felt that to hunt a fox with a pack of hounds followed by red-coated country cavalry was barbaric.

Nothing has changed. It is still barbaric. Hopefully the proposals will stay on ice.

Excluded from my own garden

IT comes to something when you are reduced to the role of skulking round your own garden.

I recently mentioned that a seagull chick’s initial flight from a neighbour’s roof saw it crash land in our garden. Well, it is still here.

So are the parents who make their displeasure known every time we go out into the garden by alarm cries, dive bombing us and releasing air-to-ground seagull poo and vomit missiles.

This is fraying nerves because we’ve never had this before and often forget we do now, ambling out forgetful of the situation to pick a few vegetables only to be scared out of our wits by a seagull strafing sortie.

All this without mentioning that the area closest to the house is starting to look like a midden or some artist’s “early ordure period” entry for the Turner Prize.

Bird experts assure me that the chick’s wing feathers are quite advanced and that it could take to the air soon. Not soon enough for me.

My only hope is that if the chick lives and if it survives to take flight that it doesn’t somehow develop fond memories of our property as home. Just go away and stay away!

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The spirit of Alban Woodroffe is alive and well

THE well-equipped Woodmead Halls is a popular venue 

for events such as local historian Ken Gollop’s ‘Shady 

Tree’ series of talks

SEVERAL of these columns last year took an imaginary walk from Charmouth Road car park to the harbour, examining the varied work of volunteers along the way. 

Recently, I returned to this theme, without apology – for much of Lyme’s vitality is volunteer-based. Any weakening of that generosity would be a loss to the town.

Mill volunteers peopled June’s column as my walk turned along the river. The Town Mill Trust creates a mutually-supporting unity out of its several parts. This made me think, while continuing along the Lynch, of ‘The Three Ms’ – Mill, Museum and Marine Theatre, each distinct, yet also part of a whole: our key non-profit local attractions. They too can be ‘mutually-supporting’, if not so interwoven as, for example, the sites along the Ironbridge Gorge, which promote each other really well.

At Gosling Bridge I started up Hill Road to Woodmead Halls. The seat outside, welcome rest for a puffing pensioner, was a good spot to consider why this feels so professionally-run. I say ‘feels’ because Woodmead Halls depends almost wholly on voluntary labour, illustrating the truth that ‘voluntary’ need not imply ‘amateur’ in its sometimes-derogatory sense, but efficiency and pride.

Why ‘Halls’? In 1923 the town grammar school was founded here (part of the former Woodmead Farm) using redundant First World War army huts. The new school building in Uplyme Road replaced it in 1932, so the borough council adapted the huts, making a large hall with stage and a smaller hall, both with kitchens, plus separate huts for Scouts, Red Cross and, until 1963, the school’s woodwork room. With six tennis courts, here was the town’s social and leisure centre.

Local government reorganisation in 1974 made the town council encourage take-over by an independent committee, able to tap grants for building parish halls while removing management and running costs from the council. In 1981 the council leased the land to trustees; the new building, largely as we know it today, was constructed in 1982.

Woodmead Halls is a charitable trust on behalf of all the voluntary bodies in Lyme Regis, each entitled to elect a member to the halls’ management committee. So every organisation in the town has an interest in sustaining this public facility.

Anyone attending events there knows how smoothly it runs. With large hall exceptionally well-equipped, small hall adaptable and comfortable, spacious kitchen, friendly bar and spotless toilets, it’s no surprise that Woodmead Halls is heavily booked year-round. 

Fortunately its smart website includes a bookings calendar, making it easy to spot a gap. Apart from Michaela Ellis as part-time bookings secretary/caretaker, everything else that makes Woodmead Halls so professional is achieved through hard-working volunteers, led by a committee of 10 chaired by Stan Williams. 

Vice-chairman Nick Robertson and treasurer Susanne Whitemore will often also be found, with Stan, serving at the bar. Gilly Warr runs a slick administration, John Broom handles building development, Charlie Kapur led the £67,000 fundraising drive and managed the re-roofing and installation of 90 SolarPV panels that make Woodmead Halls a model of eco-friendliness (earning Charlie a West Dorset ‘environmental champion’ award in 2011.)

This committee in turn relies on other volunteers such as John Evans and Alan Stickler, the heart of a six-strong maintenance team working most Friday mornings, and more, to keep the place spick-and-span, including a major two-week redecoration last August; or Irene Croad regularly serving behind the bar over the last four years; or Mike Donno who keeps the sophisticated sound and lighting systems running.

