NEWS 2007 July - December (See here for Jan-June)

Dog injured by bike
By Rachel Wareing © The Argus Fri 21st December

A dog owner is calling for cyclists on a seaside path to slow down after her pet was run over.

Wendy Johnson was walking her four white west Highland white terriers between Saltdean and Rottingdean when a male cyclist came up behind them and hit one of the dogs, called Annie.She said: "He must have been going at 30mph. I turned around and saw him riding over her stomach."She got up and ran away but I managed to catch hold of her. He said 'she's okay', but I said 'don't you know about internal injuries?' "I was crying my eyes out. My dogs are my life - they're my substitute children and mean the world to me.

"I keep reliving her going splat on the ground and him running right over her."Annie was checked over by a vet after the accident on Sunday morning and she has not suffered any serious injuries beyond bruising, but the accident has shattered Ms Johnson's dream of showing her at Crufts next March.Annie has previously won best of breed at other dog shows and Ms Johnson had high hopes for her.She said: "She had to have her coat shaved for the scan and it will not regrow in time for Cruft's, so I won't be able to enter her."Her character has changed too. She's very clingy and that's no good for a show dog.

"I was hoping to use her as a brood bitch next year but she might not be able to have puppies after this."She tried to telephone the cyclist to tell him Annie had not suffered any serious injury but he had given her a false number.Ms Johnson, 48, from Rottingdean, fears the lycra-clad riders who travel at racing speeds along the Rottingdean and Saltdean footpath may one day kill a dog or child.

"It's not a matter of if, but when."It's a wonderful route and I have no objections to families on bikes using the path, but you see professionals dressed in all their training gear going along like maniacs.

"You can't hear them coming behind you -it's really dangerous."

Omar Deghayes is on his way back to Brighton
© The Argus Thurs 20th December

Omar Deghayes' mother spoke of her delight after her son was bailed by a court in London.

After the former Guantanamo Bay detainee was finally freed, his mother Zohra Zewawi, said: "I'm really, really happy. Yesterday I could not sleep. All today I have been so stressed but now I'm so happy."

His mother, sister and brother were at the City of Westminster Magistrates' Court to support the 38-year-old Libyan law student as he applied for bail to fight a Spanish arrest warrant.

District Judge Timothy Workman granted bail to Mr Deghayes on condition that a £50,000 surety was put up and that he obeyed a curfew order and lived at his address in Saltdean, Brighton.

Vanessa Redgrave put up £15,000 towards the surety.

Fears over Omar's health
By Miles Godfrey © The Argus

The news that Guantanamo Bay detainee Omar Deghayes has been released by the US authorities has been tempered by substantial fears for his health.

Supporters believe he could now face severe difficulties adapting to normal life at the family home in Saltdean. Jackie Chase, of the Save Omar campaign, said: "We don't know what condition he will be in at all. There are substantial fears he will be have been very severely affected mentally and that he could be suffering."

It is now understood Omar will land at Luton airport at around 7pm tonight before being taken to Paddington Green police station for questioning and a medical. Long term mental health assessments are expected to take longer. Omar's brother, Abubaker Deghayes, told The Argus: "Obviously it is fantastic news. I am very happy but I won't believe it until I see Omar."

Mr Deghayes said he was being kept up to date on Omar's movements by lawyers but had still not been told when and where his flight was landing. Brighton Kemptown MP Des Turner, who along with The Argus and Omar's friends and family have campaigned for his release, said: "It is fantastic news. "I never understood the Americans' case against Omar or why they felt it was necessary to hold him along with hundreds of others for so long in such inhumane conditions."

Omar's sister Amani Deghayes said: "I'm not really sure what's going to happen to Omar and his family now. "As a family we want them to take it easy and to adapt to normal life." Lawyers acting for Omar have told The Argus they anticipate him being released by the Metropolitan Police at some stage tomorrow and he will then be free to return to his family's home in Saltdean. A spokesman for the Met Police said: "Three men are being accompanied on a charter flight from Cuba by Metropolitan Police officers for security reasons."

Omar Deghayes arrested in London
© The Argus Weds 19th December

Omar Deghayes has landed back in Britain.

The 38-year-old, whose family live in Saltdean, was arrested and taken from Luton airport to Paddington Green police station in London.

He has just returned from Guantanamo Bay where he has been held for the past five years.

A Metropolitan Police spokesman said he would be medically examined by a forensic medical examiner to ensure that he was fit to be detained and interviewed by police.

The spokesman added: "Inquiries are being carried out, as they must be, strictly in accordance with UK law."

Lovely flickr & more photos - thanks Mark, Jeffrey, Simon & Jem!

here

Cheeky Monkeys Newsletter with Jan dates

Dear All,

Apologies for the delay, can't believe it's the 11th already - things have been a bit manic! However all's well and just a few things to note this month:

Father Christmas is at Cheeky Monkeys Saturday mornings from 10.15-12.30pm! Hohoho, all babies and children welcome £2.50 including a gift and treat from the tree (anything from Bickiepegs to Candy canes!)

Mother and Baby group is now finished until Monday January 7th 2-4pm. Please note this is not funded or subsidised by anyone but Cheeky Monkeys, and a donation of £1 is asked to contribute towards refreshments, wear and tear, lighting etc etc. I'll try to make sure the coin box is in easy access in future!

Vibha Donne will be running hourly baby massage sessions at the the mother and baby group. Starting at around 2.10pm £10 a session, this is a tutorial and all oils, wipes etc are supplied.

Small Print: Anyone who came along to the Small Print jewellery session, all your little gems are now awaiting collection at the shop. This was such a popular event that some of you weren't able to book a slot. Fear not, Melissa will be back probably around February/March time so get thinking about Mothers and Fathers day gifts!

And finally remember to refer to the website www.cheeky-monkeys.me.uk for any changes to the timetable, new products, news, general enquiries and so on, also there are a few links to other website, so let me know if you would like to be added to it! Oh, which reminds me, Date for your diary; SUNDAY 8TH JUNE 2008. BRIGHTON EXPO BABY SHOW (I'll add that link as soon as I can!)

Hope to see you soon, if not, have a very happy Christmas and peaceful new year.

Kind regards,
Michelle

Michelle Marcar
Cheeky Monkeys
124, Lustrells Vale,
Saltdean, BN2 8FB 01273-302 644
Cheeky_monkeys_saltdean@hotmail.com
www.Cheeky-Monkeys.me.uk

Got a house near you with great xmas lights?

Send me a picture or tell me where and your interpid webmisteress will go out an take a picture to put on the site...

Email me here

Weather Vane Answer needed....

Can anyone help.....

here is an email I received from

Anthony McIntosh
PMSA / UoB National Recording Project - Sussex
School of Historical and Critical Studies
University of Brighton

I am a Researcher at the University of Brighton working on the Public Monuments and Sculpture Association's National Recording Project for Sussex.

The project aims to survey, photograph and record the details of the diverse range of monuments and sculpture throughout the county of Sussex. The database will eventually be fully accessible online and a volume of the Liverpool University Press books 'Public Sculpture of Britain' will be produced for Sussex. I wonder if it would be possible to ask your readers through your web pages if anyone has a photograph of the inscriptions that were on the weather vane on the cliffs at East Saltdean.

They are now completely illegible and I can find no record of them. I understand that there was an inscription regarding the anniversary of the second world war and a later one regarding the death of Princess Diana?

Any help you may be able to provide would be most appreciated - email me here if you like.

Freak Power to reform - without Fatboy Slim
By Jess Bauldry © The Argus

Chart-topping nineties band Freak Power are reuniting - but without star turn Fatboy Slim.

