Original food festival was a huge success - but not without problems

Sian Georgeou regrets the loss of the Emsworth Food Festival (EFF) this year. Strangely, however, she omits to mention the huge price the success of EFF brought to the village (Observer letters).
She also omits to mention the intense public debate that followed about the problems it brought and the democratic decision by open public meeting not to hold a food festival in Emsworth in 2008. It was only after that firm plans for an alternative local food festival came forward.
A Thought for Food at Stansted Park responded to strong local demand by providing a good-quality food festival in the locality. In spite of highly-adverse weather, it was supported by large numbers of Emsworth residents and businesses. It also raised money locally for Marie Curie Cancer Care, Lions and the RNLI.
Sian Georgeou has an honourable position (which will be shared by others) in regretting the loss of EFF this year, albeit she seems to have forgotten the problems that came with its success.
Her position, however, contrasts strongly with a very small clique of people who did repeated criminal damage to the TFF signage, who were clearly not remotely interested in supporting local businesses or visitors, or indeed the local charities this successful show supported.

J Cooper, director, Stansted Park Foundation, Rowlands Castle

My family and myself are very disappointed to see the Emsworth Food Festival cancelled.
It had become a family event with my children and grandchildren participating, this being six adults and three children. Many other families had extended families visiting to enjoy the event.
A wonderful event was provided free and had something for everybody. Stansted House entry fee was £6 for adults. I understand this event didn't even begin to compare with Emsworth.
The festival in Emsworth did so much for the village, was unique and coveted by all. If it was becoming too big, they should have got rid of the corporate contingency who contribute very little to any event.
The market idea has been done in every town and will just be another market.
The organisers should take a walk round Chichester Market on a wet day and see how many attend. And look at the misery and disappointment on the stallholders' faces.
I understand money was given to charities from the event so how does that make it unviable to continue?
It certainly has not stopped others trying to emulate it.
My family will not visit the market as they are not local and I feel I have at this point no inclination to do so.

Mrs E Martin, Gordon Road, Southbourne



Cats deserve a fair deal from us

A couple from Aldwick are the latest victims of an airgun attack on their cat.
My reaction is two-fold. Air weapons should be confined to gun clubs and the cat needs more protection under the law.
Mr Rammand, the grandfather of Rashid, the toddler who was tragically shot in the head with an airgun by his sister, is calling for tougher laws. He says: "Airguns should not be sold to anybody. There has to be tougher laws on guns like this because some of them are more powerful than some proper guns."
The possession of guns by people leads to tragedy. I welcome the EU ban on anyone under 18 from owning a gun becoming law here in 2010.
The Cats Protection League surveyed 1,300 veterinary surgeons and found 74 per cent had treated cats for airgun pellet wounds and has estimated every year 10,000 cats are killed or maimed.
I urge readers, councillors and MPs to lobby the government to strengthen the law in favour of our most beloved pet, giving it legal parity to the dog. At the moment the cat is only inadvertently covered under the Theft Act.
It is about time we showed our appreciation to this magnificent creature and repaid back the joy and love it has given us as a nation.

David Hammond, North Court, Hassocks



Poor Bert and Bessie have bin left alone...