What’s in it for them? Mike enjoys helping users make best use of the technology, drawing on his practical skills and sometimes his tact, for “a little knowledge isn’t always good!” To Alan, who retired to the town, volunteering was “a lifeline”, bringing friendships in his new home – “the sociability is so important”. John, born in Lyme, also found retirement demanded “new ways of being active and involved with people”. Irene, too, values the socialising and “meeting all my friends: I just love what I call ‘going to work’!” – she’s one of those precious volunteers whose mantra is “I never say no”.   

“Woodmead Halls wouldn’t be here without Stan,” says Michaela Ellis; his leadership has over many years created for the town an exceptional facility which, crucially, is financially self-sufficient. With such volunteer commitment, nearly all income – from hire fees, bar, weddings, energy generation, commercial grants, etc. – covers costs and investing in development.

The development plan is businesslike and strategic, aiming, Stan says, to “get Woodmead Halls in perfect order”, make it profitable, expand the range of activity, and employ staff in support. Details of this phased expansion, first extending the kitchen and enlarging the small hall, are shown in the halls’ entrance. When planning permission is obtained grant applications will begin, for which supporting letters from user organisations will be vital.

Meanwhile, Alan Stickler says: “I think I’m the youngest volunteer!” Recruiting younger volunteers is always a challenge but, with so many in Lyme enjoying the facilities, surely Woodmead Halls will find them?

In creating the town grammar school in its army huts, Alban Woodroffe showed chutzpah and self-belief – his dealings with county council and ministry officialdom yield good stories. He would surely be pleased that his ambitiously self-reliant spirit still thrives in the same spot.

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60 SECOND INTERVIEW: Sarah Chick

SARAH Chick is a Beaminster resident and has been all her life. She attended the playgroup, St Mary’s Academy and Beaminster School. She now has three children and a passion for darts, which recently saw her in the semi-final of the English Open earlier this year.

HOW did you get into darts?
I got into darts from my mum when I was seven or eight, just playing at home. My nan Sadie Collett was called the “Queen of Darts” in Bridport and my mum and sisters also played. 

WAS there anything in particular that attracted you to darts?
The only thing that attracted me to darts was my family, I then started playing in local leagues and it escalated from there.

TELL us a bit about being in the English Open semi-final and what it meant to you...
The England Open is one of the biggest competitions around. Getting to the semi-finals was overwhelming as I knocked some top seeds out on the way.

WOULD you do it again and take part in similar competitions?
Yes, I am going back to Selsey, Sussex, in September for a competition.

WHAT other achievements have you gained and what other competitions have you taken part in?
I am always taking part in competitions nearby and around Dorset. I got to the Gold Cup finals at the beginning of this month, won southern counties and mixed pairs with Ben Ward in 2014, won ladies pairs at Hayling Island in 2012, won champions of champions twice. They are all my biggest achievements.

DO you have any other passions aside from darts?
I play darts three times a week so don't have much time to do anything else, with family too, they take up more time.

DO you have any words of wisdom for people wanting to start playing darts professionally? 
Practicing is always a good start - play as often as you can.

WHAT three people would you invite to your dream dinner party?
The people at my dinner party would be Jethro as I do like having a laugh, Kevin Painter as he was the first ever professional darts player I played against, and Whitney Houston for a good old sing along.

WHAT would be the first thing you do if you won the Lottery?
If I won the Lottery I would make sure my children were financially secure, buy a motorhome and travel.

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A change of direction to save the hospital

AS MERVYN Symes says in his statement (see below) about the inpatient beds debacle at Axminster,  the fight goes on... but it’s likely to take a different direction.

There comes a time in any long running dispute like this when you have to put up your hands and say “we’ve done all we can”. 

The Axminster Hospital Action Group, backed by the League of Friends, are at that point but in true Axminster spirit they are not giving up.

The CCG, highly miffed by the extreme criticism they have taken, are not going to change their minds. They were particularly upset by our coverage last week, claiming errors of fact in the statement by Steve Holt, who has been the public face of Axminster’s fight to save their holidays. 

One sentence particularly upset them: “...at no time did the senior members of the CCG attend the meetings and showed no interest in the progress whatsoever”. The CCG Press department claims that it was “factually inaccurate” that CCG members did not attend meetings,

We offered the CCG space for another statement on this page this week to list all their grievances about our coverage and Mr Holt’s allegations but they declined.