The Brighton acid jazz group, who hit fame with the single Turn On, Tune In, Cop Out in 1995, has announced plans for a series of reunion gigs next year in the city and in London. They are even hoping to return to several European festivals and Glastonbury, where they once staged their most famous performance.

Trombone-playing frontman Ashley Slater, a Canadian who moved to Saltdean, made the announcement on the Facebook website, telling fans he was trying to get as many of the original group together as possible. Drummer Jim Carmichael, keyboardist Eddie Stevens and bass player Jesse Graham have all signed up for the concerts at Concorde 2 in Brighton on February 20 and at Jazz Rooms in London on February 22, but Hove DJ Fatboy Slim's name is notable for its absence.

When The Argus asked Fatboy whether he would be getting involved he said he was surprised to hear the reunion was happening. He said: "I think the band have reluctantly let me go due to my lack of commitment. I haven't turned up for rehearsals for seven years now so I can see their point of view. I wish them all the best with it."

Slater said he had put a call in to Fatboy but joked the band had let him go due to a lack of commitment.

He said: "What has been great is that everyone has been really enthusiastic about this, we can't wait. Norman has given us his blessing but said he can't join us because of other commitments. We'll make sure there is a guitar ready and waiting for him when we play at Concorde 2 though, just in case he is passing by."

Screen shots from cellmast website
click on pics for link to site

Cash-strapped puppy faces death
By Jess Bauldry © The Argus

A couple are in a race against time to pay for an operation to save their critically ill puppy from being put down. Lil Missy, a five-week-old Staffordshire Bull Terrier, has not left the vet's surgery since an accident a week ago that left her unable to eat without a tube. Paula Annis and Sasha Wood, of Lustrells Wood, Saltdean, have been told their puppy will have no quality of life if she does not have a skin graft operation which will cost £2,000. The owners say they cannot afford to pay the bill and are unable to get a bank loan so plan to hold a sponsored walk in a last-ditch attempt to save their beloved pet. The pair will walk about seven miles from Saltdean to The Palace Pier, in Brighton, in fancy dress, this Sunday (November 6) at 11am. Miss Annis, a security driver, said: "I haven't got the money to do it. If I could get a loan I would but I just can't get one. It's sad because I want her to have a chance at a life and a nice life." advertisement Lil Missy was the only puppy of a litter of two to survive when mother Tilly gave birth five weeks ago.

The owners had to pay out £600 for a caesarian section because of complications in the birth, placing them under financial strain. A week ago the accident-prone pooch fell out of her bed while playing with her mum. The fall shattered her nose and left a large hole in part of her mouth. A vet stitched up the hole but it has not healed and now Lil Missy must be fed through a tube or she could choke. Miss Annis said: "Whatever goes in her mouth there's a chance it will go into her lungs and she could choke. She pulled the tube out the other day and the vet wants her to learn to eat for herself. But she is losing weight fast." A skin graft operation, which would be carried out by specialists in London, could repair the damage, allowing Lil Missy to feed herself. If it does not go ahead, the friends say Lil Missy will have no quality of life and will have to be put to sleep. Miss Annis said: "Making that decision is not something I will do lightly but I've got to do what's best for her. "She's already been through a lot. It's really upsetting but I don't know what else to do." Anyone who is interested in Sponsoring Lil Missy's owners in their walk can do so by calling 07849 373191. 9:45am Friday 9th November 2007

November Newsletter from the lovely Michelle at Cheeky Monkeys.

Dear All,

You may have noticed that this is sent from another Cheeky Monkeys address. Please feel free to ask any questions or make any enquiries to info@cheeky-monkeys.me.uk including if you would know anyone who would like to be added to or taken off of the distribution list. Also please remember that any changes or additions to activities and classes will be detailed on www.cheeky-monkeys.me.uk Very soon I will soon be able to access credit/debit card payments, which also means I can accept remote payment for items available to buy at the shop, and also a selection available to buy via the website. – You never know, I just might be able to help you get Christmas present buying a bit easier for you! Remember I am happy to put items aside with a deposit and you are then free to pay off the balance at your convenience.

Dates for your diary:

Tuesday 6th November 12-3pm – Mums in Bizz Seminar Brighton Marina. Thinking of starting up in business?Please contact nicky@mumsinbizz.co.uk

Friday 9thNovember 7-10pm Ladies Evening St. Margaret’s school. A great evening including stalls with Christmas goodies (I’ll be there with Phoenix Cards and some

items from the shop) enjoy a glass of wine or two, have the opportunity for a massage by Claire Fortis, raffle prizes and other treats as well!

Friday 9th and Friday 16th November 10am-12pm Baby Massage £20 for 2 hour one-2-one session with Vibha Donne why not bring a friend and their baby?

Tuesday 20th November 2-4pm – Pottery Party with Gill from Hands on Pottery

Saturday 24th November 10-12pm – Small Print. Beautiful silver jewellery with your child’s fingerprints imprinted…have a look! www.smallprints.co.uk

Monday 26th November – 2-4pm Post Natal Massage. Qualified midwife and massage therapist Claire will be available to do a 20 minute back, shoulder and neck massage for £10. Please email or call me to book a time slot between 2 and 4pm.

Activities Update: Buenos Dias are still not in a position to commit to holding classes at Cheeky Monkeys. They need at least 7 students to make it viable. However, I think they may be renewing the Peacehaven classes next year, which may suit the ‘Saltdeaners’. I am more than happy to have the shop as a venue for Buenos Dias on either Mondays or Wednesdays. Mondays 4-5pm was looking to be the most suitable slot. - But please can you direct your interest/enquiries direct to Buenos Dias their number is: 323-431

Wednesday morning group. This will hopefully be revived in the coming weeks. 10-10.45am Music, movement and floor gym for toddlers. Please contact me for further details and of course check www.cheeky-monkeys.me.uk for updates.

Popular items available to buy at Cheeky Monkeys:

Shoo Shoos – gorgeous winter booties small for 6-12mths – XL 24-36month- £16

Kari-Me slings - £40

Kidimoto Bikes (like-a-bikes) also available in red, yellow and blue £75

Mini Micro Scooters - £40 with free knee/elbow pads while stocks last

Look forward to seeing you all soon!

Kind regards,

Michelle
Michelle Michelle Marcar
Cheeky Monkeys 124, Lustrells Vale, Saltdean, BN2 8FB 01273-302 644 644 Cheeky_monkeys_saltdean@hotmail.com www.Cheeky-Monkeys.me.uk

Power cables removed from Downs

By Rachel Pegg © The Argus

More than £870,000 is being spent to remove power lines from the Downs. Environmental experts have given EDF Energy the go-ahead to remove 8.5km of overhead power lines in the area of outstanding natural beauty (AONB). The money is being invested to remove the overhead network and the supporting poles in three areas.

The projects will benefit residents who enjoy the views of the Downs from Jevington, Seaford, Saltdean, Telscombe, Rottingdean and Woodingdean. The work, which is due to start next year, will also be good news for visitors to the popular beauty spots.

Below - Power cables on Telscombe Tye

A team of experts regularly meets to assess projects to install underground cables in place of overhead power lines in AONB and national parks. The group was established by EDF Energy Networks, which is responsible for the power distribution network in the South East. Barry Hatton, EDF Energy networks director of capital programme, said: "EDF Energy has brought together environmental experts from every AONB and national park in the South East and east of England to ensure that the funding we have will have maximum impact on the regions most beautiful landscapes.

"The projects which the committee have approved in the South Downs are great evidence that the system is working and we are proud to lend our technical expertise to bring them to fruition." Martin Beaton, South Downs officer at the South Downs Joint Committee, said: "This is a very welcome opportunity to remove intrusive power lines from the Sussex Downs AONB.