Bessie the Bin was a very happy dustbin. She was a nice maroon colour and her people made sure she was always nice and full; once a week, just as she was starting to feel a little too full, they wheeled her from the cosy spot where she lived by the back gate and took her outside the drive onto the grass verge by the road.
Bessie was a bit scared of the cars, but she knew that the nice binmen would soon come and empty her so she could go back to her little nook ready to be filled up again.
Sometimes her owners were away when it was time for her weekly outing, and once or twice they even managed to forget to put her out.
Bessie wasn't worried though, because she knew they hadn't done it on purpose and on the few occasions this happened the kind binmen would walk all the way down the drive and take Bessie out to their big, hungry truck to empty her.
When her people got home they said: "What kind binmen! We must make sure they get a Christmas box!"
One day Bessie woke up to find she had a new companion, a nice black bin called Bert. Her people told her that she now had a new job, looking after all the paper, plastic and cans that would be sent off to be recycled.
They said she would now have to wait a fortnight before the binmen came to see her, but Bessie didn't mind as she knew what an important job she was going to
be doing.
Bert was going to look after all the other rubbish and get emptied once a fortnight too. He soon began to get rather smelly because a fortnight was a long time for the stuff that was fed to Bert to stay in his tummy, so Bert and Bessie were taken to live in a new spot just inside the front gateway.
They lived under a nice silver birch and soon got used to their new home. When it came to the day for the binmen's visits their owners only had to take them a few steps to the other side of the hedge so everyone was happy.
Some time later Bessie was sitting in her little alcove when she heard the binmen's truck coming down the road. She knew her owners had gone away on holiday, but some of their children, who always made sure she was kept full of plenty of rubbish, had been looking after the house.
They weren't used to putting Bessie out so there she still was as the binmen went past. "Surely they can see me sitting here," thought Bessie. "I'm quite a bright colour and I'm only a few feet from where I'm usually put to be emptied, and Terry the Truck is always very hungry!"
But no, the binmen took no notice of poor Bessie and sailed right past.
The following week her owners arrived back from their holiday at 2am on the morning Bert was due to be emptied. "I hope they don't forget me," said Bert. "They usually put me out the night before to make sure I'm ready and waiting for the binmen."
The people had a bit of a lie-in, but when they heard Bessie and Bert's friend Barney from next door being wheeled out they remembered Bert and hurried outside to put him on the verge; they knew they were still in good time because the binmen never came down their lane until after midday.
Bert waited and waited, but oh, no! He heard Barney's owner telling his people the binmen had already come at a new, earlier time, and just like Bessie, Bert had been quite ignored. He would have to wait two more weeks!
He was rather worried because he wasn't sure if he could fit four weeks' worth of rubbish in his tummy without getting indigestion.
Sure enough, after another week, when Bert was stuffed quite full, his people had to start putting some of the rubbish beside him in black bags.
When his emptying day came round at last, Bert found he had a big black bag on his head and another at his feet as he waited for the binmen.
At last they arrived. Bert was very relieved, but then he was surprised because the binmen took the bag off his head and, instead of putting it in the mouth of their hungry truck, they put it on the floor, emptied Bert and put him back on the verge.
"Surely now they'll put the bags in Terry's mouth," thought Bert. "They can't just leave them there, especially when they must know that they are only there because they didn't empty me last time!" But no, the binmen got back into their truck and drove away.
Bessie and Bert were very unhappy. "Our owners will be upset," said Bert.
"Yes," said Bessie. "I doubt whether they'll be thinking of giving these binmen a Christmas box! I expect the people who look after them tell them to ignore us because they are more worried about their targets than looking after us bins and our owners."
"You're right," muttered Bert, "I bet they are already thinking of only emptying us once a year."

Andrew Ockwell, Earnley, Chichester



Good to be proud, but knowledge is flagging

It is always pleasing to see people in Britain proudly displaying or flying the British flag, commonly referred to as the Union Jack, and I have no doubt with the Olympic Games coming to Britain in four years' time we will see the flag popping up just about everywhere.
However, I do wish people would learn to fly it correctly and the right way up.
Whenever I see a British flag I always look to see whether it is being flown properly and sadly there are many occasions when it is upside down, an example of which is shown by the enclosed photo taken today at a building site in Spitalfields Lane, which is currently flying two union flags. One of which is upside down.
The broader white diagonal stripe should of course be uppermost at the flagpole end and lowermost at the lose (fly) end. In this case it is upside down.
A similar situation happened on Bognor seafront last year and happens time and time again, sometimes even on government buildings.
In the past this flag was sometimes deliberately flown upside down, as a distress signal or as an insult to the Queen.
Some years ago, when I was in a Scandinavian country, my hotel was flying the flags of all the nationalities of the people staying there and I politely pointed out to the receptionist the British one was upside down.
She immediately phoned the porter and it was changed, with great apology as they didn't use it very often.
The following week I noticed the same problem with a flag on top of what was then Rowes garage and when I pointed it out to the receptionist she replied 'I was the second person to tell her that, she had phoned the maintenance man but he wouldn't believe her'.
Can we start a campaign for British people to learn how to fly their own flag?