It is significant that both MPs, Hugo Swire and Neil Parish, have come out strongly against the CCG decision but it would seem Axminster’s only hope is whether they can persuade Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt to intervene. As it’s Government policy to encourage the NHS to treat more people in their homes, that’s a long shot for sure. 

The Axminster campaigners are also hoping that the Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital Trust will take over the running of the community hospitals in East Devon later this year and there might then be some room for manoeuvre with regards to a possible return of the beds.

The emphasis now must surely be on ensuring that Axminster Hospital without its beds has a future in the provision of health care in East Devon. It is, of course, one of the best equipped small hospitals in the area, thanks to the generosity of the people of Axminster and district.

Millions of pounds have been pumped into Axminster Hospital over the years by the League of Friends and organisations like the Axminster Hospital Cup. This was, in the main,  for the benefit and comfort of Axminster patients. 

Can we be assured that all the equipment they have bought over the years remains in Axminster? I think we know the answer to that one, don’t you?          

• May I thank the community for supporting us. We have not given up the fight to have our inpatient beds reinstated at some stage. The Axminster Hospital Action Group feel that they have taken things as far as they can at present. Neil Parish MP as stated that the RD&E would be a more suitable provider. I hope that his discussions with the Rt Hon Jeremy Hunt MP are fruitful in taking steps towards achieving this goal. I also hope that Neil is able to instigate further discussions with the CCG, the League of Friends and the Medical Practice to be able to coordinate and take it to another level, as Axminster is a growing community with a number of housing projects rapidly increasing the town’s population, not the mention the surrounding villages. Please don’t think that this is the end of Axminster Hospital, the fight will continue.

Mervyn Symes

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Respect for the mayoralty still very strong

IT has been seven weeks since Christine and I were installed as Mayor and Mayoress and I would like to kick off this regular column by thanking the townspeople for the wonderful reception we have received.

It has been interesting to note that there has certainly been no decline in the respect the people of Lyme have for the position of Mayor since we last held office in 1999-2001. 

We have certainly had a busy time since taking office, an indication that the organisations of Lyme still put much store in having the Mayor present at their events. Long may that continue.

My first engagement was to attend, as president, the annual meeting of the Lyme Regis-St George’s Twinning Association at which it was agreed to proceed with the three-way twinning with Jamestown in Virginia.

Christine and I have visited St George’s on several occasions and we are looking forward to welcoming their representatives to Lyme this week for the annual Admiral Sir George Somers Commemoration Day.

Next it was the opening of Lyme Regis Art Society’s annual exhibition followed by attendance, also as president, of Lyme Regis Town Band, two much-respected organisations in Lyme.

I’ve always been a big football fan so it was a great pleasure to attend the annual dinner of the Lyme Regis Football Club. It’s one of the more raucous events but nevertheless very enjoyable and I am pleased to see that the spirit in the club is still so strong. They certainly know how to celebrate!

One of the highlights of our first month in office was the official opening of the new Church Cliff Walk. Being able to walk from the Cobb right along the seafront to the end of Church Beach must surely be Lyme’s  greatest asset and we must now ensure that we keep the new walk dog mess free. 

Other events attended in the last six weeks included the AGM of the Barfleur Twinning Association, the opening of the 58th annual Lyme Regis Bowling tournament, presenting medals to all those who completed the Candles On The Cobb cycle ride from Land’s End to “John The Bakers” and starting the West Country Motorcycle Club cost-to-coast run.

It’s been a very busy start and I am also very pleased with how our new councillors have settled in as we do our best to restore some confidence and pride in the running of our town.


WE are now well into the season of events and our major attractions are in full swing.
It was disappointing that the weather prevented the Red Arrows giving their spectacular display over the Bay on Monday, especially as so many people travelled into town to see them.

However, I am sure Lifeboat Week will be its usual fantastic success, to be followed by the Regatta & Carnival Week which is so popular with visitors.

Lyme is very fortunate to have so many volunteers who put on these events and this column gives me the opportunity to thank them on behalf of the town.


I THINK it is important that Lyme Regis has a presence at civic events throughout the area and I have represented the town at no less than five different occasions since taking office in May.

As Dorset’s only royal borough, Lyme commands much respect throughout the county and further afield and I am keen to perpetuate this.