"Such landscapes have been recognised by successive Governments as having the highest level of protection due to their natural beauty. "To remove some of the most prominent power lines has been a desire of the Joint Committee and its predecessor organisations for a long time and this is reflected in the South Downs Management Plan. "The Joint Committee particularly welcomes the lead taken by EDF Energy in setting up a steering group and providing technical help through a dedicated project officer."

The first project will see more than 1km of network and 19 wooden poles removed from Cuckmere Valley, near Seaford. Part of a two phase scheme will see 2.3km of power lines and 24 wooden poles which run along the edge of Friston Forest, between Friston and Jevington, taken down. A further 5.2km of power lines will be taken down between Telscombe Tye and Woodingdean.

The major projects will have a significant impact on the landscape in the area. The rolling hills of the Downs will have several lengths of power lines removed and underground cables installed in their place. Each phase will take several months. Are there any other areas which would benefit from having underground cables? Tell us about them below.

Search Request...

Can anyone help with this request? If so email me here -

I am trying to trace the whereabouts of (the late?) Mrs Betty Edwards (widow of Clifford Edwards), late of 10a Oaklands Avenue, Saldean, Brighton; or any of her children.

Ghosts among the sheets

Most authors might choose the beach or the rolling Sussex countryside for inspiration. But Brighton's Bob North chose a laundry to think through the plot of his first book. Bob, 53, spent weekends in the laundry room of Southdowns Court, in Lustrells Vale, Saltdean, where he works as a manager for Anchor Retirement Housing, to gain inspiration for his novel, Jimmy Gerratty - Ghost Disposer. He said: "For me the laundry is the quietest place in the building, when it's not being used, and the perfect place to escape noisy family life."

The home also supplied him with an eager group of critics, with the tenants being the first to read the proofs and give him useful feedback. Bob's novel idea came when he and his wife, Rosalind, tried to pacify their then nine-year-old daughter, Elizabeth. She had been upset when her hamster died, until they told her she could talk to the ghosts of her pets. advertisement Bob spent 18 months writing the book, drawing on memories of fishing trips with his parents to Ireland, and his love of fantasy books. The father-of-four said: "My story is about a 12- year-old boy from County Cavan in Eire who is given a gift to communicate with the ghosts of animals and befriends a ghost dog called Bindorf. It's not scary. I want children who have lost pets to be reassured by it." 2:57am Thursday 11th October 2007

Grand Ocean Website

Council offers parenting skills classes

By Rachel Pegg © The Argus

John and Tracey Spencer Mothers and fathers struggling to cope are being offered classes to teach them how to be good parents. Lessons deal with issues ranging from trouble with homework to teenage rebellion, drugs and alcohol. Classes even offer parents advice on how to cope when their child has been given an antisocial behaviour order.

Council offers parenting skills classes

By Rachel Pegg © The Argus

There are also courses for parents of older and younger children. The classes are provided by Brighton and Hove City Council as part of its autumn programme of evening classes for mothers and fathers. Tracey and John Spencer, of Stanmer Avenue, Saltdean, enrolled because they were having troubles with their daughters with arguments and shouting at home. The girls, Brogan and Fern, are now seven and 15. Mrs Spencer, 36, said: "My 15-year-old and I could have killed each other sometimes. We are so very alike. I think I have a better relationship with her now." The Spencers also wanted advice on how to cope with children with a big age gap. Mrs Spencer said: "We felt we needed to be singing from the same hymn book and bring them up the same way. My husband couldn't really relate to the children very well - that is why we went on the course. "We had disagreements about certain ways we brought them up, punishments and things. We actually found the course was quite good because it helps you learn those strategies." Mrs Spencer has now become a qualified practitioner teaching the Triple P course, which stands for Positive Parenting Programme. She said: "Triple P is for a recurring problem such as children not getting ready in the morning. That can really get you down. Or it can be more serious things like a child who is violent towards you or a child on an order. "I had a parent on a course and she said she had tried all the other counselling and it didn't work and this has worked. It has given me a lot of confidence. It doesn't judge you. It is about teaching these strategies to help you." Mr Spencer, 45, admitted he was sceptical at first. He said: "I thought it would be a load of baloney. But even by the end of the first session, I realised there might be some sense in it. "It shows you ways you can get children to act as you would wish them to and it shows you ways of modifying your behaviour can help improve theirs. "For example, if you want your child to stop being angry and shouting and you get angry and shout at them to stop shouting, then you're giving them the message that it's okay to shout. "With hindsight it's common sense, but it never occurred to me until I did Triple P." To find out about the courses, run by the city's Children and Young People's Trust, call the family information service on 01273 293545 or email familyinfo@ brighton-hove.gov.uk Can a course help you to be a good parent?

11:43am Thursday 4th October 2007

Cheeky Monkeys October news

Dear All,

Thanks to those of you who came along to support the Ladies Evening a couple of Tuesdays ago. Lots of you are getting oh so prepared for Christmas time, and I know many managed to do some interesting networking! Remember there are Mums in Biz seminars held every 1st Tuesday of the month. Please contact nickyc@mumsinbiz.co.uk for further details.

By the way many of the Phoenix orders are now in ready for collection - but please remember I place these card orders at least once a month so feel free to call in or email me any orders you have throughout the year. Incidentally this fab card company are always looking for new recruits - could be a
n ideal way of earning extra cash around family life....let me know if you want more information, I'd be happy to help out. In the meantime www.phoenix-trading.co.uk is always worth a browse to see their gorgeous range of cards and stationery.

I haven't got around to arranging any 'dates for your diary' this month, however there will probably be another pottery session before Christmas, so watch this space.

Mother and Baby Group: This will begin on Monday 8th October 2-4pm. do
nation is asked to cover refreshments and general 'wear and tear' this is aimed at 0-crawling age. I have arranged for a couple of 'guest speakers' to come along and give some info. On the 15th, Summer from the beautiful birthing centre will be demonstrating natural nappies, and on 29th Sharon from Snugazabug will be bringing along her foot-muff creations (I have some for sale already). I hope to have a 1st aider coming in to talk us through basic 1st aid for babies as well. Do let me know if you have other ideas.

And finally, I have spoken about soap nuts to some of you already. These are a fascinating natural product that replaces the need for fabric detergents -which is great for washing new born baby clothes as well as for childrenwith skin complaints. Great for the environment and very cheap to buy. Anyway, I may well be a stockist of soap nuts, but I'd like some of your feedback first. I will give a free sample of these soap nuts which come with very easy instructions to the first 10 people who come in with an old or odd child's sock (all will be revealed).

- Remember there's a great range of Fairtrade fancy dress costumes available all year 'round, however bats and purple fairies are especially popular at the end of October.......!

Look forward to seeing you soon.

Kind regards,
Michelle

Michelle Marcar
Cheeky Monkeys 124, Lustrells Vale, Saltdean, BN2 8FB 01273-302644 Cheeky_monkeys_saltdean@hotmail.com
www.Cheeky-Monkeys.me.uk

Omar may be home in days

By Lee Gibbs © The Argus

The brother of Guantanamo detainee Omar Deghayes says the family hopes to have him home within days.
Law student Omar, 37, who has been held at Camp Delta since 2002, was named as one of the detainees whose freedom has been requested by the Government. His older brother, Abubaker, speaking from his home in Saltdean, said the family had been "crying tears of joy" at the thought they would be reunited soon.
Abubaker said: "We can't believe that after all these years, the campaigning and lawyers, that Omar could finally be home soon. I won't believe it until I see him but from what I understand it could be very soon, weeks - even days. "His files are closed and the Americans want to reduce numbers. It could have happened a lot sooner if the British Government had wanted it." Omar was granted refugee status in Britain as a 16-year-old after his mother and three siblings fled their native Libya following the political assassination of their father.
Mr Deghayes was arrested in Pakistan after the fall of the Taliban and accused of plotting to commit terrorist attacks against the US. His family protested his innocence, saying he dropped out of university to go to Afghanistan in 2001, where he married and fathered a son.
His lawyers have argued that a man in a Chechen terrorist training video incorrectly identified as Mr Deghayes was a Saudi called Abu Walid, who is now dead. Campaigners say Mr Deghayes has suffered repeated abuse at the hands of US guards. His brother said: "Omar's wife Maryam is still in Afghanistan and his son Jamil is five now. It has been a living hell for all of us but especially my mother."

