Lincolnshire Police is warning communities to be observant over the Easter weekend, as the risk of illegal raves is higher.

Police also see a rise in such events over the spring and summer months.

A Lincolnshire Police spokesman said: “Whilst raves are normally located in remote areas, they do have a negative impact on rural communities. They damage land and the environment with waste products, litter, damage to crops and distress live stock in nearby locations.

“Bank Holidays are key risk weekends for raves.

“Lincolnshire Police would ask members of our communities to be observant. Whilst out and about during normal business please check locations, particularly disused buildings such as barns and other large buildings, for signs of possible pre-planning.”

This will sometimes consist of:

* Fences/gates being removed to allow access for cars;

* Padlocks and chains being cut or broken but then left in situ;

* Buildings being cleared to allow access for large numbers of ravers;

* Posts being issued on social media for awareness of up and coming locations;

* Sightings of large numbers of cars following each other or converging in a rural location;

* Road markings such as paint marks on the surface;

* Ribbons on gates and in hedges.

Please report any such information under Operation Mastif by calling police on 101 or online at www.lincs.police.uk/report-online

Grantham MP Nick Boles says Grantham A&E should be ‘strengthened’ after hospitals trust is put back into special measures.

Mr Boles says he will be putting pressure on the board of United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust (ULHT) to turn the situation around and called for opening hours at Grantham A&E to be extended after the unit was given a ‘good’ rating.

The Care Quality Commission visited Lincoln and Boston Hospitals and Grantham A&E in October. Its report gives the trust an overall rating of ‘inadequate’ but Grantham A&E is giving a rating of ‘good’.

Mr Boles said: “Following the release of the outcome of recent inspections at ULHT hospitals, it is obviously very disappointing for all involved, and for local people generally, that they are once again in special measures.

“The fact that safety is one of those aspects with the lowest ratings is of particular significance, and I will be pressing the local Board along with Ministers in the Government to take action quickly to address this problem. We need a detailed explanation as to how this is going to be rectified to ensure local people are getting the standard of care they need.

“What also came through in the report is that Grantham A&E is amongst the best rated services in the entire Trust, and should be held up as a shining light and given more support.

“If Grantham A&E is running well then that is clearly an argument to strengthen it and extend the opening hours further, in order to take pressure off the other A&Es at neighbouring hospitals that are quite obviously struggling. I will be pressing for this to be considered closely in the coming weeks and I hope that we can see further improvement for Grantham residents.”

Local Grantham and county councillor Ray Wootten, who has campaigned with residents for the return of a 24 hour A&E unit at Grantham, said: “Clearly I am disappointed that the trust has been placed in special measures which must be demoralising for staff. However, the overall rating of ‘good’ for Grantham Hospital particularly in A&E is welcome, recognising that the department is well led and it highlights that patients are treated with dignity, respect and kindness.”

Trains are being cancelled and delayed today after overhead lines were damaged.

Passengers are facing delays of about 20 minutes as trains run at a reduced speed following the damage to electric wires near Retford on the line towards Doncaster.

Virgin Trains says the 11.45am East Coast service from Leeds to King’s Cross has been cancelled. The 9.03am service from King’s Cross to Leeds was also cancelled.

A statement on the National Rail website says: “Network Rail have worked hard overnight to get the line open again so trains can run through. However, trains will be running at a reduced speed over a five mile stretch of line throughout the day until full repairs can be safely completed overnight tonight.

“As a result, trains between Peterborough and Doncaster may be delayed by up to 20 minutes while they run at reduced speed through the area. In addition, some trains may be amended or cancelled due to train units not being in the correct location following yesterday’s disruption.”

United Counties League

Premier Division

Harrowby United 2

Huntingdon Town 1

In what has been a while coming, Harrowby United secured a win against Huntingdon Town on a warm, sunny afternoon at the Environcom Stadium.

The Arrows certainly did it the hard way, coming from a goal down and playing the second half with a man disadvantage due to a red card for midfielder Simon Bolland.

The league’s bottom two served up a game not always high on quality but always competitive and entertaining.

After 10 minutes, Arrows centre back Jack Whyley got his head on to a free kick into Town’s penalty area. The effort was blocked, as was his rebound shot before the ball was cleared.