Ken Strudwick, Pound Farm Road, Chichester



Treated like animals...treated wonderfully

I was born in 1943 so have known Britain before and subsequent to the National Health service.
My earliest experiences as a child was of my mother and my grandmother meeting 'the man from the Pru' at our front door and paying our medical insurance.
Yesterday I returned home after a short stay in hospital after having a heart attack. I have just completed taking off the myriad sticky pads that had all been left on my body. The wristbands were on both of my wrists and listed my name, my patient number, and my date of birth.
When my mother died of breast cancer and massive complications at St Richard's Hospital back in the 1970s I sat with her as she died. She told me: "They've treated me like an animal, John," (she had broken a hip and a leg and she was lying in her own mess. It took her weeks to die. It wouldn't have happened to an animal).
She was a NHS patient. I am now experiencing the NHS firsthand and, with all due respect, it has not changed since the 70s.
I was ridiculed from the first contact of the ambulance men who called to get me, and despite every trick I used to try to obtain a relationship with them, they were like the ambulance men in the Benny Hill silent comedies (not quite as funny).
The team in A&E were wonderful and the doctor professional. As soon as I passed from their care into the ward, things became awful and I have not got either the space here or the energy to list the indignities I suffered.
Thank God my father (who is currently going through the system) is ensuring his own good treatment by receiving private care.
Aneurin Bevan set up the NHS to give the ordinary citizen the sort of care received by the richest and highest among us.
Despite all the dreams of post-war politicians, the system cares nothing for the individual.
I should be happy to describe my experience in detail but I am convinced no-one cares. If I were were a BUPA patient or a Freemason, I would be cared for.
It is a disgrace that 60 years have not improved the lot of Her Majesty's ordinary subjects, and people like me can still be treated like animals.

John Beer, Park Road, Bognor Regis

My father recently had a mild stroke and was taken to St Richard's.
He was cared for extremely well and referred to a surgeon, who recommended an operation to clear the artery that was causing the blockage to the brain.
But it's the following scenario he would like me to write about.
My father was given extremely quick appointments at St Richard's Hospital for scans, a consultancy meeting and then an operation date of August 20.
My husband and I took my father to St Richard's for 7am on a Wednesday and the initial staff in the ward were exceptional.
The surgeon came in while we were there and explained everything my father was going to go through. He was wonderful, clear, precise, down-to-earth and a real people person, addressing my father all the time.
Then the anaesthetist came in and once again explained everything in clear, precise terms.
These two very professional gentlemen have my dad's vote, and on behalf of my husband and myself I cannot thank them enough. The staff in the wards after my father had the surgery were faultless.
Time, I believe, is the most precious gift anyone can give and the surgeon and anaesthetist gave their time until my father, my husband and I were satisfied everything they imparted was fully understood.
The operation was a success. The surgeon, anaesthetist and all the nursing staff were truly wonderful teams. Thank you.

Catherine Hughes (on behalf of Les Terry) Aldwick Road, Bognor Regis.



To the point...

As I sit and pen my thoughts on paper, while I hear the roar, sense the smell and witness the rush of vehicles to and from the Goodwood Revival, it is the nostalgic growl of the second world war aircraft that remind me of another band of dedicated and sterling men and women, the traffic wardens.
These brave few daily face the enemy to uphold law and order in our streets. However, their abundant senior officers, those in the higher command positions of the Politically Correct Council Offices, Police Department and the like, decree from their bunkers that those who run their engines for more than 73 seconds, while the car is stationary, will be dealt with.
On the other hand, those with car engines which are not running may well be deemed to be 'parked', albeit in the middle of the street, and again be dealt with!
I, for one, would not like to follow such asinine orders and implement those extraordinary dictats from HQ.
It would be far better for all if the authorities were to ensure present road regulations are enforced, thus making our roads safer and the environment cleaner.