And having served on West Dorset District Council for so long it has been nice to renew acquaintances at the civic days in Gillingham, Sherborne, Lytchet Minster, Chickerell and Yeovil.

At Gillingham The Rifles Regiment (formerly the Devon & Dorsets) exercised their right as holders of the Freedom of the Borough to march with fixed bayonets.

Lyme was the first town to give the Dorsets the Freedom of the Borough in 1944 and I hope it might be possible to bring their successors back to the town at some time in the not too distant future.

This is the first in a regular column by the Mayor of Lyme Regis, Councillor Owen Lovell

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Housing is the hot topic in town

THE hottest topic in town at the moment must be housing - or to be more accurate, housing that locals can afford.

It’s a problem which afflicts virtually every small town and village in the West Country. Such is the beauty of the area we live in, everyone wants a slice of our way of life. And that forces up the price of property with inflated values with the  consequence that many locals are unable to afford to live in the town in which they were born. We are constantly warned that unless we find a solution, Lyme will become a retirement dormitory. 

It’s not a new phenomenom; local councils have been wrestling with the problem for many years.

There’s a natural resistance from Lyme’s indigenous population to any development which is out of their reach.

But expensive houses have always been built in Lyme for people who want to retire to the town. They were always referred to in my younger days as “those who live on top of the hill”. The difference then, of course, was there was adequate social housing with council houses seemingly in plentiful supply.

Today, people aspire to own their own home but it’s so difficult to make that first step towards home ownership. They say the average price of a house in Lyme is in the region of £350,000 and a look in the estate agents’ windows will reveal there is very little on the market for under £200,000.

Many are of the opinion that there is no such thing as an affordable home in this town. The provision of social housing is the responsibility of West Dorset District Council but no one can accuse Lyme Regis Town Council of not doing all in its power to encourage more homes for the young, especially the former town council.

The new council are just as keen to make sure that the young people  of Lyme are able to stay in the town of their birth.

They recently recommended refusal of an application by Bloor Homes who want to turn the former St Alban’s house at Woodberry Down into six four-bedroom houses, to add to the 46 they are already building with prices as high as £630,000. They are also hoping to build a further 52 units of land that runs behind Talbot Road. 

The land on which St Alban’s stands is designated for light industrial use, the reason why the town council opposed the planning applications for more homes. The district council took the unusual step of rejecting the recommendation of their officers and turned down the application.

There are fears that Bloor Homes might appeal this decision and because the officers were recommending approval, they might well get it.

We have been trying all week to get a comment on this possibility from Bloor Homes but at the time of going to press they have not responded. Bloor Homes developed Woodberry Down in the firm knowledge that part of the land was designated for industrial purposes so they must have been prepared for a difficult ride. 

Whether it’s feasible to integrate industrial units on what is now a housing development,  I will leave to others to judge. 

I’m not opposed to housing development in the town. Every occupied new house helps to boost the town’s economy but there has to be a limit. The needs of the young cannot be ignored.

The next big fight over developing  on the outskirts of Lyme will be the application for 120 new homes on agricultural land that runs from Shire Lane to Gore Lane in Uplyme.

This site is currently outside the designated building line but with government pressure on local authorities to build more houses, many believe it is almost certain that this land will be developed at some time in the future.

None of this gives young couples much hope that they will be able to afford to buy property in their home town.

The Community Land Trust in Lyme, under the expert guidance of Denis Yell, is working away on their scheme for 15 low cost units near the golf club, all for rent, and their efforts are to be applauded.

But will it be enough?

+++ COUNCIL WATCH +++

THIS newspaper - and this column in particular - has been accused by the usual suspects  of being “too kind” to the new council.

Few will believe this, but we didn’t go out of our way to be “unkind” to the previous council. Their behaviour was such, however,  that it was difficult not to take a stance against them.

There is no doubt that the current councillors are lot more friendly and there is a distinctly more relaxed and respectful atmosphere in the chamber.

But there will be clashes, something which new Mayor Owen Lovell is clearly aware of. He’s very quick to stamp out any  sign of it and so far the councillors have respected his wishes and got on with it. 

One issue which irks me is the number of times councillors go into committee these days. I appreciate there has to be some meetings behind closed doors, especially with new councillors learning the ropes.

Lyme council has a number of working parties which are always held without the press and public present. At one of these recently they discussed what their priority projects should be going forward.

That surely is a discussion which should have been in open council. Councillors sometimes express a very different view when meeting behind closed doors.