Two minutes later, another deep free kick into the Huntingdon box was met on the volley by Scott Floyd whose shot was well saved by an outstretched leg from custodian Andy Hewitt.

Having started the game well, the Arrows were caught with a sucker punch in the 26th minute. A fine cross-field ball was well controlled by midfielder Ben Page, who then rode a tackle from the back-tracing Liam Jaques, before slotting the ball past a helpless Sam Scothern in the Harrowby goal.

After 37 minutes, the visitors almost doubled their lead when a fine dipping shot from distance by Giuliano Staffieri was superbly tipped on to the crossbar by Scothern, the ball bouncing away to safety.

With just over a minute of the first half remaining, a flashpoint saw the Arrows reduced to 10 men. Harrowby were awarded a free kick for a foul by Staffieri who reacted to what he thought was a stamp by Bolland. In the ensuing melee, referee Mr Jolley brought the sorry episode to an end with a straight red card for Bolland, having seen him strike an opposition player. When the free kick was finally taken, Hewitt did well to save Floyd’s cross-cum-shot shot at the second attempt.

Facing an uphill task in the second period, Harrowby initially found themselves on the back foot and looking to catch the Croms on the break.

Just before the hour mark, Arrows skipper John Currall did well to get his body in the way of a stinging shot from Michael Chow. After 64 minutes, a good run from Harrowby’s Sam Weatherstone ended with a shot that was straight at Hewitt.

A couple of minutes later, a Harrowby corner found its way to substitute Tino Chavundura but his shot was well blocked.

The 10 men had upped their game and, having more attacking success, found an equaliser in the 77th minute. Chavundura was brought down by Callum Walter as he drove towards the Huntingdon penalty area. Floyd stepped up to curl the ball around the Croms defensive wall and into the net, with Hewitt rooted to the spot.

A shocked Huntingdon were punished again in the 81st minute when they switched off as a Floyd free kick into their penalty area was picked up by an unmarked Chavundura. The young striker controlled before he calmly stroked the ball into the net to give his side the lead.

A frantic last 10 minutes saw the resolute Harrowby defence keep Huntingdon at bay although, with the game in stoppage time, a ferocious shot from Walter had Scothern beaten all ends up, but the ball thundered against the bar before being hacked away to safety.

The Arrows saw out the remaining time to secure a hard fought victory. In a game mainly being played for pride with both teams adrift at the bottom of the league, Harrowby can be pleased to get a long awaited win under their belt with just four games of their season remaining.

Harrowby United: Scothern, Hickey, McCartney, Currall (c), Whyley, Floyd, Jaques, Bolland, Farmer (Chavundura 65), Weatherstone, Browne (Eatough 83).

Grantham and District Indoor Bowling Club

Jack High League

Over the season’s games, Grantham won the Jack High League by just two points from Vacu-Lug.

Barnstone 45

Arnoldfield 48

L Payling G Taylor R Smith lost to R Giles S Dawes S Allcorn 15-17, H McCandless J Quibell J McCandless lost to P Edwards A Stafford C Goodley 12-14, J Hogg S Wrate J Parker beat N Planting J Searle B Shores 18-17.

Vacu-Lug 82

Barnstone 38

V Wendon B Allen T Berridge beat K Drew Audry N Drew 29-11, M Allen R Barker M Eurich beat J Hogg S Wrate J Parker 20-9, J Franklin T Mayo M Parker lost to H McCandless L Payling J McCandless 13-18.

l Grantham’s Pat Thompson has won the county ladies’ singles championship.

l The club’s presentation night will be next Friday (April 21), whilst the annual general meeting is on Monday, April 24.

Nottingham Forest Supporters Club (Grantham branch):

Forest are at home to Blackburn Rovers today (Good Friday), kick-off 3pm, and away to Cardiff City on Monday, kick-off 3pm.

Bookings are being taken for away games at Queens Park Rangers on Saturday, April 29, kick-off 3pm.

Former KGGS students were reunited in Grantham at the weekend, some for the first time in more than 40 years.