John Hutchings, New Park Road, Chichester

I am wondering if there is anyone out there who would like to join with me in getting a bit of revenge on these ghastly, inhuman, soul-destroying
so-called call centres, which public utilities use.
I am considering changing my surname to Senta, and my Christian name to Callum, or 'Call' as my chums call me.
Thus, when I have run up a vast gas bill by the end of next April, when 'they' (and you know who I mean) phone me, it'll be: 'Call Senta here, can I help you? Just a moment, I'll put you through.'
Then, perhaps, I'll play hours of ghastly music then ask again: 'Can I help you?'
And, of course, 'helping' is the last thing you do!
'I'll put you through...' I'll say and then, in broken English, tell them: 'Bailiffs? What bailiffs? We didn't learn that word when we studied English as a foreign language at university. Oh, you want money, you poor souls. Well, don't we all. I'll just put you through to Gordon Brown, he's got us in this mess!"

CNC Peters, North Road, Selsey

An air of self-importance exudes from two press releases about the arts collective Artel's exhibition in Chichester Cathedral. Frankly, it all sounds a bit smug.
Tim Sandys Renton believes that by photographing himself there for 15 hours while doing not very much he is 'questioning' truth, possibly in the process turning himself into an 'anti-person' and the building into an 'anti-cathedral'.
And so on for two or three more paragraphs.
Jess Loseby seems surprised that if you leave 20 £1 coins in a public place (even a church) they get stolen, and wants now to examine 'whether it is the object or the actual act of taking that is the temptation'.
Are they just pulling our leg? Since similar pretentiousness hasn't been unknown at the 'award-winning' Pallant House Gallery, the answer is probably not.

Tim Hudson, Hawthorn Close, Chichester

My husband and I went to the Goodwood Revival. We both noticed how polite everyone was and how the litter was put in the bins provided.
We have been to many race meetings and find litter is dropped everywhere. Is it, we wondered, because people were dressed in the 40s and 50s and acted accordingly?
Congratulations to the Earl of March and his great team for a well-organised and fun-filled event.

Felicity Spicer, Crossbush Road, Felpham

Recently I have been staying with a sick friend who lives not very far from the entrance to Middleton Sports Club.
During these weekends I have been appalled at the behaviour of the young people leaving the club late at night.
They shout obscenities at each other, run around the car park and site, onto other people's property and behave as drunken, rude yobs.
When my friend first bought her flat she thought, being a private sports club, she would not see behaviour usually associated with down-town pubs. She was wrong.
Perhaps also the local authority may like to review the conditions of the club's licence as the neighbours are sick and tired of complaining.

Mrs Barnes, Horley

I understand the impending flooding of the Pagham Beach Estate has actioned the Arun District Council to organise a mobile mortuary, and some sort of evacuation for any elderly persons who survive. The reason for no other action being taken is a shortage of funds.
To protect lives and property at Middleton, the council has funded beach protection to the value of £1m-plus.
It would appear Pagham is the poor relation and of no importance to our representatives at the Civic Centre, Littlehampton. How can such a difference in attitude to two districts facing the same problem be justified?

George Gray, Harbour Road, Pagham

There is a store in Rose Green selling a pack of four litre semi-skimmed milk at £1.56.
The same commodity is in a Bognor store for £1.44, and in a Pagham store for £1.49. If you wish to travel to Barnham, it retails for 89p.
It seems stores can put any price they think fit on an essential food. This is only milk – other prices vary greatly and it is about time something was done about this practice.
Pensions don't vary much, just small increases every year. The government could fix prices on all essential foods and other essentials such as toiletries.
This, I am sure, would help pensioners and other people who cannot shop around with ease.

D Maltby, Swandene, Pagham

Regarding John Passmore's query of the unusual plant in his garden (Observer letters). I would suggest it is Hedychium gardenerianum, described in the Royal Horticultural Society's Encyclopaedia of Plants and Flowers as 'upright rhizomatous perennial. In late summer and early autumn has many spikes of short-lived, fragrant, lemon-yellow and red flowers'.
Their leaves are greyish-green most markedly when young. They grow to a height of 1.5m to 2m (5ft to 6ft) and will tolerate temperatures as low as 5C (41F).

