Your letters...

More modest development

Sir, — As a resident of Caversham for more than 40 years, I wish to comment on the letters from Matt Rodda MP and Stephanie Clarke on plans for Caversham Park (Standard, May 6).

Many people are concerned about development north of the Thames and this planning application is in contrast to that of Reading Golf Club in Emmer Green, where 223 homes have been approved by Reading Borough Council.

Most of this development will not be on brownfield land but the green fields of the golf course.

It will lead to increased traffic and demand for extra school places.

The Caversham Park application, however, will largely use brownfield land.

A new 64-bed care home is planned to be built on previously developed land and 51 age-related retirement properties will be constructed on land used as a car park and for defunct satellite dishes and by the conversion of gatehouses.

Some 28 affordable homes — and Reading does seriously need more affordable homes — and five family homes will be built near the entrance of the site.

The wonderful Grade II listed mansion will be preserved and used for 64 assisted living units for the over-55s.

As a senior citizen, I am well aware of the need for such accommodation in Caversham and in Reading generally.

Older people who want to “downsize” like to remain in their existing communities so they can keep their existing doctors and dentists and stay close to family and friends.

This scheme would extend the existing tennis courts and introduce croquet lawns and two new bowling greens, which will be available not only to the residents of Caversham Park but also to the public.

The developers have listened to the public comments and, as a result, the grounds will be open to the public for the first time with the creation of a walking trail and more of the existing trees will be retained.

These proposals will result in significantly less traffic than the existing designated office use application.

There will not be pressure on school places either because the new occupants will largely be over-55s.

This proposal is so much more modest and environmentally friendly than earlier development in this part of Caversham.

The planning application involves 93 acres but the built area, including the existing mansion house, extends to seven acres.

Where else in the UK today is there a development site where just 7.5 per cent of the whole area is built on so that 86 acres of protected park can remain for future generations to enjoy? — Yours faithfully,

Peter Raeburn-Ward

Chazey Road, Caversham

Danger to historic site

Editor, — I am pleased that Matt Rodda is pursuing many of the points that I made in my letter (Standard, April 29).

However, he seems to view developers with a kinder eye than myself.

Beechcroft, like all developers, are in business to make money for their shareholders and their profits arise from getting the maximum number of properties on the land that they have purchased.

To meet these objectives, developers are notorious for using the thin end of the wedge once they are on site.

They alter the approved plans and unless very strict constraints are in place and council staff are of the highest integrity, developers maximize their profits. Reading has been blighted by many such cases.

The danger in the case of Caversham Park house and estate is that it will become Caversham Park Village mark 2 with its 1,500 houses.

The house and estate is a living, breathing site of major historical significance paralleling Windsor Castle and the Tower of London.

The original 2,400 acres date back to William the Conqueror and were recorded in the Domesday Book.

We have many designated Sites of Special Scientific Interest. This is a site of special historical interest and if there was such a thing it would be designated as such. — Yours faithfully,

Douglas Wright

Lowfield Green, Caversham

Benefits of tidal power

Sir, — I agree almost completely with your correspondent Gillian Ovey (Standard, May 6) except on the use of wave power.

One problem is the energy density, the output in megawatts per square kilometre or mile of sea.

A calm sea provides little power and the need to tolerate rough seas requires the machinery to be very robust.

These factors make it almost impossible to raise sufficient private sector capital.

Tidal power is quite another matter. The south coast of Wales has the second greatest tidal rise and fall in the world.

Build a barrage to direct the flow of water, instal the turbines and one has predictable power.

A huge investment in construction and manufacture is required but these activities create new wealth for the nation. (The other creators of new wealth are agriculture, fishing and mining.)

Banking and insurance, by contrast, only move the money from one account book to another.

Tidal power works at night and on dark days, unlike solar panels.

Tidal power works in calm weather, unlike wind turbines that have to be feathered in strong winds to prevent over-speeding.

An objection to tidal power near South Wales is that it might interfere with salmon fishing in the upper reaches of the Severn.

If tidal power is a bad idea, how have the French made a success of it? — Yours faithfully,

Tom Geake

Red House Drive, Sonning Common

Future is micro power

Sir, — Bravo to Gillian Ovey! A firmly tongue-in-cheek yet brilliantly deadpan letter highlighting the government ethos of doing nothing unless they can have it free and make money from it.

Tidal power has been researched for decades. I remember seeing prototypes being demonstrated on Tomorrow’s World and even a young lad being congratulated by Prince Philip (I believe) for his invention of a power-producing buoy — all expensive projects because of the natural elements that need to be constantly overcome.

