Winton’s latest recession victim

Today was a sad day for the staff at Winton’s Ethel Austin who are now left jobless. In their last day of trading, the store was busy and offering 20% discounts on most products.

The manager was in good spirits but was unable to comment on the closure.

The chain went into administration last week and several stores have been closed across the country.

Ethel Austin is not the only sign of the tough economic times hitting the area. The old Woolworth’s store on Winton high street has been empty for over a year. Work is now beginning on transforming the old family favourite into a 99p store.

Charity Cheaters

A Bournemouth woman is causing chaos in charity shops by stealing, rooting through bins and swapping price tags on goods.

The woman who is described as well dressed, around 50 years old, with blonde curly hair has been swindling charity shops in Winton and Westbourne.

Her antics recently took a step up and she has now banned from several shops.

Sarah Penny, ReStore volunteer, said: “A friend of mine who works in another charity shop warned me about this woman. She comes in most days and we have to watch her like a hawk.”

She continued: “She is often rooting through the bins out the back and swapping the price tags. I find it sad that people will steal from charity shops and it often isn’t who you think it would be.”

Several charity shops have reported an increase in the number of thefts recorded suggesting this woman is not alone and shoplifting is rife in the area.

A lack of stock taking and security have been raised as contributory factors for the rise in thefts.

Charity shop workers from the British Heart Foundation and Tenovus described these instances as ‘a slap in the face’.

The newly opened Salvation Army charity shop in Westbourne has been particularly affected. This shop has not installed changing rooms in order to deter criminals from stealing.

Manager Linda Cross said: “We haven’t had to ban anyone yet, but I can definitely see that happening in the future.”

At the Marie Curie Cancer Care shop, Assistant Manager Denise Wilcox said: “I find it so frustrating and have had to ban quite a number of people. But, I am often working downstairs and they will still come in, so it is hard to enforce.”

Several volunteers suspect the thieves go on to sell the stolen items.

Original News Story

Bournemouth University biting off more than it can chew.

Bournemouth University has a huge lack of halls of residence, with over 600 first year students unable to get a place in them.
The universities answer to this shortage, is to place these students in houses surrounding the area, which can contain as little as three people.
With 4400 students starting their studies this year, the question must be posed, as to whether the university are simply taking on more students than they can handle.
When questioned, a spokesman from the University said: ‘As a university we are growing and we are doing everything in our power for our halls of residence to grow with us. There is currently a new block of halls being built alongside Purbeck.’
Many students when applying to university would expect that their first year would be spent in halls, as this allows making new friends to be easy.
However, a more prominent worry for the university is that some of these students do not feel safe where they live, particularly in Boscombe and Pokesdown.
The university have an accommodation office where support is offered to students who are unhappy and there have been very complimentary reports of their work.

Josh Matthews, of 102 Gladstone Road East in Boscombe, said, ‘We have had many issues with our house, including a gas leak.’ Mr Matthews, 18, who is studying Business at the University added, ‘I applied to live in halls, I enjoy living in a house, but feel I may have been able to meet more people if I lived in halls.’
Mr Matthew’s housemate, Emma Boyce, 18 said, ‘I don’t mind being in a house, I am just disappointed with the location, we are more than 3 miles from the university. I also do not feel safe walking in Boscombe alone.’

Eddie Wickham.

A day for an adventure...

Eddie Wickham’s earliest memory is from when he and his pals would ride off on their bikes for adventures on Boscombe beach.
Mr Wickham, now 83, remembers how his mother would pack him off for the day with a snack box and how he and his friends, who wouldn’t have been older than 12, would ride off on the bikes that they had made themselves.
He says about his bike, ‘it was my pride and joy, I used any spare parts I could find to make it.’
Mr Wickham, who has lived in Boscombe his entire life, spoke of how they would ride off to the beach and leave their bikes at Boscombe pier, swim along to Bournemouth pier and then run back!
He spoke about how their adventures filled their weekends and spare time and they enjoyed the freedom of being by the sea.
Mr Wickham, who still lives in the house he was born in said, it only took a few minutes to get to the beach and spoke about how they would be gone out on their adventures all day and his mother need not worry.
He remembers there were swarms of tourists every weekend but him and his pals left their bikes over a mile away whilst they swam along with no worry at all.
Mr Wickham brought up his four children with his wife Maureen in Boscombe to, giving them the same opportunities to play on the beach as he did in his childhood.
His daughter Linda Wickham, loves the lifestyle so much, she has chosen to work as a lecturer at Bournemouth University.