Ann Travers, Third Avenue, Felpham

After having participated in the Bognor Regis Illumination Gala, I was on holiday in the village of Moretonhampstead in Devon only to discover they were having their annual carnival.
In the afternoon I took my little girl along to see what 'funny dancing' was, and found the carnival queen with all her princesses being paraded through the village followed by a very large number of villagers dancing behind to the tune of the Floral Dance.
In the evening the carnival procession started, with a grand total of 47 entries, all of great quality. It really was spectacular to see how the community spirit of this village put on such a show.
One would have thought that with the amount of clubs, societies and businesses in Bognor Regis we would have been able to do rather better than we did for our gala.
Come on Bognor Regis, let's see some community spirit for next year.

Angela Linfield, North Bersted, Bognor Regis

I would like to add my support to Mr Cradick's letter deploring the planning permission granted to Gilham's Service Station to establish a store in their new development.
If we include the farm shop on the Cowdray estate and the convenience store at Backsall's Garage, we will then have four shops competing for what must be a small market in Easebourne.
It is madness.
The village shop, which has recently expanded following the closure of the post office, does a first-class job in supplying the needs of Easebourne residents and should be supported.
It makes absolutely no sense to allow the creation of a new convenience store at Gilham's and the action of the councils involved in allowing it is quite extraordinary and is to be deplored.

Jack Bart, Heathfield Green, Midhurst



Library's fine where it is now

Why is it felt there is a need to move the library, for the benefit of its users or the benefit of some future flat builder?
As a library user I think the building is fine where it is. If the interest and benefit of library users is really being considered, it would be best served by installing a lift to the first floor and make the building fit for purpose.
This would not cost a great deal of money and would be a real asset to the community.
Develop, not redevelop. Sounds good to me.

Paul Bignell, Aldwick

Of all the new, ludicrous ideas I hear and read about for Bognor Regis, moving the library to Upper Bognor Road on the north side of a very busy A259 is, in my opinion, one of the most stupid.
It would be much too far out of town for the average user, inaccessible and on a very dangerous road to cross.
The existing site is very well used and should be relocated.
The following were the reasons in favour of the change:
* 'Reasonably close to the main shopping area' – it already is and not far from its earlier site in London Road.
* 'Close to reasonably-sized London Road car park' – it is much nearer than the proposed new location.
* 'Close to town bus stops' – it is.
* 'Potential to expand the ground and first floors' – it has.
* 'No pressing need to relocate' – I totally agree.
* 'Staying put would leave room for Hothampton and Regis Centre sites for users which would benefit from regeneration' – I agree.
* 'Feedback from St Modwen's consultation showed residents wanted the library to stay where it is' – not surprising.
Against? As far as I can see the five items listed are all remediable and at far less cost than a new building.
A public library does not require high-technology books and data which should be housed on the college campus for easy access to the students.

J Bray, Shripney Lane, Shripney



Let Ford people decide what's best for our community

I am continually reading letters written by either Tony Dixon, John Penfold or William Hall about the benefits an eco-town would have if it was to be built at Ford. I hasten to add, Ford – not Aldingbourne, Westergate or Warningcamp, where these people are residents.
The main arguments they put forward are the creation of numerous extra jobs paying much higher wages, better educational prospects and an overall better standard of living for future generations.
I would also like to see these things come to fruition. My only argument is it is not possible, by building a new settlement at Ford, for this to happen.
Obviously the three people in question must have talked to the existing business community, as I have, but have come to a completely different answer. The majority of these business owners say they could not afford higher wages, and if competition was greatly increased they would have to lay off people or maybe close down completely.
The FAVG and FEH agree a hi-tech business park would not be possible to establish in Ford, so I would like to know where these so-called 4,000 new well-paid jobs are coming from. Please enlighten me.
I am sure the majority of people living in this area know unless the infrastructure is in place before the dwellings are built, then every advantage an eco-town would bring falls apart. I am saying once again to Messrs Dixon, Penfold and Hall, put your energy into helping the residents in your areas and leave Ford alone.