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60 SECOND INTERVIEW: Ian Rosenblatt

IAN Rosenblatt is a lawyer and senior partner of corporate law firm Rosenblatt Solicitors in London. As a supporter of charitable causes, notably in the field of classical music, he launched the Branscombe Festival in 2013, which returns later this month.

WHERE did the inspiration for the Branscombe music festival come from?

I HAVE had a house in Branscombe for over 15 years. Around five years ago I put on a concert in the Village Hall and it was a resounding success, accruing a lot of local support. I then thought that a festival would be a good way to bring more people to the village, to visit the beautiful St Winifred’s church, the beach, the village hall and, of course, to patronise the local pubs, cafes and hotels.

THIS is the third Branscombe Music festival, how has it developed since you first started?

THE festival is going from strength to strength and has had a fantastic reaction from the local community. Over the last three years we’ve been spreading the word to ensure that as many people as possible – from Devonshire and beyond – can experience all that the 

festival has to offer.

WHO will be performing at the festival?

WE'VE got a wonderful programme this year and are welcoming an array of talent to Branscombe, from internationally acclaimed opera stars Susan Bullock CBE,  Francesco Meli and Angel Blue to Ronnie Scott’s regulars, dance band The Leo Green Experience and 

rising star soul singer Danny Toeman. There will also be two highly contrasting instrumental quartets performing this year: a classic string quartet, the Sacconi quartet and 4-MALITY, a percussion quartet, which is a rarity and much anticipated.

WHO are you most looking forward to seeing?

I’M HUGELY looking forward to each and every performance – each artist brings something unique to the festival – but I have to say that the procession through the village by the Band of the Royal Marines followed by a free concert on Branscombe Beach will be quite spectacular! 

WHAT should festivalgoers be looking out for?

THE Royal Marines procession is definitely not one to miss. Also over the weekend there will be a hog roast and a cream tea – both real treats. In terms of faces to look out for, our presenter Petroc Trelawny will be around and should make things quite lively, as will all of the performers, no doubt!

WHAT makes the Branscombe music festival unique?

IT HAS an idiosyncratic mission: to host world-class performers in Branscombe village’s intimate, unusual settings, from St Winifred’s Church to the idyllic Branscombe beach.  Also, given the number of people the festival brings to the village, it creates excellent opportunities to support local businesses.

DOES the festival raise money?

YES, fundraising is definitely an important part of the festival, and the causes we support are chosen with great care. Last year a proportion of ticket sales were donated to the Royal National Lifeboat Institution – a life-saving charity with whom Branscombe has strong ties - and this year we will be donating to St Winifred’s Church fund.

WHAT'S the most important thing to remember about planning large events, such as the music festival?

THE devil is in the detail.

The Branscombe Festival takes place from Friday, July 24th to Sunday, July 26th. 

Artists performing include 4-Mality; The Sacconi Quartet; soprano Susan Bullock with pianist Richard Sisson; tenor Francesco Meli & soprano Angel Blue with pianist Matteo Pais; and The Leo Green Experience with Danny Toeman.

For more information, visit the web site www.branscombefestival.co.uk

To book tickets, call 020 7955 1446 or email 

branscombefestival@rosenblatt-law.co.uk

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Where to go now after 

hospital beds shock

I HATE to say I told you so - but I’m sorry to say I told you so!

At no time during the months of delicate negotiations between campaigners trying to save inpatient beds at Axminster and the various and confusing NHS bodies did I feel there was any hope of saving the beds.

When the cash-strapped  NHS made the unbelievable decision to spend up to £75,000 by challenging a High Court order to prevent the transfer of beds to Seaton,  I  never thought there was any way they were going to maintain inpatient beds in Axminster.

I have the greatest respect for those on the League of Friends, a fantastic organisation which has done Axminster proud over many years, and the Axminster Hospital Action  Group, for the manner in which they have fought to retain the beds.

It has become clear that some of those meetings were extremely difficult but the Axminster campaigners maintained dignity throughout, conducting themselves in a professional manner and adopting a policy of working with the various groups to fund a solution.

There were occasions when I thought they were being too conciliatory but they were led to believe throughout that a solution was possible and even probable.

We now know that was not the case.

The case of the disappearing nurses has been explained, although I find it hard to believe, but no mention has been made of the promise at one of the Axminster public meetings that further consideration would be given to the catchment area that the hospital served. 