A total of 53 ex-KGGS girls, who attended the school from 1968, gathered for a lunch at the Angel and Royal Hotel on Saturday. They came from all over the UK, including Scotland, Manchester, Bath, Malvern and Cromer.

About 20 of the group also toured the school, revisiting the Old Hall and admiring the new facilities.

Many took memorabilia to the Angel and Royal and some even sported the beret or boater from school days.

There was also a walk on Sunday along the Grantham canal with further time to reminisce about their schooldays.

Reunion organiser Kim Sergeant launched the event with a summary of more than fourdecades since the girls left school. She reminded the group of the interesting times they had lived through, above all the increase in opportunities for women, which all agreed the High School had equipped them 
for.

One former students remarked that there was no sign of spam fritters, traffic lights or pink custard on the lunch menu.

Liz McLean (nee Flynn) said later: “An amazing time, so appreciative of all the hard work Kim put into this along with other friends who helped you along the way. Thankyou so much for putting it all together. Sue, your cake was fantastic! Miss Faulkner would have been absolutely delighted to see it! I’m so glad my mum and dad moved to Grantham, I have to say – I had a fantastic time at 
school.”

Bassingham racing driver Jack Harvey will race at this year’s Indy 500 with the Andretti Autosport Indy Car team.

Harvey will drive the No 50 Honda for the 101st running of the iconic Indianapolis 500 next month.

The 23-year-old, who cut his teeth racing karts at Fulbeck and Brandon, has spent the last two years racing in the United States, competing in the Indy Lights, a feeder series for America’s biggest and most coveted single-seater racing competition – the Indy Car Series.

Harvey finished his rookie year in Indy Lights in second place, securing the same number of championship points as the winner and only losing out because the eventual winner had secured more second place finishes than Harvey. Harvey had another exceptional year in Indy Lights in 2015, again finishing runner-up and narrowly missing out on the top spot.

Harvey will join the reigning Indianapolis 500 champions Andretti Autosport for the iconic race on May 28. Having claimed race wins at both the Grand Prix of Indianapolis and the Freedom 100 in 2015, Harvey is no stranger to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, however, the 2017 500-mile event will be his first Verizon IndyCar Series race as he will work to gain Rookie of the Year honours and add his likeness to the iconic Borg Warner Trophy.

“The Indy 500 is easily the biggest race I have entered in my career so far,” said Harvey. “It is one of the most iconic races in the world and I feel extremely privileged to be taking part in it. To have the opportunity to do this with one of the best teams on the grid - a team that has won two of the last three races there – is more than I could have dreamed of.

“We have been working incredibly hard over the last 18 months to make this happen and it’s hard to put into words what this means to me.

“I want to thank the whole Andretti Autosport team for this opportunity,” continued Harvey. “I also want to thank everyone that has supported me over my racing career, especially my family, friends, my manager, the Racing Steps Foundation, and everyone back home.

“Despite living in the States for the past two years, it is still an incredible feeling to have so much support from back in the UK. Finally, this wouldn’t be possible without the support of AutoNation, so I am very grateful for them helping me put this together.

“I also want to make a special mention of my uncle who sadly passed away suddenly in February. He was one of my biggest supporters, and would have been so happy to see me fulfill this dream. I will be racing for him on the 28th of May.”

Saturday afternoon saw the fifth RAF Scampton Duathlon take place with a small but strong field of athletes battling for a place on the podium, in glorious British weather.

Belvoir Tri Club member Adam Madge was on the start line in the friendly novice sprint distance duathlon.

The traffic-free course was a lapped one with plenty of opportunity for spectators and supporters to cheer everyone on as they raced sround the airfield, which is the base of the world famous Red Arrows.

The duathlon consisted of a first run of 5km (two laps of the circuit), a three lap bike ride of 21km, and finally a second 2.5km run to the finish line.

RAF Scampton Duathlon is organised by Lincoln Tri and the event was aimed at all levels of ability, attracting both novice and experienced competitors alike.

Adam completed the race in an overall time of 1hr 4min (split times: 17:50, 35:38 and 9:09).

Adam commented: “I was really pleased with my fifth place in what was a very strong field. The airfield made for a fast race and some good run and bikes splits.”