But there is an alternative, both cheaper and more local — turbines on all the weirs on our many rivers.

In Henley the system is particularly adaptable because we have adjustable gates. All that needs be done is to adapt the space for turbines.

Local energy for local needs, even if only municipal or the new car charging stations.

This is not a new concept and I broached the subject over a decade ago at a “green fair” in Henley.

The alternative energy stand matter of factly answered that it had been suggested but kicked into the long grass by the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries for the simple and quite confusing reason that Henley had salmon ladders.

Yes, you read that right, so the salmon swimming up the Thames will be happy while the lights go out in Henley.

As a side note, this is the same ministry that decided dredging our canals and waterways was unnecessary. We all know what that led too.

Realistically, the way forward is for micro-power generation on a local level, whether it be hydro, nuclear (using the small modular reactors as used in warships and submarines) or burning waste to produce heat to drive turbines (Erskine developed a similar system for Newcastle at Byker in the Seventies).

Top this up by (for us) limited wind and solar power and a decently co-ordinated system can work well.

The green lobby are good at co-ordinating disruption but thin on the ground when it comes to constructive ideas and lobbying.

Perhaps it’s time they unglued themselves from the roads and concentrated on petitioning the Government with workable solutions.

Stay safe and take care of each other. — Yours faithfully,

Edward Sierpowski

Henley

Pandemic of graffiti

I fear that the appalling graffiti on our beautiful Henley bridge (Standard, May 6) is just the tip of the iceberg. One of the unreported consequences of lockdown appears to be a pandemic of graffiti along the M4 and Cromwell Road into London and also along the main railway lines into Paddington station.

It disfigures the environment and the perpetrators never seem to be prosecuted. This should concern our politicians. — Yours faithfully,

Andrew Hamilton MVO

Fawley

Fame for bridge ‘artist’

Sir, — In response to your front page headline, “Who would want to daub bridge?”, someone who wants to be on the front page of the Henley Standard — Yours faithfully,

Michael Hatch

Lambridge Wood Road, Henley

What awful snobs we are

Sir, — I was amused by your headline “Who would want to daub the bridge?”

Class still rules in England then. If a wealthy, posh bloke decides to drape the bridge in Christmas tree lights his illegal act is applauded as art whereas a neat but naughty “H” — obviously the work of a local “yob” — is graffiti.

What awful snobs we are! — Yours faithfully,

Kaye McArthur

Ancastle Green, Henley

Graffiti on our fence

I read your article about the graffiti on the bridge and on Monday I noticed there’s some graffiti on my fence, which runs alongside the railway track at Shiplake.

I’ll get my husband to sandpaper it off. — Yours faithfully,

Eleanor Garnett

Shiplake

Destruction of rights

Sir, —A few months ago I wrote in these pages, bemoaning the fact that within two weeks women’s rights globally had been threatened.

The Taliban had regained control in Afghanistan and in America the Supreme Court had upheld an impending new law in Texas that would make abortions illegal after six weeks.

Now my fears have been realised.

In Afghanistan, not only has girls’/women’s education been restricted but now when a woman ventures outside, her face must be fully covered otherwise the man in charge of her will be jailed for three days!

In America, according to a leaked draft from the Supreme Court, it is set to revoke the 1973 Wade v Roe clause, which established the right of women to have abortions in all the states.

The Supreme Court consists of nine members, each of whom is nominated by the President and confirmed by the Senate and is literally there for life or until he/she voluntarily resigns.

Currently, there are six Republicans and three Democrats.

Although one of the former may be of a more liberal trend, the inequality of the ratio ensures that the Republican persuasion prevails.

In this, the 21st century, that such rights of women can be called into question is an abomination.

Thanks goodness that over here our freedom of choice is enshrined in law. — Yours faithfully,

Enid Light

Wargrave Road, Henley

BBC’s past sell-by date

Sir, — It was at Donald Trump’s first press conference following his election that a journalist asked a question.

“Who are you?” asked Trump. It was Jon Sopel of the BBC — independent and impartial.

The BBC has been marking its own homework for a 100 years but it is now well past its sell-by date.

Eighty years ago, the famous British Arabist St John Philby’s verdict was “contemptible rubbish”.

Since then, and especially now, one could add the 10 entries for the first and the nine for the second in Roget’s Thesaurus.

There is nothing the BBC likes better than to be accused of Left-wing bias, an alibi providing the best cover of its original purpose and function.