Open your garden for charity

Charity calls for new volunteer garden owners
Following the success of its 2007 open gardens event this summer, The Sussex Beacon has plans to double the size of the event next year. The charity is appealing for new garden owners to join the Garden Gadabout event in July 2008. With financial support from The Argus Appeal for the costs of publishing the brochure, the charity plans to expand the event to 40 gardens or more in 2008.

Volunteer garden owner, Andrew Doig, says “Some of the garden owners who joined us for the first time in 2007 event were a little apprehensive about what to expect, but afterwards reported being very pleased to have taken part. There’s great pleasure to be had from hosting an event where people who love gardens come and appreciate what you have been trying to achieve in your garden. There’s a whole buzz to the event too.”

In all 22 gardens opened in July 2007, attracting 2,600 visits and collecting more than £6,000 for the charity. The volunteer-led event now has plans to double in scale next summer. Organisers have already had 30 offers from garden owners and want still more to join in. “The size of a garden is not that important. We are looking for gardens of all sizes. Interesting garden designs, interesting planting or just a special atmosphere created by the garden owners is enough to please visitors”, says volunteer Andrew Doig. “We have managed to establish local “trails” of gardens in Kemp Town and Montpelier which have proven very successful with both garden owners and local visitors. This year, we want to establish garden trails in neighbourhoods of Hove, in Fiveways, Queen’s Park, Roundhill and at Peacehaven and Saltdean. We want neighbourhood and community groups to join us and make an event of it in their area. .Anyone who enjoys showing people their garden should consider joining us. It is a very sociable event and it is a great way to get to know friendly people in your neighbourhood.”
The Sussex Beacon has a splendid and accessible website detailing all the gardens open www.gardengadabout.org.uk ~ It produces, in quantity, a comprehensive brochure for visitors. Posters and media coverage help generate visitors but so too do the efforts of garden owners who e-mail all their friends and leaflet their neighbourhoods. Last year some gardens had as many as 200 visitors in a day. Garden owners who have opened their gardens in previous years and know what is involved are on hand to talk to anyone who is considering opening their garden. Garden owners should contact Andrew Doig on 01273 692770 andrew.doig@hotmail.co.uk

For more information regarding the Garden Gadabout 2007 please call garden owner Andrew Doig on 01273 692770. Julie Hales or Lucy Brandram, Press contacts at the Sussex Beacon 01273 694222 (office hrs only)
BBC2’s Open Gardens programme with Carol Klein has generated a lot of interest amongst gardeners who might like to open their gardens for charity. The programme is based on the National Garden Scheme’s “Yellow Book” scheme (www.ngs.org.uk). The Sussex Beacon’s Garden Gadabout differs in that its gardens are all in one city and are open on the same two days. The entrance fee is confined to £1 per garden visited making it possible to visit a succession of smaller gardens in a neighbourhood.
Garden photos are available on request. Participants do not need to commit for both days. Providing refreshments is not compulsory.
Sussex Beacon is the only purpose built centre of its kind in the UK. It is a residential centre offering continuing care for men and women living with HIV and AIDS. To find out more about the Beacon’s work or to donate please visit www.sussexbeacon.org.uk

Club to get extra training pitch

By Katya Mira © The Argus

A football club is to have an extra training pitch.

Saltdean United, which plays in Sussex County Football League Division Three, has been given permission to build a mini sports field for club and community use.

The new area will be 40 metres by 60 metres and will complement the full-size pitches which already exist in the eight acre site at Saltdean Vale, Saltdean.

Mon Oct 1st

Omar in the dark about his release

By Miles Godfrey© The Argus

Guananamo Bay detainee Omar Deghayes is still in the dark about the British Government's request for his release, The Argus has learned. Mr Deghayes's lawyer Clive Stafford Smith revealed that his client, a former Brighton resident, had not been informed of the move, which campaigners say raises dramatically the chances of his returning home. But Mr Stafford Smith said this would be put right this week when he visited the detainee at the US detention centre in Cuba. advertisementLibyan-born Mr Deghayes, who has languished in US custody for five years without charge, had previously been shunned by the Foreign Office because he was not a British citizen. In August ministers executed a dramatic U-turn and asked the Americans to return him to the UK. The breakthrough came two years after The Argus launched its Justice for Omar campaign, which has called for Mr Deghayes to be released or put on trial. Mr Stafford Smith, director of human rights charity Reprieve, said: "Omar doesn't know, to my knowledge. He'll know by this week and I should think he'll be happy." He welcomed that "some action" was taking place over five UK residents held in Guantanamo - including Mr Deghayes - who had been "shamefully abandoned by the British Government for many years". But he cautioned that negotiations between the US and UK governments about bringing Mr Deghayes back to Britain were not due to begin until "late on in the autumn". He criticised the US administration for repeating "disproved" allegations about Mr Deghayes being a Chechen rebel, while refusing to put him on trial. Former minister Chris Mullin, who served in the Foreign Office from 2003 to 2005, while Mr Deghayes was incarcerated, said he believed public campaigns aimed at exposing the injustice of the "American gulag" by embarrassing the Government had "upped the ante" and contributed to its decision to request the release of the British resident detainees. But he pointed out that, despite repeated talk of a "special relationship", Britain's influence with the US government was "limited", and suggested it might take a change in President to bring about the closure of the Guantanamo camp. Mr Deghayes, a 37-year-old former law student, came to the UK with his family from Libya in 1986, six years after his father, Amer, was allegedly killed by the Gaddafi regime - an incident reported by Amnesty International at the time. His family live in Saltdean, Brighton. He travelled from the UK to Afghanistan, where he met and married an Afghan woman with whom he has a son, Suleiman. He was taken into custody, allegedly by bounty hunters, in Pakistan in 2002. Leave your comments of support for Omar's family below.

Mon Oct 1st

Teacher takes up new career as a magician

By Andrew Chiles © The Argus

A deputy head has turned his back on teaching after more than two decades to take up a new career as a magician. Andrew Jeffrey has put down his board marker and picked up his magic wand as he prepares for a completely new way of life. The former maths teacher and school inspector is going on tour with motivational and educational magic shows for schools and adult audiences. He has even developed a special show called The Magic Of Maths which has caught the eye of cable channel Teachers' TV. Mr Jeffrey, the president of the Sussex Magic Circle, said it was a wrench to leave his job as deputy head at independent Windlesham House School in Dyke Road, Brighton, but he was excited about the new challenge. He said: "I've been using magic in my lessons to great effect for years but now I'll have a chance to make it my main priority." advertisementThe magician, from Saltdean, explained how he used simple tricks like making three pieces of string transform from short, medium and long to having the same length as a motivational lesson to show children they were all equal. Another of his favourite tricks includes folding a five pound note into smaller and smaller sizes and using it to help children learn fractions and arithmetic, then magically transforming it into a £20 note. Mr Jeffrey, who also worked at St Aubyn's in Rottingdean, and Tavistock and Summerhill School in Haywards Heath, said: "Magic has the most fantastic capacity to catch people's attention and make them interested in something they might not have been otherwise. "It has been a lifelong interest for me and I'm excited that I can combine it with teaching to try to achieve something really good." For more information about Mr Jeffrey visit his website www.andrewjeffrey.co.uk.

