There are now new publications available for Watch members to use to promote and develop Neighbourhood Watch and Home Watch in their areas.

The police in Charnwood are investigating two burglaries in which a large quantity of Swithland slate roof tiles were stolen.

About half a tonne of the grey roof slates were stolen from the premises of a charity in the Charnwood Forest during the early hours of the morning on Thursday 23rd October 2008. The thieves returned again during the morning of Thursday 6th November and stole a further two and a half tonnes costing a total of about £3000. The slates were stored in an outbuilding and were used by the charity to repair their buildings.

The Neighbourhood and Home Watch Network (NHWN) was launched across the nation with a brief to keep an eye on crime and crime fighting on our home front.

With the backing of the police and Home Office we will keep you up to speed on developments both locally and nationally via a constantly-updated website and regular newletters. Use this link to download your copy and to register to receive future editions.

National Consumer Week Events in the East Midlands
Various events will be held nationally for National Consumer Week run by the Trading Standards Institute in association with Consumer Direct, why not attend an event near you and find our your consumer rights where our trading standards officers will be giving out free merchandise and advice about how to become a savvy shopper this christmas!

ACCESS ALL AREAS: WINE HAS BEEN DEMYSTIFIED AT LAST!
- Sainsbury’s launches unique wine style guide

As shoppers start stocking up on wine for the festive season, Sainsbury’s is today revolutionising the way its customers shop for wine. The supermarket is launching an exclusive new style guide; developed to demystify wine and guide customers to choose wines similar to those they already know and enjoy. This comes as research commissioned by the retailer reveals that 1 in 5 people admit to always sticking to the same variety of wine; with women owning up to being much less adventurous than men. And with budgets tighter than ever this year, the retailer realises the importance of helping customers choose a wine that both they and their guests will enjoy. More »

A fangtastic horror spoof musical from Barrow Youth Theatre
Rehearsals are in full swing for our next musical “The Dracula Spectacula”. With book and lyrics by John Gardiner and music by Andrew Parr, this rocky "spooky musical” is a fangtastic show not to be missed! Young American schoolteacher, Nadia Naive and her party, are grounded on a flight from Pennsylvania, landing in Transylvania - and you can guess what happens there!
Schoolteacher Nadia Naïve finds herself battling the power of evil in this full-of-fun spooky musical. At her side are noble Nick, the renowned and dashing scientist, Father O’Stake and the cuddly Hans and Gretel. Can they conquer the forces of darkness? Dracula, Prince of Darkness, his mother the Countess Wraith and their grovelling minion Genghis are formidable opponents.
Director, Gordon Kenneth reports: “We have a cast of forty talented and vibrant youngsters. They will give of their best and their best is pretty good.” A sizzling score and a hilarious script make this show another opportunity for young and old to be entertained in Barrow Youth Theatre’s record-breaking 5th anniversary production!
Friday 21st November 2008 at 7pm
Saturday 22nd November 2008 2 pm and 7pm
At Humphrey Perkins Community Centre, Cotes Road, Barrow upon Soar
Tickets Adults £6 Children £4. Available from The Paper Shop, Barrow and from Judith on 07718153117 or rodgers_david@hotmail.com
Special Party booking reservations: details on request from Carol on 01509 620572

Savvy shoppers are being urged to report misleading and aggressive selling and scams during National Consumer Week, which starts on November 17. Trading Standards Officers will be available for one day in each of the ten main libraries in the County, to provide advice and record information about problem traders.
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David Bull, Head of Leicestershire County Council Trading Standards Service said: “If you are a Savvy Shopper, this is your chance to make a difference! Ask your nearest library for information on when and at which Library Trading Standards Officers will be visiting to record any Rip-Offs, Scams, Loan Sharks or other Unfair Trading Practices that you may have come across. Let us know who the rogues are, so that we can target them.”

Motorists are being reminded to check their vehicle lights are all working properly now that the evenings are getting darker earlier.

With increased road safety in mind, officers from Leicestershire Constabulary's Road Policing Unit are going to be on the look out for vehicles with defective lights.

Defective brake or head lights can be a sign of poor vehicle maintenance and can put lives at risk.

With the price of utility bills soaring everyone is conscious of finding ways to reduce their energy usage but still stay warm this winter. On Saturday 15 November Sainsbury’s, in association with the Energy Saving Trust, will be giving customers useful tips on how to save energy in the kitchen.
Householders can save upto £340 a year by making their homes more energy efficient, and the kitchen is a great place to start. By making small changes in the kitchen, like not putting hot food in the fridge and putting a lid on saucepans, households across the UK can save on their energy bills
Customers who shop at Sainsbury’s stores on Saturday 15 November will be able to pick up a leaflet detailing a number of ways that they can reduce their energy use in the kitchen.
The kitchen is a really easy place for people to start to reduce their carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions and take action on climate change. For instance, most people don’t realise that kettles consume over a quarter of all electricity used in domestic cooking. The Energy Saving Trust has calculated that if everyone boiled only the water they needed to make a cup of tea, we could save £170 million and enough electricity in a year to power the UK’s street lights for 7 months! More »

Eat out for 1/2 price using the Gourmet Society at the UK's best restaurants.

