Sports, Heritage & Apples

Sports, Heritage & Apples are the subject of recent leisure-time news from Colchester Borough Council:

Summer Sports Festival at Highwoods

Taking place on Sunday 30th August at Leisure World, there is an opportunity for all the family to join in with a range of FREE sports activities including:

Football – with Colchester United Football in the Community,
Parkour – with Team Traceur,
Volleyball – with Volleyball England,
Netball – with KATS Netball Club, and
Tennis – free hire of tennis courts at Leisure World Highwoods.

Heritage

Heritage Open Days

This year’s Heritage Open Days takes place across the weekend of Saturday 12 and Sunday 13 September 2015. You can discover Colchester’s heritage in a weekend of FREE activities and entry to more than 20 historic properties:

firstsite,
Roman Circus,
St. Helen’s Chapel,
St. Peter’s Church,
Quaker Meeting House (St. Mary’s House),
Mersea Barrow,
Roman Theatre,
Castle Museum,
Town Hall,
Sparlings Solicitors,
Audley Chapel,
St Martin’s Church,
St John’s Abbey Gatehouse,
Trinity Street,
Bourne Mill,
Super Home,
St. James the less & St. Helen’s Church,
Holy Trinity Church,
Peake’s House,
Colchester Cemetery,
War Memorial,
St. Mary at the Walls Church (Arts Centre), and
Colne Light Ship.

More details and opening times are available at http://www.cimuseums.org.uk/article/16584/Heritage-Open-Days-2015.

{Colchester Presents} Celebrate Heritage

On Saturday 12th September, between 9am and 5pm, the clock will be turned back as you stroll through the High Street and Upper Castle Park.

Enjoy a stroll down the High Street (closed to traffic) and take time to admire the wonderful architecture of the many fascinating buildings which adorn the High Street, from the Town Hall to to the Red Lion Hotel. Watch out for historical characters that you pass along your way, you may bump into Marcus Favonius!

Soak up the sounds of the historic music, dance and drama and enjoy some story telling and the iconic British Punch and Judy Show. Colchester has it’s very own Mr Punch living at Hollytrees Museum, take a visit and see this very special puppet, dating from 1945.

Take a wander through Colchester’s Charter market, dating back to 1189 and you will find stalls selling everything from artisan bread to clothes. There will be plenty of food stalls to fill your appetite.

Step back in time to the award-winning Castle Park which will be hosting historic market stalls, traditional side shows, puppet theatre,talks and demonstrations, all within the backdrop of Colchester Castle which will be open for free.

Apple Day at the BIG Garden, High Woods Country Park

Taking place on Saturday 26th September you can drop in at any time between 12pm & 3pm (donation requested). Come and celebrate the local apple harvest! Enjoy tasting some heritage fruit varieties and try your hand at crushing and pressing local apples to make delicious juice. Family games, crafts and apple cakes and bakes to sample.

Details of these and many more activities are on the Colchester website.

28th May 20158th December 2015

CBC News Update May 2015

Colchester News – Market, Park & Ride

Latest news updates received from Colchester Borough Council…

Colchester Market has a stylish new home

Colchester Market has moved to its new home on Colchester High Street. The new site has bigger, sophisticated, branded stalls providing a mix of exciting new products alongside regular favourite traders. Find out how you could become a trader to trial your small business idea here>>

Park and Ride service now open

Essex County Council have launched the new Colchester Park and Ride facility. With a car park situated north of the A12, just off junction 28, it links to Colchester Railway Station and Colchester Town centre.

Fares

Adult daily: £3 (Monday to Saturday)
Adult weekly: £15
Adult monthly: £55
Children (aged between 5 and 15 years inclusive) – daily £1, weekly £5, monthly £20.
Children under 5 years old travel for free at all times

Concessions

Concessionary pass holders travel free after 9am Monday-Friday and all day Saturdays. Find out more here>>

Have your say on The Wonderhouse

The Wonderhouse is an exciting new concept, which will transform Colchester’s heritage offer and provide an innovative attraction for local residents and visitors. We would like to hear your views on it. The distinctive history and heritage of Colchester, Britain’s oldest recorded town, is reflected by the rich range of objects collected by Colchester Museums for over 150 years. The three museums; Colchester Castle, Hollytrees Museum and the Natural History Museum; highlight selected objects from the collection, which showcase the town’s key stories and unique character. However, it’s impossible to display everything. A wealth of collections are also stored by the museums service. These objects include items from Colchester’s more recent history, archives, photographs and oral history- all awaiting discovery by the public. A new collections centre, ‘The Wonderhouse’, will provide the key to unlocking their potential. Councillor Tim Young, Portfolio Holder for Licensing, Community Safety and Culture comments: “The Wonderhouse is an exciting project that will add to Colchester’s already rich heritage offer. It will be a real draw for residents and tourists alike.

Colchester is extremely lucky to have a wealth of internationally significant objects. The Wonderhouse will give people the opportunity to discover and appreciate them for the first time. This project will also unveil a vital piece of the town’s previously hidden Roman Wall. It will create a launch pad to explore Colchester’s many historic sites. I’d invite residents and visitors to complete the survey and let us know their views on this project.

Find out more here>>

18th May 20158th December 2015

Heritage Watch Launched

Influential figures in Essex’s heritage industry came together on 23rd of April at Stow Maries First World War Aerodrome to launch a new police initiative aimed at protecting the past. Heritage Watch is an Essex Police led partnership between agencies that are committed to protecting our heritage, as well as members of the public who want to help preserve our heritage.

The watch scheme looks to maintain and preserve important places of interest, encouraging vigilance and reporting of suspicious activity around sites. This is to prevent any theft or crime that may damage assets beyond recovery, which may lead to the loss of a piece of history for this and future generations. Heritage Watch locations would include ancient earth works and archeological sites, listed buildings, museums, galleries, religious buildings, historic visitor attractions and others.

Dominic Petre of the Historic Houses Association said he was ‘very pleased’ about the initiative, adding:

When heritage is lost, it is lost forever. Crimes against heritage are not just crimes against the owner. They are crimes against future generations and culture in general.

Chief Superintendent Carl O’Malley said:

In Essex we have some really significant sites, from the Roman remains in Colchester to Audley End House in Saffron Walden. The key element for any watch scheme is to involve a broad range of different partners and bring them together. Through expert advice and assistance, we can all help one another. It is about communication, sharing, understanding and reporting.

For further information contact your local Essex Watch Liaison Officer using the Police 101 non–emergency telephone number.

28th April 201027th November 2015

Red Telephone Boxes ( 1 for sale)

BT have given notice that they will withdraw the telephone service from the public telephone boxes in Salcott and Great Wigborough. The Parish Council has decided to adopt both boxes for a nominal charge.

Continue reading “Red Telephone Boxes ( 1 for sale)”