RC Field, Miles Close, Ford



Pet owners have duty to consider rest of us

I have just spent half-an-hour changing my hitherto clean trousers to put them into wash, scrubbing my shoes outside in a bucket of water, hosing down the area beneath my washing line and disposing of yet another portion of foul-smelling excrement, courtesy of one of my neighbours' cats.
I gave up my vegetable patch two years ago for fear of infecting my family with the pathogens contained in this filthy stuff.
I spend at least £50 a year to maintain a couple of ultrasonic cat scarers but still the creatures find a spot out of range.
I have put a lot of time and effort into creating a pleasant space around my home but all too often our enjoyment is spoiled by the disgusting odour of cat poo.
I read in the Observer of another horrible attack on two cats, this time with an air gun.
While I do not condone such treatment of animals, and I cannot comment on how responsible their owner might be, I have to wonder whether some other frustrated gardener has been driven to resolve a problem like mine with such extreme action.
How many cat owners just let their cats out without a thought to where they might be going to relieve themselves? Quite a few, I suspect.
If you are one of these, perhaps it is time for you to provide some toilet facilities for your pet on your own property. A small patch of dug garden or a litter tray, for example.
If you are not taking care of the problem, the chances are one of your neighbours is having to and you might be the next to appear in the paper in connection with an injured, missing or dead cat.

Colin Madeley, Sturges Road, Bognor Regis

It is not just cats that people use as targets.
Five years ago, just after my eldest son started at Felpham Community College, he was walking home when he heard a shot and saw a pellet land in front of him.
He looked around to see where it had come from, only to then hear another shot. He then felt a sharp pain in his chest. He was distraught and ran the rest of the way home.
When I opened the door to him, he blurted out that he had been shot.
I looked down to see a hole in his jacket. We took his coat off and found blood on his shirt. The pellet had pierced his skin and had left an indentation in his chest.
I rushed him to the doctor where he was examined and luckily the pellet had not gone into his skin, and was found in the lining of his jacket. We were told he had been shot by an airgun.
The surgery called the police and two-and-a-half hours later a policeman came to take a statement from my son. We were told he would make door-to-door enquiries at a few houses around the area and would let us know the outcome.
No-one was ever found to have fired the airgun at an innocent 11-year-old walking home from school on his own. No houses were searched and no-one arrested.
How cruel and heartless was this person?
The damage could have been so much worse if it was not for the layers of clothing.

Mrs S Baker-Irons, Felpham

I would like to highlight the awareness of taking dogs out into the open countryside.
We live in a rural location set within a farm. The property is adjacent to a public footpath with access over open farmland. We have kept poultry and waterfowl for a number of years.
Last Monday evening an incident took place which resulted in the needless death of an eight-month-old Aylesbury duck, and has left two children devastated by the loss, as the children had reared the duck from an egg.
A dog walker, unfamiliar with the area, had let the dog roam unleashed along the footpath. On their return, the dog had strayed away from the footpath and into the area where the ducks are kept.
In the environment the dog was in, the dog's natural instinct is to kill, which then left the duck for dead.
I did not witness the incident, but heard the other ducks in distress.
The owner had by then leashed the dog and made a hurried getaway.
I eventually caught up with the owner who admitted liability for their dog's action. Clearly the owner was visibly upset their 'beloved' dog could do such an appalling deed on an innocent duck.
The owner kindly offered to pay towards the replacement of the duck, but money will not replace the loss and heartache this has caused.
It is no fault of the dog, as the dog reacted upon its natural instinct.
This isn't an isolated case.
Our birds have fallen prey to more domestic dogs than the fox.
The majority of local dog walkers who pass by do respect the environment and do keep their dogs under control.
So for the few, please take more responsibility when out with your dog in the countryside.
Then both man, animals and birds can all enjoy the countryside we all live in.
Please follow the Countryside Code.

A Mackey, Pagham



Thanks...

On September 8 I had my first cataract operation; not as bad as going to the dentist, despite my earlier fear.
A kind couple from Pagham and their daughter gave me a lift from Worthing Hospital to home. Please thank them for me.

Carl Moy, Limmer Lane, Felpham



We don't need teenage speak

I do not think Poppy (Youth Matters) should dictate to her mother how to speak. This shows lack of respect.
Many adults are rightly proud of the English language, which is one of the most descriptive in the world.
We don't have to understand or copy teenage speak – we hear enough of the 'f' word which seems to be included in most of their talk.
The spelling that appears in most official letters these days means that youngsters leave school with very basic English. More is the pity.

Mrs V Wood, Henty Gardens, Chichester




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