With the failure to militarily defeat the 1917 Russian Revolution after four years of fighting, the BBC’s propaganda role was to ensure the continuation of the monarchy and the defeat of anything associated with the Left, be it politics, trade unions, peace movements or ideology.

Rewarded with the royal charter, the Queen is its ultimate boss.

As she is also head of state, head of the armed forces, head of the Church and head of the Commonwelth, this automatically makes the BBC part of the Establishment.

But through its intimate involvement with the intelligence and security services it is also an important part of the state apparatus.

The Daily Express journalist Chapman Pincher, in his book Inside Story, stated: “After World War II, it was realised that the Cold War with Russia had arrived.”

A typically British scheme was hatched by Whitehall “in conjunction with the BBC, which was already under government control”.

Ever since the ninth century, when a Russian state was founded by the Viking chief Ki from a collection of Slavic tribes based in the capital Kiev, it has been Kiev.

And then Nick Robinson, reporting live on the BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, apologised for having misspoken by calling it “Kiev” when he should have called it “Kyiv”, in line with the Government’s “unwavering support” for the Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s heroic resistance.

It is interesting to compare what happened in 2003 when the then director of BBC News Richard Sambrook (recently re-employed by the corporation) banned its journalists from attending anti-Iraq war demonstrations as it would compromise BBC impartiality.

A good example of the latter was summed up in a Radio 5 Live feature trailed as “Ukraine — the two Olgas”, one Russian and the other Ukrainian.

Naturally, the expectation was of two contrasting points of view. Not a bit of it — both denounced the murderous dictator Putin over his invasion of Ukraine.

Typical BBC impartiality — between Tweedledum and Tweedledee.

And now Wimbledon, in consultation with the Government and no doubt with the BBC as the provider of the tournament’s radio and TV coverage, has banned Russian and Belarusian players on the grounds that “their success or participation would be used to benefit the propaganda machine of the Russian regime”.

As Andrey Rublev has just won the ATP Serbian Open, defeating Novak Djokovic in the final, this is complete nonsense. It is discriminatory and lacks logic.

Well, you couldn’t have the BBC showing the royal box and the tournament’s patron the Duchess of Cambridge watching Russian players competing.

After all, Bertie, later Edward VII, amused himself with a toy lion which, when he pulled its tail, swallowed a Russian soldier. — Yours faithfully,

Alexis Alexander

Gosbrook Road, Caversham

Awful plight of children

Sir, — On Wednesday last week the six o’clock BBC news aired a very distressing and poignant report about children with learning disabilities in Ukraine. It made for difficult viewing.

These children are non-verbal, have severe learning disabilities and other additional medical needs, including being blind and suffering from epilepsy.

The majority are incontinent and wear nappies. Living in such squalid conditions, they are prone to scabies and lice because they aren’t kept clean.

The staff at the centre were overwhelmed. They were resorting to tying children to their beds to keep them safe. It was heartbreaking to watch.

The parents and carers of these disabled children simply couldn’t manage their needs during the war so they have left them behind. Can you imagine having to make that decision?

Moving forward, what can we do to help? The staff, who are all these children have, are overworked and underpaid.

We need an organised package of support in place. Basic hygiene, medication, food and outdoor facilities are what these children need for a quality of life.

They also need care and affection which we can only hope they receive in the not too distant future. — Yours faithfully,

Lisa Drage

Deanfield Avenue, Henley

Destroying environment

Editor, — I am responding to Tony Chandler’s letter headlined “Darker side of light” (Standard, May 6).

He is absolutely correct in his analysis of the harmful effects of artificial light.

The biggest offenders of light pollution causing negative eco and biological effects are the new era of LED street lights and the pulsed blue light that they emit at around 450 nanometers (wavelength), which equates to 666 terahertz.

A dark side of light indeed.

This has proven to be a cumulative carcinogenic light too that should never be looked at directly by humans especially.

That kind of light equates to nothing less than a weapon to moths and other insects that are drawn to it.

Many of the street lights actually fry any flying insects that get near them.

I personally witnessed this a few years ago in Reading. It looked like a mini firework show under the steet light. Sparks every second. Most distressing.

To add insult to injury to this circadian nightmare, most of the modern-era LED street lights are also emitting microwave RF radiation from the nodes, even many of the lights that masquerade as photocell street lights.

The microwave RF emissions from those street lights are on all day too, some at higher levels than others. Why? I have personally confirmed this is the case via an EMF/RF meter by testing levels in Wallingford and Reading.