Mon 24th Sept

Supermarket feels the heat over safety record

By Nigel Freedman © The Argus

Co-op bosses have been fined £250,000 for flouting fire safety regulations. The lives of staff and customers were put at risk because of breaches at six stores, a court heard yesterday. A catalogue of faults was uncovered at the chain's outlets in Brighton, Saltdean, Seaford, Polegate, Forest Row and St Leonards.

They included: *No fire alarm system in the shop at St James Street, Brighton, and only two fire detectors in storage areas.

*No fire alarm system at all was fitted at its Forrest Row branch. *A fire escape ladder at St Leonards that was so rusty that it could not be used.

*No fire detection system at Saltdean and a fire escape door that had two padlocks preventing it from being opened in an emergency. *The cage at the bottom of the external fire stairs at Seaford had its door locked, preventing escape. *A fire door meant to prevent the spread of flames was left propped open with a fire extinguisher at Polegate.

The breaches came to light after a fire at the Co-op in London Road, St Leonards, in July last year. East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service inspected the branch and decided to carry out a full audit of all 41 Co-op stores in Sussex.

As a result of what they found the fire brigade and Brighton and Hove City Council prosecuted the Co-op for breaching fire safety regulations. The Co-operative Society admitted 13 offences when they appeared at Brighton Magistrates Court on August 3. But magistrates were so appalled at the scale of the breaches they decided that the maximum £5,000 fine they could impose for each offence was not enough. They questioned "the health and safety culture" at the Co-op at the time and committed it to be sentenced at Hove Crown Court where there is no upper limit on the fine available. Gulham Hussein, prosecuting, told the court the Co-op had been fined before for breaching the regulations.

It was fined £17,500 and ordered to pay £2,600 costs after a fire at its store in Warren Way, Woodingdean, Brighton, in April last year just months before the latest offences.

Last month (Aug) it was fined £30,000 for breaching fire safety rules at its store in Bracknell, Berkshire. Julian Woodbridge, defending, said the Co-op has reviewed its fire safety regulations.

He said: "The Society has always prided itself on never putting profits before people. "It wants to impress on the public that health and safety is at the top of its concerns. "There clearly has been a problem which the Society believes it has identified and has already taken steps to remedy." Mark Hudson, the society's regional chief officer for the south east said it takes its fire safety responsibilities very seriously.

He added: "We have spent £45,000 on bringing these stores up to the required fire safety specifications. "We will have spent £450,000 on doing so in the south east by the end of this year." He said talks had been held with senior fire service officers in East Sussex about the improvements needed.

Judge Guy Anthony fined the Co-op £20,000 each for the 11 most serious breaches and £15,000 each for the two less serious. The Society was also ordered to pay East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service £11,167 for the cost of carrying out the safety audit. Fire chiefs welcomed the size of the £250,000 fine and said it would help deter breaches by other employers. Peter Cox, acting senior fire safety office for ESFRS, said: "I an satisfied with the level of fine the judge has imposed.

"It sends a warning message to other companies that failure to comply with fire legislation is taken very seriously by the courts. "All of these were serious offences which would potentially have put the lives of staff and customers at risk had there been a fire in any of those premises."

Fri 14th Sept

Supporters slam Omar delay

By Ben Parsons © The Argus

Protesters are calling on Prime Minister Gordon Brown to speed up the release of Guantanamo Bay prisoner Omar Deghayes.

Mr Brown was in Brighton yesterday to address the Trades Union Congress (TUC) at the Brighton Centre.

Supporters of the Save Omar campaign gathered on the seafront to lobby for the Saltdean resident's release from the military prison in Cuba, where he has been held without charge since 2002.

Foreign Secretary David Miliband and Home Secretary Jacqui Smith wrote to US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice in August to request the return of Mr Deghayes and four other UK residents to Britain. But his family and supporters have had no indication of when this will happen.

Save Omar spokeswoman Jackie Chase said: "He is still not home. The British say they are negotiating. The hold-up seems to be on the American side. "If there are no charges the man should be free to come home immediately."

She said the Government's request to the US may have been prompted by the prospect of a House of Lords ruling in October on whether its policy of not negotiating the release of people with British resident status was lawful.

Ms Chase said: "It may well be the Government was anxious not to be defeated by the Law Lords and wanted to be seen to be acting in advance of the hearing."

Mr Deghayes has reportedly been left permanently blind in one eye and has had a finger crushed due to mistreatment and torture in Guantanamo Bay. He was arrested in Pakistan in 2001 and held without charge at Camp Delta in Guantanamo Bay since 2002.

By January 2005 the Government had secured the release and return of all UK nationals detained at the centre but had not sought the release of people with only residential rights such as Mr Deghayes. The Argus launched its Justice For Omar campaign to press the US to either charge him or send him home.

The other Guantanamo inmates subject to the Government's request are Shaker Aamer, a London resident originally from Saudi Arabia, Jamil El Banna, a Jordanian refugee whose family lives in Dollis Hill, north-west London, Binyam Mohamed, who lived in Kensington, west London, and had applied for asylum from Ethiopia, and Abdennour Sameur, a refugee from Algeria who lived in Bournemouth.

Tues 11th Sept

Cheeky Monkeys September Newsletter

Dear All, Hope you all had a good summer, and the children are all settled into their new classes good luck for all you mums with little'uns starting big school next week - (you can always pop over to the shop for tea and sympathy if you need to!!) Anyway, lots to look forward to this Autumn.... Dates for your diary: Pottery Party: Friday 14th September 2-4pm. Gill from Hands on pots is back due to popular demand, perfect to put footprints on plates, or get some presents for grandparents. Items are generally reasy for collection from the shop a couple of days later. Ladies Evening: Tuesday 25th September 7-9pm. Come along to look at the Phoenix collection of Christmas cards (sorry, but it'll be exactly 3 months to the day). Enjoy a glass of wine, and have a look at the gorgeous cards and gift wrap available to buy or order on the evening, plus have a look around at some perfect present ideas. Also meet some other enterprising ladies, Maureen who makes some very stylish bags, Lucy who is an occasions stylist and wardrobe 'blitzer', Claire a qualified midwife and massage therapist and Robyn who has a wonderful talent to turn your little darlings into hand painted fairies and pixies....come along to find out more. Do bring a friend and believe that this will be the year you are well and truly organised for Christmas. Please RSVP so that I can get refreshments organised! Speaking of enterprising ladies, I went along to the Mums in Biz seminar last Tuesday and a very interesting afternoon it was too. I would highly recommend it to anyone who is thinking about setting up their own buisness. Future seminars will be held at Brighton Marina the 1st Tuesday of October, November and December. Please contact nickyc@mumsinbiz.co.uk for further information.

And finally please note changes to some of the groups: Mondays: Mother and Baby group 2-4pm TBC Tuesdays: Yogabugs 1.15-2pm 2.5-4yrs (great to help kiddies focus and concentrate) Wednesdays: Music and Movement 9.30-10.15am Saturdays: La Jolie Ronde 9.30-10am There is a possibility of a new drama club starting on Wednesday aimed at children of all ages from pre-schoolers and all of primary school. Please let me know if you are interested. Also some of you have specfically enquired about Spanish for children. Well I'm pleased to say that Buenos Dias will be coming along for a chat in the near future. Please can you let me know which days you definitely cannot make and we'll go from there. And finally can any of you who have left clothes with me over 6 months ago please get intouch - anything remaning will be donated to charity by the end of September. Hope to see you soon.