And the one issue which must surely be addressed at some time is how much has all this cost, especially in officer time,  when the NHS is haemorrhaging money.

As we are about to go to press, the CCG is hurriedly trying to issue a press release dismissing some of the claims made on these pages. We will, of course, publish their response.

It’s difficult to know where to go from here. Axminster, of course, is not the only hospital to be affected with Ottery also losing beds after an equally robust fight. And it looks like  some of the community hospitals in South Somerset also have a battle on their hands.

Efforts are being made to get our MPs to campaign for an inquiry into the whole sad debacle and some are putting great store in the fact that the Royal Devon & Exeter Hospital could well be running the community hospitals by the end of the year.

However, that does not necessarily mean the beds will return.

PHILIP EVANS

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60 SECOND INTERVIEW: Jim Thomas

JIM Thomas is retiring from teaching at The Woodroffe School. A popular local figure that worked with the Lifeboat team for 21 years and with the Coastguards for the last 15 years, he was awarded The Ted Wragg Teaching Award for Lifetime Achievement in the South West in 2012.  Jim has been a teacher at Woodroffe for 40 years.

How are you feeling about your upcoming retirement?
Excited about the freedom I hope it will bring and a longing for a life not dictated by bells! I’m going to have a gap year as well! Most people have their gap year between school and university or university and work; well I’m going to have mine between work and retirement.

Which part of teaching will you miss the most?
Fieldwork teaching in the outdoors to help students interpret our wonderful landscape and the daily interaction with students. I’ve said to the school that I’ll help out if they need a supply teacher from time to time, because I really have enjoyed being in the classroom.

Why did you want to become a teacher?
I still don’t know... I just seemed to fall into it, I did a degree in Geography at Aberystwyth University in the early 70s and wasn’t ready to leave university so I thought I would do teacher training, and when I finished that I thought well I better get a job. That was when I came to Lyme Regis.

Could you have picked a better spot to teach geography than along the Jurassic coast?
I don’t think there is a better place in the world to do Geography than overlooking the Jurassic Coast, I started my teaching career here and my room which used to be called Room 34, had the best view of any Geography class room in the country, you over looked Lyme Bay and over towards Golden Cap, the geography was there for you!

You went from Geography teacher to Head of Sixth form, via Head of Humanities, was that a challenge you relished?
No, I was frightened about it. I wasn’t keen really. I didn’t think I would be much good at the pastoral care, I loved the subject of Geography and I wanted to really teach the subject and motivate students and plan progression with teaching and learning and I wanted to take that further and I wasn’t sure about the pastoral side and I discussed it with my wife and my children and all three of them said “Go on dad, you can do it”.

Have you enjoyed your time as Head of Sixth Form?
Yes. It’s a very different job from being head of a department, as you’ve got so much more of the pastoral care and so much more interaction with the students also your day is being hijacked, because you come into school with a plan and there is always something that needs dealing with, a problem or an issue.

Can you tell us what you try and instil in your sixth form students?
A zest for life and learning. Effective communication. Work hard and Play hard – do your best so you have no regrets. Grab any opportunities offered with both hands. Remember we all have choices – make sure yours is an informed choice. Be honest with yourself and with others. Enjoy life and look after each other and always remember to thank those who have helped you.

Do you live by any mantras?
Give it a go – don’t be frightened by getting things wrong, but learn from the mistakes you make. Quotes from figures such as the Dalai Lama, Gandhi, BB King and Aldous Huxley also provide me with inspiration daily.

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How long before everything is run from Dorchester?

HAS anyone seen the new 2015 Weymouth and Portland guide to Borough Council services?

Yes, I know, you missed it because you were washing your hair, but it does contain one or two “updates” to make you smile.

For a start, we are told that the next three years will see council staff deliver services, improved working between councillors and rationalise office accommodation.

To put that in English, it means council staff will carry on doing what they are already doing and that their North Quay offices will be emptied, knocked down for development and a token council presence set up in the Mulberry Centre on Commercial Road. The real powerbase will be confirmed and consolidated in Dorchester to try and justify the South Walks white elephant building fiasco.

The best bit of this statement has to be the claim that council staff will also improve working between councillors. Yeah, like that’s going to happen.

In all the years I have covered events in Weymouth there has never really been a time when political groups have totally given up their identity and worked together for the common good. You might as well ask them to stop breathing.