A taxi driver has been forced to pay over seven times the cost of an initial fixed penalty notice after refusing the fine and being found guilty of smoking in his cab on a Grantham street.

Kevin Doughty, 47, was witnessed with the cigarette lit in his Ford Mondeo on St Peter’s Hill by a South Kesteven District Council officer on August 31 last year.

Instead of paying the £30 fixed penalty notice within 15 days of it being served, he was instead convicted and left with a bill of £230 at Lincoln Magistrates’ Court on April 5.

Having pleaded not guilty to the offence at an earlier hearing, the court heard Doughty claimed that he was vaping an e-cigarette in the vehicle at the time and whilst not on duty.

The officer maintained, however, it was a tobacco cigarette he was smoking and the driver did not claim at the time of the incident that it was an electronic version he was using.

Smoking a tobacco cigarette in any taxi or private hire vehicle contravenes rules that were amended in August 2015, where drivers must not smoke in their vehicles even when they do not have passengers or if using the taxi when off duty.

This is to avoid tobacco smoke being present in the air or absorbed into soft furnishings in any vehicle and being passed on to passengers.

Doughty, of Welham Street, Grantham, was found guilty of a single offence under the Health Act 2006, fined £100, ordered to pay £100 costs and given a £30 victim surcharge.

District Judge Peter Veits said: “Smoking includes being in possession of lit tobacco according to the definition of the legislation.

“Mr Doughty, you claimed it was e-cigarette you were smoking but why though did you not bring that up at the time of the conversation?

“Instead you chose to be indignant with the officer over why she was troubling you at 7.30am in the morning and it undermines your evidence. I am convicting you of smoking in a smoke-free environment.”

SKDC’s executive manager for environment Ian Yates said: “We know the vast majority of licensed taxi drivers in South Kesteven are very responsible around the legislation relating to smoking in their vehicles.

“However this case highlights the consequences for those tempted to flout the rules and subsequently expose their passengers to tobacco smoke – whether using the vehicle when on or off duty.

“Mr Doughty has been left to pay a bill seven times the amount compared with paying this at the earliest opportunity and simply admitting he had made an error.”

Five people had to be cut free by firefighters this morning following a collision between two cars in Long Bennington.

Fire crews from Grantham and Newark attended the scene at 1.30am. They used cutting gear to release the casualties who were then taken care of by the ambulance service.

More details to come when we have them.

The latest Bottesford and District Angling Association match, the Norman Chenoweth Open, was held on Grantham Canal on Sunday, and won by John Brookway.

Results: 1 John Brookway 9lb 10oz, 2 Mick Calcraft 3.15oz, 3 Ron Scales 3.07, 4 Pete Allwood 2.12.

The new Bottesford and District Angling Association website has now gone live online. For Association information, visit www.bottesfordanddistrictanglingassociation.com

The next club match is at Foston Lakes next Sunday, April 23. For entries, contact match secretary Bryan Baines on 01400 318345 or 07538 876131.

Grantham Town closed the gap to the Northern Premier League Premier Division play-offs after their 2-1 victory at Coalville Town on Tuesday night, moving up to seventh in the league.

Defender Luther Wildin put the Gingerbreads ahead when he tucked the ball away from close range in the 25th minute.

Grantham held the lead until the 51st minute when the home side replied through an impressive Danny Jenno free kick.

However, Grantham sealed the win when Jeremiah Dasaolu danced his way into a shooting position and fired in off the underside of the crossbar in the 65th minute.

The Gingerbreads now head to Buxton on Saturday and Corby Town on Easter Monday.

A woman who was caught with small amounts of heroin and cocaine after police stopped her car in Grantham was given a community order by a judge.

Catherine Boycott, 29, was pulled over by police after officers became suspicious of the Ford Ka that she was driving.

Lincoln Crown Court heard Boycott and a male passenger were asked to get out of the car. Mark Van der Zwart, prosecuting, said while the pair were stood by the side of the car police found a Kinder egg on the ground.

It was found to contain 0.65 grams of heroin and 0.36 grams of cocaine.

At the scene, Boycott, of no fixed address, admitted some items relating to drugs might be found in the car. But when questioned under caution by police she gave a prepared statement in which she denied having any knowledge about the drugs.