Kind regards, Michelle x

Michelle Marcar Cheeky Monkeys 124, Lustrells Vale, Saltdean, BN2 8FB 01273-302 644 Cheeky_monkeys_saltdean@hotmail.com www.Cheeky-Monkeys.me.uk

see more on www.stnicholaspreschool.org

Saltdean Nostalgia - anyone recognise these residences?

By Barry Shine - copied from his email. if you would like to conatct him please email me here and I will very happily forward to your message to him

Hello This e-mail message is probably of no interest to you whatsoever but having surfed the net for Saltdean and found your site I thought I'd just jot down a few lines. I've always had a soft spot for Saltdean, having spent childhood holidays there with my parents in the 1950s and having made occasional visits subsequently (the latest only yesterday with a pleasant walk from Rottingdean along the undercliff walk).

But what a shame the swimming pool (closer to Rottingdean than Saltdean) no longer exists. It was nice to see the Saltdean Lido in such good order - well I remember it in a tragically delapidated state a few years ago. However, my nostalgia for Saltdean starts, rather strangely, when I was too young to appreciate anything of significance. I was born in 1940. In the early part of the war, it would probably be in 1941, my Father and Mother rented a bungalow in Saltdean and we lived there for a period. I have no idea how long we were there nor for what reason although in the back of my mind I seem to recall that it was thought to be safer there than in London (despite being some 60 miles nearer to occupied France and considering what happened when Rottingdean was strafed).

I would dearly like to find out where that bungalow is (or was if it no longer exists). I have a recollection that it was on the Mount Estate (although it is possible that reference by my family to this location was in a different context). What I do know, and it is backed up by photographs, is that the bungalow's name was "The Blue Lagoon" and it was owned by a Mr & Mrs Standivan. Some years later, probably in 1956, we rented a bungalow for a holiday with another family in Saltdean. I cannot remember in which road this was situated but I remember that it was named "Buena Vista" or similar. Again, it would be so rewarding to see it again. Happy Days!! In the event that you could point me in the direction of the location(s) of the bungalows (especially "The Blue Lagoon")

I attach the photographs to which I referred earlier. Top left. My Mother, sitting on the front steps of "The Blue Lagoon" with me on her lap

Top right. My Father holding me. The chap in uniform was my cousin, Roland, a pilot, killed in action in August 1942. Bottom. "The Blue Lagoon". Photograph sent to my parents annotated on the back with "The Blue Lagoon 1943. To wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. From Mr & Mrs Standivan". Poignant, considering the conditions under which our ancestors were living at the time.

Yours BR Shine

Barry says that on the off chance that anyone remembers him his parents names were Alfred and Dorothy

The Grand Ocean is not the only hotel being refurbished

Check out the Midland - for more info look here

Thanks as always Anna for a brilliant article!

It’s Magic! – 01.08.07

It all started with an e-mail my husband received which he forwarded to me at work on 18th June [fittingly my fathers’ 92nd birthday]. This particular e-mail had been sent to him by your own Saltdean web-mistress Nikki Fabry – I get a bit confused here as I always correspond with Nikki under my own e-mail address, so the first piece of magic was, that the information her e-mail contained did reach its eventual destination – me! Nikki, in turn, had been the recipient of the original message from Gary Falkingham of Urban Splash [see Visitor article below this update] who wanted to let her know that the missing banister was “missing no more!” Mysteriously he added that he would give Nikki the full story if she rang him.

Knowing I would be interested in the full story, Nikki left me to ring Gary. Well, you can imagine the introductory conversation can’t you – me having to explain that I’m the one who writes the updates on the Saltdean site and that Nikki had sent his e-mail to my husband who had forwarded it to me at work and here I was – waiting for the full story. I’m pretty certain, after getting that lot down the telephone mouthpiece Gary wasn’t thinking it was magic, more like a Malfoy curse [yes, OK I admit it, I am finally reading the Harry Potter series now that the books are all published.]

Anyway … once he’d got over the shock Gary told me pretty much the same as has been chronicled in the Visitor article – but the story was slightly more tense before its happy ending. Gary did indeed spot the couple on site and, worried for their safety, investigated why they were there. At first the couple were a little reticent but finally told him that they thought they had something that belonged to the hotel and would he like it back. Gary asked them what they had, but they intimated that they weren’t exactly sure what the item was. He asked them to describe it and to his amazement was able to visualise the banister/staircase – which he had just read about the day before on ….. this web-site! Remember, you read it here first! Magic or coincidence or just spooky? Sure enough, the following day the couple returned and presented Gary with the whole piece as seen in the Visitor article. They didn’t seem to want any thanks or recognition for its return and disappeared as mysteriously as they had arrived. Now that is magic! In the meantime, the reporter from the Visitor wanted to know more about the Ocean – neither he nor Gary were aware of its existence – so for the first time I’ve been able to offer reciprocal information and the Ocean and this web-site have now been brought to the attention of the Visitor readers.

I had to laugh when I read that this particular artefact was on Interpols’ missing antiques list – fancy, little old me helping to track it down – definitely a touch of magic there. I’ve done a search on the Interpol site but haven’t yet found the page with the information on – if I find it before this is published, I’ll add it to the article.

What I also did as a result of this “adventure” was to make a subscription to the Visitor as things really do seem to be moving with the Midland now and it is great to follow the progress but there’s nothing like experiencing the changes so ….

Last week we went to Morecambe to see how things were and maybe to get a look at the banister itself, although you would have expected it to be securely chained under lock and key and monitored by an electronic eye. We got to the Midland in the early afternoon and the sky was starting to look a little troubled [we’d had about 3 dry days up to that point] which did not augur well. The first and most obvious difference is the fact that there is nowhere near as much scaffolding and the blue mesh which had covered it previously had all but disappeared. The building itself is no longer peeling but has a new smooth matt-looking exterior [the polishing “finish” to this rendering is still to come]. We were met by Gary himself who explained that they had already had visiting dignitaries that morning and so at best he could only offer a whistle-stop tour – as that was more than we hoped for we accepted.

Firstly I asked to see the recovered treasure – Gary looked around the office and pointed to an empty spot saying that it was usually there – well not anymore. He went off to the Conference Room and came back empty handed – eventually it was found there, it had magicked itself back … OK, so that’s a bit of poetic licence.

In the Conference Room we were shown groundplans of the hotel – having studied architecture as part of my History of Art degree, I appreciate the work that goes into planning a structure. Groundplans and elevations were a chore to learn, but this day I was glad I had paid attention! The basement [the Tardis of the previous article] will be a high percentage of utility and kitchen amenities – but there is also a generous proportion set aside for relaxation and beauty! The ground floor will retain much of its original purpose – a lobby, dining facilities and two conference facilities instead of one as previously. A new sun terrace will be introduced along the sea-facing side of the hotel but this one will be more in keeping with the style of the hotel as opposed to being “lopped on” as the preceding version had been sometime during the hotels chequered post-war history.

Floors 1 and 2 will house en-suite bedrooms and there is the possibility that the two bedrooms on the first floor in the rounded end [on your left as you look at the front entrance] might be “themed” to the 1930s.

Then there is the roof which will have special suites with all-glass walls overlooking the bay which has magnificent sunsets and flanking the suites will be decking with loungers.