Very strong levels were detected that could not fail to cause biological effects to all life when the combined effects of all the lights are simultaneously active.

For what purpose? Are we supposed to believe 24/7 emissions of wasteful energy into air for no logical reason is sustainable?

It won’t save anyone from climate change, that is certain. In fact, the needless transmissions are far more likely to warm the lower atmosphere that we all live in and simulate artificial global warming effects.

This kind of assault on all biological life via street furniture clearly cannot, in any shape or form, be described as green or environmentally friendly technology.

The same would apply to 5G masts, of course.

The only conclusion to arrive at is that the wrong people have power over our living environment.

As a result, if something does not change soon, with this unsafe light and smart technology, it will become a hostile, uninhabitable environment to live in virtually everywhere. — Yours faithfully,

Mr N D Myer

Wallingford

So many crises

Sir, — Can someone tell me the collective noun for “unprecedented crises”? There do seem to be a lot of them about at present. — Yours faithfully,

Paul Fairweather

Rotherfield Greys

Some relief at last

Sir, — I was really pleased that South Oxfordshire District Council has finally completed the refurbishment of the toilets in Greys Road car park in Henley and that they are due to re-open shortly (Standard, May 6).

What a relief. Waiting a minute or two is acceptable, but almost nine years is a bit long... Phew! — Yours faithfully,

Peter Ward

King James Way, Henley

Prosecute this poacher

Sir, — Having seen your News in brief item concerning poaching at Rivendell Farm (Standard, May 6), I would like to offer a small correction and some further information.

Firstly, the very pregnant (and out of season) fallow deer was poached from land adjacent to Rivendell Farm and the carcass was dragged to that address.

The owner of Rivendell Farm was away at the time and had a housesitter.

Further, the black dog was not the poacher’s but belonged to the farm.

According to the witness of the poaching incident (who I know well), said dog spent most of the incident being shouted at by the poacher for trying to eat parts of the carcass. The dog is innocent in all this.

I know all this because I was the one who photographed the bloody trail left by the body being dragged to Rivendell and recovered the head of the fallow deer for breed identification purposes.

I also photographed the unborn fawn that was discarded by the poacher when he gutted the carcass.

I found it highly distressing and I wouldn’t want unwary readers to be as distraught as I was at this whole incident.

The police have been excellent at helping to deal with this so far. I just hope they get the support of the Crown Prosecution Service to deal with the monster who slaughtered this deer and her unborn fawn. — Yours faithfully,

Simon Brickhill

Goring Heath

Hurrah for No Mow May

Editor, — What pleasing news that the attractive wide verges in Fair Mile, Henley, will not be mown in May (Standard, April 15). This piece of landscape is lined with trees and flint and brick walls of older-style homes that all add to the magic as you enter and exit the town.

It was pleasing to read that other areas of the town are also to benefit from No Mow May.

However, I’m puzzled why this idea has taken to so long to implement. — Yours faithfully,

Peter M Adams

Petersfield, Hants

Calling DIY enthusiasts...

Can anyone with DIY, plumbing or buildings skills spare some time? The d:two centre is a great community resource, tucked away in the centre of Henley.

It’s a hive of activity throughout the week, with young families in the soft play centre, visitors to the Nomad youth and community project, community café customers and users of the food bank.

We also host numerous groups that hire our facilities, including Henley Choral Society, playball, drama and dance groups, health visitors and many others.

It’s a great privilege being a community hub but one of our challenges is that the building is nearly 150 years old and needs constant maintenance and upgrading.

We have some wonderful volunteers who help in the café and soft play centre and with some of the ongoing maintenance, but we could really do with an additional bank of willing people that are prepared to give us a hand from time to time with small, practical DIY projects to keep the centre in tip-top condition.

It is not glamorous but will really help to keep the centre running smoothly.

Examples include:

Basic plumbing tasks — we have 10 toilets in the centre that always need maintaining.

Basic electrical tasks — upgrading switches, lights and other electrical devices.

Small building works — we need help with a small but challenging brickwork project and also with some plasterboard and redecoration.

Basement tool store — keeping it in good order.

Maybe you are recently retired plumber, electrician or builder or have some DIY skills and have a few hours from time to time to keep a valuable community resource thriving.

If you are not familiar with our work, please give us a call on (01491) 577414 and we can show you round.

The community café is open 10am to 2pm every weekday, so just pop in. — Yours faithfully,

Jeremy Bray

Team leader, Henley Baptist Church, Market Place, Henley