Boycott, who appeared in court by video link from prison after asking to be remanded in to custody at an earlier hearing, later admitted possessing cocaine and heroin after she was stopped on June 12, last year.

The court heard her male passenger had already appeared in court and been sentenced to a community order after he pleaded guilty to the same charges.

Sentencing Boycott to an 18-month community order, Recorder Graham Huston said she would be dealt with in the same way as her passenger.

He said: “You have to be sentenced for an offence of simple possession of the drugs found in the Kinder egg.

“You are very keen to engage and deal with your addiction and you have been assessed as suitable for a drug rehabilitation requirement.”

May Day will be celebrated in Wyndham Park this year with a family event featuring traditional dancing, music, arts and crafts.

The Heritage Lottery Fund and BIG Lottery Fund event from 10am to 2.30pm on Monday, May 1 will see Lincoln and Micklebarrow Morris Men lead morris dancing whilst Grantham School of Dancing will co-ordinate the traditional dance around the maypole.

There will also be plenty of crafts for children to join in with including making May Day baskets, flower masks and flower pot pictures.

The traditional spring holiday is acknowledged in many cultures and to mark the celebration there will be the opportunity for children to plant seeds in pots to take home from the event.

Café Indulgence will be open at the park throughout the day.

South Kesteven District Council’s business manager for venues and facilities Paul Stokes said: “This is the first event for many years at the park celebrating May Day and promises traditional fun for children and adults alike.

“Come along on the Bank Holiday Monday and relax with music and activities from a bygone era.”

Auditions will be held for ITV show The Voice at The Black Dog pub in Grantham.

The auditions will be held at the pub on Watergate on Sunday, May 21, from 7pm.

The Voice UK is open to solo singers and duos and all musical styles are welcome. To enter The Voice singers need to be 16 on or before October 1, 2017. Under-18s are allowed into The Black Dog until 9pm if accompanied by a parent or legal guardian. The next series of The Voice will be broadcast in 2018.

For more information go to www.itv.com/thevoice

Five teenagers were hurt when two cars collided in Long Bennington overnight.

Police say the crash involved a VW Polo carrying all five teeangers who come from Nottinghamshire. The incident happened at about 11pm. The most seriously injured was the 17-year-old female driver who was taken to Queen’s Medical Centre in Nottingham for treatment for serious injuries.

The four passengers were less seriously injured.

Fire crews attended the scene from Grantham and Newark. They used cutting gear to release the teenagers from the vehicle.

Anybody with information about the incident should call police on 101, quoting incident number 472 of April 11.

A new free school is due to open in Grantham in 2018 after it was given the go-ahead by the Government today.

The Department for Education has announced that Poplar Farm Academy has been approved to open on a new development off Barowby Road in September 2018.

The new primary school is being set up by the Community Inclusive Trust (C.I.T. Academies).

The trust says the two-form entry primary school will meet the growing need for primary age places in the north west of Grantham, with much of the growing pressure for school places coming from the Poplar Farm housing development where the school is to be built.

The primary will open with a Reception Class intake only, opening to Year 1 pupils in 2019 until opening to all year groups by 2024.

Peter Bell, CEO of C.I.T. Academies said: “The Community Inclusive Trust is delighted that its bid to open Poplar Farm School has been approved by the DfE. As a Trust we look forward to working in partnership with the local authority and the community to provide the highest quality of education for the growing population of Grantham.”

Toby Young, Director of New Schools Network, said: “The application process to set up a free school is extremely rigorous so it is a testament to the Community Inclusive Trust’s hard work that they have been approved to open. This is the largest ever cohort of free schools to be approved, a sign of this Government’s commitment to extending the benefits of the free schools policy to all parts of the country.

“This is a big day for free schools. With 800 either opened or approved to open, providing 400,000 places when full, free schools are now a permanent part of England’s educational landscape.”

A free school is one set up by a group outside local authority control and funded by central government.

Debbie Barnes, Director of Children’s Services, added: “This is great news for parents with children in the Grantham area. It will provide much-needed extra school capacity to cater for the new housing development. With growing populations in areas around the county like Grantham, we welcome new proposals like this to add to our already impressive portfolio and range of schools and academies. We look forward to working with Poplar Farm School in providing quality education for local children and a valuable community asset for parents and residents in the town.”