We donned hard hats, high conspicuity waistcoats and reinforced boots and set off to have a look. Not much seems to have happened on the ground floor since our last visit, but great strides have been made in lifting off the wall and saving the Eric Gill “pictorial relief” of North-West England [see my article dated 04.03.06 below for a picture – just below picture of the missing banister]. A specialist had been called in and with the assistance of a special preserving glue and complicated interior scaffolding the mural is safely behind what looks like wads of lagging or cotton wool. The plan is to have the Gills “Odysseus Welcomed from the Sea by Nausica” stone relief positioned back in its original place in the lobby and the mural to be placed on the reverse of the wall supporting the sculpture. This weeks’ Visitor has covered the progress of this part of the restoration.

The first floor is where the greatest progress is visible – no longer the gaping shell that hosted pigeon racing of old – now there is structure. The walls to the eventual rooms are in place and a corridor is formed. Each of the rooms will be individual in shape, dimension and we are informed, colour schemes. This area is a positive hive of activity – men measuring, men carrying, men thinking and one man skimming inside one of the rooms – a positive art form – he is on stilts and gliding around as if surfing – an artist in his profession! The Visitor has a virtual tour of one of the “mocked” up rooms on its web-site. The latest state of the art ideas are being funnelled into these rooms to make the best possible use of the space available.

The second floor is still boarded up and no work in progress there other than to protect from the elements.
The roof has a skeleton scaffolding of the proposed new suites and up there, last week, the view was magnificent. The sea was moving apace but not roughly, boats of all shapes, sizes and colours were bobbing about and there was even a Big Wheel in the distance.

The Morecambe shrimps immortalised on the front of the tower of the hotel as Gills’ seahorses have had a face lift and once again look as they might have done when the hotel was first opened although the scaffolding in place currently doesn’t allow for a direct and individual shot of them. Areas of the rendering on the roof have had their final polish and gleam and glint as they pick up the rays from the sun now once again shining down …. all in all a really enormous piece of magic!

Thanks to my enthusiasm for the Midland and my updates on this site I’ve been approached by reFresh magazine to write a history of the hotel for their September issue which will run in tandem with an article by Urban Splash which I am very much looking forward to reading as I am sure their knowledge of the restoration will reveal all sorts of yummy new information! I keep telling you – it’s all magic!

Lovely Photos from Douglas d'Enno

Summer 2007 is finally here - for a bit anyway!

Omar may be home in days

By Lee Gibbs © The Argus

Saltdean Historians New Book

Douglas d'Enno has written a new book on Brighton Crime and Vice

- also have a look at his previous tome Foul Deeds and Suspicious Deaths Around Brighton

from www.peopletalk.org

FOUL DEEDS & SUSPICIOUS DEATHS AROUND BRIGHTON
by Douglas d'Enno

This gripping volume covers two centuries of murderous doings in Brighton portrayed in fifteen vivid case histories. All the crimes took place within the town except two, where the victims were prominent Brighton citizens travelling on business.

The accounts are arranged in an unusual yet logical manner, namley by theme.
The categories comprise trunk murders, poisonings, child murders, killings over nothing, deaths suffered on journeys, and provocation, infidelity and lust. Surprisingly, no single volume devoted to murders in Brighton has ever appeared before.

This is extrordinary considering the town has been dubbed the Queen of Slaughtering Places.
As well as filling a void in the field of true crime on this part of the Sussex Coast, the book contains many rare images of Brighton in the past which admirably complement the text. Local historians and general readers alike will be fasinated by this pictorial material, much of it previously unpublished.

Douglas is probably best known for championing all things Saltdean and writing the much in demand book - The Saltdean Story.

Cheeky Monkey August Newsletter

Dear All, - Just received a delivery of lots of wooden goodies, the Heimess Activity frame that doubles up as a baby walker is proving a hit with babies, as is the 'tool work bench' with the toddlers in the shop, cute dino push alongs, lots of wooden food items and much more. I know I'm not the only one thinking about (dare I say it...) Christmas, as I have a few items put aside and being paid off in installments as we speak! I'm happy to do this for anyone, just leave a deposit to secure the item, and pay off the balance as you like. Something you can't arrange at Churchill Square! Anyway, I just want to remind you about the Summer holiday activities that are happening at Cheeky Monkeys, all of which are on a 'drop in' basis, so you don't need to book a whole term; and also to let you know about the Black Crayon Cafe that will be visiting next Saturday 11th August.

Mondays: Yogabugs (as featured on Dragon's Den) 9.30-10.15 suitable for children 2.5yrs - 6yrs old. £4.00 a class. A wonderful introduction to Yoga by going on lots of adventures. Please speak to Trina for further details: 01273-303 370. Incidentally an adult yoga class will also soon be available. If you are interested please let me or Trina know which evenings are most suitable for you. Wednesdays: Music and Movement 9.30-10.15 available for babies and toddlers and children of all ages. Jane a qualified Ballet teacher teaches lost of stretches, and movement to classical music encouraging children to use their imagination and become pixies or fairies! £3.50 a class. Saturdays: Yogabugs part two. For those of you who can't make the Monday session. Due to begin August 11th. 9.30-10.15am The Black Crayon Cafe: Saturday 11th August 10.30-1pm The very popular 'Open House' will be visiting Cheeky Monkeys. A free event for all the family; enjoy a biscuit and a cuppa and put crayon to paper! Have a look at the following article to get a flavour of what it's all about: http://archive.theargus.co.uk/2007/5/24/235010.html

Magic Workshop: Wednesday 29th August 1-4pm. £20 for 3 hours tuition and a goody bag worth £12. Open to children age 8+ who are willing to give Harry Potter a run for is money! Please call to find out more or look on: www.andrewjeffrey.co.uk for further information. Mums in Biz? I am, lots of you are and so are many other mums wanting to be; therefore Nicky Chisholm has organised a 3 hour seminar aimed at helping mums who are in or thinking about being in business.

The first is on Tuesday 4th September 12.15-3.15pm, with other Tuesdays available also. Priced at a very reasonable £25 including lunch. Lots of advise and tips on how to get things running and what help is available regarding childcare and other benefits. For more information and to book a place please contact Nicky on: 01273 681 484 or nickyc@mumsinbiz.co.uk And finally, if any of you are, or know someone who is deciding on the millions of pushchair 'systems' out there; have a look at www.mamatoto.co.uk on the Testing Testing bit at the bottom. They are offering a £100 discount on a gorgeous looking Cosatto model. I'm more than happy with out Phil and Teds, but would be very tempted otherwise..... Also this month's offer is a free 'fruity face' priced at £5 (another Dragon's Den gem) with any purchase over £30.

Hope to see you on Saturday 11th for the Black Crayon Cafe event, and remember if you can make a mark on the paper, you can contribute to the gallery!

Kind regards, Michelle x

Michelle Marcar Cheeky Monkeys 124, Lustrells Vale, Saltdean, BN2 8FB 01273-302 644 Cheeky_monkeys_saltdean@hotmail.com www.Cheeky-Monkeys.me.uk

Losing our National park Status?

By Rachel Pegg © The Argus

For more than ten years campaigners have fought for the South Downs to be made a national park. Now it looks likely the final decision could be made next year but the fight is far from over.Across the county there are towns, villages and pockets of land which have been unexpectedly moved inside the boundary or booted out. Now they are scrabbling desperately to get back in - or be let out. But why should you care about the national park and how will it affect you?

A national park, the argument goes, would boost tourism, help Sussex's economy and provide a joined-up system to protect the spectacular countryside of Sussex and Hampshire. It would also become the planning authority for land within its remit, which has led detractors to complain that it could hinder development and create divisions between communities.

But most people now accept that a national park is inevitable and it is crucial to get the final details right or it could open the floodgates for bad planning decisions and poor use of land.