The Gourmet Society has over 32,000 members in the UK who regularly dine out at their favourite restaurants throughout the Midlands, North East and Southern England.
With almost 2,000 restaurants members are spoilt for choice whether they wish to dine in Leicestershire, Newcastle, Birmingham, Nottingham, Oxford to name but a few places with Gourmet Society restaurants.
Leicestershire Villages users are able to save £20 on membership, by using the promotional code: VILLAGES

During the afternoon of Tuesday 4th November a number of distraction burglaries occurred around the force area. 3 of these were in the North of the county in the Coalville and Thurmaston areas but later in the evening a further distraction burglary occurred in Enderby which is in our South area.

Current and potential volunteer promoters of Centre Screen, the mobile cinema scheme for Leicestershire, are invited to attend an informal event to be updated on developments and to provide feedback. If you’ve not yet had Centre Screen come to your village then you can find out how it all works. It is an opportunity for you to meet fellow volunteers and share experiences and you will also have the opportunity to look at what films are coming up. The events will be attended by representatives from Phoenix Arts, who manage Centre Screen, Leicestershire County Council, who fund it and the Arts Development Officer for the nearby local authority who also fund and support the scheme.
Dates of events are:
Monday 10th November, 7pm – 9pm at Hoby Village Hall, 32 Main Street, Hoby, Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire, LE14 3DT
Tuesday 11th November – 2pm – 4pm at Botcheston Village Hall, Main Street, Botcheston, Leicestershire, LE9 9FF
Tea, coffee, biscuits & cake will be provided!
For further information, directions to the venue and to book your place please contact Emily Horwood on 0116 267 0015 or ehorwood@leics.gov.uk

Recycle for Leicestershire - Recipe Competition Are you creative in the kitchen? Can you turn last night's left overs into a three course meal? If so then recycle for Leicestershire want to hear from you!
They are looking for innovative ways to turn that forgotten carrot or potato into an impressive dish!
All you have to do for a chance to win one of the fabulous prizes, including a first prize of vouchers to the value of £150.00, is submit a recipe of your own choice. For details see the attached leaflet or log onto www.leics.gov.uk. Competition closing date 28.11.08.

The Rural Community Council is now delivering Suicide Awareness Training to Leicester City. On November 26th there is an all day training course which targets occupational groups at risk e.g. vets, doctors, dentists, haulage workers and those working in the mental health area,

If you know someone who might benefit from this training and they are in one of the above groups, do please give Nickie Philbin a ring or drop her an email.

Direct line is 0116 268 9712 or email nphilbin@ruralcc.org.uk

How messing about on boats saved Britain’s waterways

On 25 October 1968, a single piece of Government legislation transformed the UK’s ailing waterways from an all but abandoned Georgian transport network into a booming tourism success story now enjoyed by more than 1.5 million people every week.

To mark the 40th anniversary of one of the most important moments in the 200 year history of the UK’s canals, British Waterways is calling on visitors old and new to help celebrate the vibrancy of today’s 2,200 miles network of waterways by contributing their holiday memories to a giant virtual scrapbook. More »

The new RCC Community Funding Guide has just been published. In addition to hints and tips on applying for funding you will find details of over 150 funders.

ADAPT Charity Festive Ladies Night to raise funds for ADAPT reg no 1080112.

Friday 14th November 2008 8pm to 10.30pm

Syston Community Centre, School Street, Syston, LE7 1HN

Tickets £3.00 to include a glass of wine/soft drink

Contact Lindsay for tickets: 0116 269 7071/07847 264 382

Those attending include Ragdale Hall, Phoenix Cards, Virgin Vie, Body Shop, Palmistry by Sharon, Nail Art by Tasha, complementary therapies to include reflexology, reiki and indian head massage, Twinkle Designs, Usborne Books, Colour Me Beautiful etc.

The Rural Community Council(Leicestershire & Rutland)are hosting 2 seminars that will help people to understand and react to climate change issues and rising fuel costs.
VENUE 1 : Kibworth Grammar SchoolHall (Harborough District)
DATE: 22nd October 2008

VENUE 2 : Thornton Village Hall (Hinckley & Bosworth)
DATE: 30th October 2008

To book a place please contact dcook@ruralcc.org.uk
0116 2689706

Leicestershire Constabulary is launching a series of community engagement events seeking views from members of the public on the review of the Race Action Plan, which forms part of the Equality Scheme.

The Race Action Plan delivers accountability and scrutiny applied to policing by the Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000 to eliminate institutional racism, cultural stereotyping and exclusion and to promote a culture of inclusiveness which embraces and respects diversity.

The Rural Community Council (Leicestershire & Rutland) has been awarded a national quality standards accreditation, making it only the 7th RCC out of 38 in the country to reach this standard.

In 2005 the RCC reached Defra Level 1 followed in 2006 with Level 2. In August 2008 the RCC submitted a wide range of documents and policies for inspection. In September telephone interviews were conducted by the inspection team with key stakeholders. On 14 /15th October an inspecting officer from ACRE (Action for Communities in Rural England) visited the RCC and carried out a series of interviews and a further inspection. More »