Yes, lip service might be paid to a particular hot cause or issue but, when it comes down to brass tacks, most councillors will vote the party line.

Not all of them. Some may feel so passionate about what is at stake that they feel they have to stand up and be counted, but this is the exception rather than the rule and it is certainly not something which council staff will ever change however hard they work.

So we can all look forward to the final touches of a scenario I warned might happen nearly six years ago, namely the death of Weymouth and Portland as a viable council force.

Even worse, North Dorset has joined the “cost cutting” in a tri-council partnership which I understand has already seen councillors in that neck of the woods suddenly wake up to Dorchester’s growing dominance.

To conclude, only a Weymouth and Portland annual guide to council services would have the effrontery to include a line claiming that each council “will remain independent, equal and have their own decision-making councillors”.

For independent council read “provided it does what Dorchester says” and for equal read “provided it does what Dorchester says”. 

As for having our own decision-making councillors? Well, yes you’ve guessed it, this is increasingly becoming a case of  “provided they do what Dorchester says”.

At least the tri-partnership is saving money .... “provided it helps Dorchester”!

WE’VE all had those incredibly annoying cold calls on our phone where we either hear nothing, hear the sound of the call being disconnected or have to endure a pause before a voice with a cheery foreign accent starts trying to engage us.

I’ve got it down to such a fine art now that I’m putting the phone down almost before I’ve picked it up, but not everyone catches on quickly.

A Weymouth woman was recently relaxing on her sofa when a cold call came in on her mobile phone.

She asked who was calling and got no answer, asked again and got no answer and then angrily gave the caller a final warning that if they didn’t reply she would disconnect the call.

Her son then leaned across and told her that this would be difficult as she was holding the television remote control that she’d picked up by mistake!

Unwelcome guest keep me out of my own garden

LIFE in our house is a bit fraught at the moment after a local Weymouth flight crash landed in our garden, but don’t get too worried about burning wreckage.

This flight was by a fledging seagull chick which got a bit too adventurous in its haste to exit a neighbour’s roof.

The result was that we came home from town to find we now had a feathered lodger.

Naturally my wife anthropomorphised the situation and thought the chick was “really cute”, glossing over the fact that both parents regularly fuel their offspring by vomiting up food for the chick on our lawn.

They also take a very dim view of my going out into the garden to read, relax or do a bit of weeding with a cacophony of cries greeting my emergence followed by swoops and over-flights until I go back inside.

The chick isn’t bothered at all and just stumps about giving wheezing cries and test flapping its wings.

How long this will go on for I don’t know but the sooner its feathers grow enough to get lift off the better I will like it!

THIS week’s Growing Old Disgracefully spot looks at computers and whether shouting at them can solve any screen problems.

Of course it can’t! Don’t be so silly! This is a highly complex, sensitive and inanimate object which will be totally unaffected no matter how loud you shout at it.

What you really need to get its attention is a hammer!

Give the keyboard a few initial taps just to show it who’s boss and, if the problem continues, then really bash the hell out of it.

This won’t solve the problem and it will result in a hefty repair bill, but oh the pleasure it gives to beat the living daylights out of such a frustrating contraption.

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Bubbly send off for Bob

I’VE often written in this column how fortunate we are to live so close to the Exeter-Waterloo railway line and, generally speaking, what an excellent service it is.

I take the train to London sometimes two or three times a week and have come to appreciate it more. The trains are usually on time and the service on board is courteous and friendly on most occasions.

However, like many others who take the train from Axminster regularly, I am going to miss ticket clerk Bob Driscoll who has retired after a career spanning 50 years.

If there was an award for Britain’s most helpful railway official, Bob would surely be in the running. Nothing was ever too much trouble for him and he was always anxious to make sure all railway travellers were treated fairly and politely.

It wasn’t so many months ago that I nearly got into a fight when I jumped to Bob’s defence when he was treated in an appalling manner by an obnoxious toffee-nosed ignoramus. You know the type. Those who treat anyone in the service industry with total disdain. I can’t stand them. Bob took the abuse in a calm and respectful manner; me on the other hand - I was close to lamping him one.

Bob was so highly thought-of by the customers of Axminster station that on his last day at work a number of them, accompanied by the Mayor, Councillor Douglas Hull, turned up at the station with a bottle of bubbly to toast him.

Bob was not only a credit to British Rail in an age when the service industry leaves much to be desired in many sectors, but also a credit to Axminster. 

He will be much missed!

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