Parents will be able to apply for a Reception 2018 school place online through the Local Authority from November 13, 2017. Interested parents can find out more at www.citacademies.co.uk

A hospital support group has responded to the CQC report on the trust which runs Grantham hospital by calling for the restoration of full A&E services 24 hours a day.

Charmaine Morgan, chair of SOS Grantham Hospital, said the CQC report, which http://www.granthamjournal.co.uk/news/health/grantham-a-e-rated-as-good-but-lincolnshire-hospitals-trust-goes-back-into-special-measures-1-7909598|called for United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust to be put into special measures}, was a vindication for Grantham’s A&E unit which should be be fully restored after it was closed overnight.

Coun Morgan said: “This is welcome news to local people and particular praise must go to the hospital staff. They have been working under huge pressure faced with an uncertain future, as ULHT imposed a night closure on Grantham A&E unit in August 2016 and the Lincolnshire STP is still being considered. In many ways this vindicates the concerns of those working at the hospital and the patients using the hospital who have been fighting to keep acute A&E resuscitation and life saving services on site.

“Given that ULHT and the CCG have been telling us all that Grantham Hospital A&E is not on a par with the services provided at Lincoln, the independent findings by the CQC raise a serious question over the judgement or motivation of the Medical Officer on the ULHT board.

“​Trust members have even gone as far as saying Grantham A&E unit is not safe and that ambulances should by pass the site. Even though last year 4,400 A&E ambulances did take patients to Grantham A&E and the unit is equipped to handle life saving patient resuscitation and stabilisation.​

​“SOS Grantham Hospital argue that if Grantham A&E is ‘good’ it should remain open ​24/7 ​and continue to be supported​. T​he aim of ULHT should be to bring its other units up to that same standard. ​ULHT​ should be praising the staff who work there to provide this service in difficult circumstances and ​ULHT should ​promot​e​ th​is highly valued local A&E​ unit to encourage its use and ensure its future viability.

​“It is ​not acceptable that such a unit should be ​consistently ​undermined by ​a ​hospital trust ​board ​entrusted with its care​.​ ​T​he patients who rely on Grantham Hospital A&E should be supported 24/7 so their needs are met as per the NHS Guideli​n​es, which seem to have been forgotten by too many keen to bring centralisation to our A&E services -​ both locally and nationally​.

“However, it feels like a missed opportunity that the CQC ​would ​not ​consider the impact of the ​A&E ​night closure ​in its report​. When we approached their representative they refused to consider any organisational​ changes ​in place and ​focus​sed​ only on the ​operational ​aspects of the unit still open.​ SOS Grantham Hospital had flagged concerns regarding the safety of the external wall mounted telephone which were referred by the CQC to ULHT for investigation. It is ironic therefore that it is possible for a Hospital Trust to leave someone with no local A&E care at all for 14.5 hours a day and get a ‘good’ rating because the services are ‘good’ when they are available. You just need to stay alive long enough to be able to appreciate them.

Given the reliance we now have on other ULHT hospitals at night it is hugely concerning for everyone in the county that the CQC have found ULHT to ‘be in need of Special Measures’. The reasons for this need detailed scrutiny but it makes no sense to put more pressure on struggling hospitals unnecessarily when ‘good’ local services are available in Grantham.

“It is worse when you consider the hour long journey patients may have to take to get to those inadequate services. It is also to be noted that the night closure of Grantham A&E has not alleviated issues elsewhere sufficiently at Lincoln or Boston. The negative impact on Grantham of the night closure was masked by the scope of the CQC inspection. It begs the question ‘Who does consider the impact of such change on patients and staff when a unit closes if not the CQC?’”

A good time was had by all at the Belvoir Vale Tennis Club (Hose) American Tournament on Saturday.

It proved to be an excellent start of season event and all enjoyed the round robin of tennis matches, glorious weather and afternoon tea.

The eventual winners were Reinette Boucher and Anita Bartys in the ladies’ competition and Nigel Daniels in the men’s.

BVTC now looks forward to the rest of the season with matches in the Leicestershire leagues starting soon.