The South Downs National Park inspector recently published a revised boundary map which moves in extra pieces of land around Brighton and Hove - Sheepcote, Hollingbury, Waterhall - and with an open boundary down to the sea near Rottingdean and Roedean.

But some areas have been shifted out, such as the whole of the western Weald, Lewes, Ditchling, Arundel and land at Seaford, Saltdean, Titnore Woods in Durrington, Worthing and Wilmington Green. There are campaigns in nearly all these ditched sites to get them back on to the map. However, although the deadline for comments has been extended until September 24, the consultation invites only objection to areas that are inside the boundary, not outside - something many campaigners are unhappy with.

They have vowed to bombard Defra, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with letters expressing their discontent. The South Downs Campaign, a network of organisations which has battled since 1995 to have the Downs declared a national park, is most concerned about the exclusion of the western Weald in north-west Sussex, which includes Petersfield, Midhurst and Petworth and a number of villages.

The inspector said the western Weald was not chalk ridge and was of a very different nature. Campaigners dispute that this should be a consideration. A petition they have compiled to have the area put back in already has 1,000 signatures.

They are worried that if the western Weald is left outside the national park, part of it could lose its status as an area of outstanding natural beauty and it would be vulnerable to home building.

Robin Crane, chairman of the South Downs Campaign, said: "People are concerned and want the western Weald kept in the national park. They see it as the safest and quickest way of safeguarding the future of this special landscape.

"This is not just a local issue but a national one. It is about securing the best possible national park in the South East for the 21st century that protects all the finest countryside originally planned to be included."

In Lewes, many are unhappy they have not been made part of the proposed park. Robert Cheesman, chairman of the Friends of Lewes, said: "A national park authority first of all means more money, most of which comes from Government, for conservation, not just for the rural environment but for the built environment. "Lewes will be surrounded by national park land and it will be a centre for people wishing to visit. It seems a little anomalous if it is not included.

Their views are not shared by East Sussex County Council.

Councillor Matthew Lock, cabinet member for the environment, said: "The exclusion of Lewes is a very important development and I wholeheartedly welcome it. One of the functions of national parks is to decide on planning applications within their borders but experience tells us their systems are much slower than those of local councils.

"The effect on Lewes of being included would be horrendous, with minor applications for modest home improvements taking many months or even years."

The county council is objecting to the inclusion of land at Wilmington Green and land between Newhaven Tide Mills to the A259, which has planning permission for the Newhaven Port Access Road and Newhaven Eastside Business Park.

Tom Dufty, chairman of The Ditchling Society, said the village was in keeping with the Downs and had many listed buildings made of local materials such as chalk and flint.

He said: "If Ditchling was included it would help to regenerate the village and improve the economy. It would help put a greater focus on some of the issues affecting us, for example our traffic problems."

In Saltdean, a 4.25-acre field off Falmer Avenue has been taken out of the boundary.

Residents of Falmer Avenue and Bishopstone Drive have complained that the land is in an area of outstanding natural beauty with archaeological interest.

One, who asked not to be named because of a dispute between residents and the landowner, said they could not believe it had been taken out of the park.

She said: "This is a piece of agricultural land that borders the South Downs Walk."

Martin Strange, of Headland Avenue, Seaford, is campaigning against the exclusion of land close to Chynington Way. He said: "It would be unfortunate to see that lost."

Chris Todd, spokesman for the South Downs Campaign, said he wanted to see places such as Lewes and Ditchling included because one of the functions of the national park would be to end the division between town and countryside. He said: "Some of these settlements are very high quality. Lewes is so embedded in the Downs it is really hard to divorce it, even if it does have some modern development. We really don't feel the inspector has followed the rules or justified the exclusion."

Mr Todd said he hoped national park status would end the "schizophrenic" nature of some planning decisions which has led to Lewes District Council - which supports the creation of a park - nevertheless granting planning permission for a 240ft wind turbine for Glyndebourne Opera House. The Government Office South East is considering whether to call in the decision.

What would a national park mean for the Downs? DESIGNATION of the South Downs under the National Parks Act 1949 would give the area the highest level of protection under the planning system.
There would be a permanent boundary around the park and public bodies and businesses would have to abide by rules governing national park land.

A South Downs National Park Authority would be directly funded by central Government to focus on conservation and visitor management to protect the Downs' natural beauty.

This authority would be responsible for planning and development control within the park area, taking control from local councils. Closing date for comments and objections is September 24. After that the Secretary of State may reopen the inquiry, with a final decision expected next year.

Omar release a Step Closer

By Andy Tate © The Argus

Omar's mother and brother after hearing the news Guantanamo Bay prisoner Omar Deghayes is a step closer to freedom today after the British Government finally called for his release.

Libyan-born Mr Deghayes, who has languished in the notorious US detention camp for five years without charge, had previously been shunned by the Foreign Office because he was not a British citizen. But yesterday the Government executed a dramatic U-turn and asked the American authorities to return Mr Deghayes and four other non-British detainees who used to live in the UK.

The decision comes almost two years after The Argus launched its Justice for Omar campaign, which has called for Mr Deghayes to be released or put on trial. It is not known whether the 37-year-old former law student, who was granted asylum in the UK in the 1980s following the murder of his trade unionist father in Libya, has been made aware of the Government's move. But campaigners have hailed it as a sign that the end of Mr Deghayes's ordeal, which began with his capture in Pakistan in 2002, is imminent. advertisement Omar's brother Abubaker Deghayes, said: "Omar is coming home. It is the news we have been waiting for.
"When I heard I was so happy, I was in tears. It's been a long, long terrible episode. "Previous experience shows when the British Government officially makes a request to the Americans they do manage to bring them back." The US ambassador to London, Robert Tuttle, said the request to release the detainees would be considered very seriously. He said: "We will take the request to release them and study it very seriously and get back with all due, deliberate speed." The Government secured the release of nine British citizens from the detention camp in Cuba more than two years ago. But the Foreign Office cautioned that discussions with the US government about the release of Mr Deghayes and the other detainees "may take some time".
In a statement it said: "The Foreign Secretary and the Home Secretary have decided to request the release from Guantanamo Bay and return to the UK of five men who, whilst not UK Nationals, were legally resident here prior to their detention." The Foreign Office said moves in the US towards closing the detention centre had prompted the change of policy. There are presently 360 people incarcerated at the military camp. About 415 have been released or transferred out of the base. The Government's request that the five men be released to the UK came as a relief to Mr Deghayes's family in Saltdean, Brighton, who had feared he could face human rights abuses if sent to Libya. Any decision about the detainees' long-term residential status, if they are returned to the UK, will be taken by the Home Office.
Groups including Amnesty International and Reprieve welcomed the Government's decision. Abubaker Deghayes said public pressure including The Argus's Justice For Omar campaign had helped bring about the Government's change of heart. He said: "I think The Argus made a difference. It has shown a tremendous example of how the media is vital, and has really worked hard for justice for Omar. "Justice is a pillar of British values and I'm grateful to whoever made the decision in the British Government to take this step. I am delighted the British public sincerely stood by us." Omar's sister, Amani, cautiously welcomed the decision but said she would not be able to fully celebrate until her brother was back in the UK. She said: "I am really excited about this. It is a real breakthrough. "I am happy but I am also cautious." Louise Purbrick, from the Save Omar campaign, said: "This is the most positive thing we have ever heard since we started campaigning. "We have always been told the court that matters is the court of public opinion. Omar's campaign must have made a difference."
Des Turner, the MP for Brighton Kemptown in whose constituency Mr Deghayes's family lives, said: "It's magnificent. I hope the family is cheered by this news. I think they will be getting Omar back very soon." Dr Turner, who travelled to Washington earlier this year to lobby the Pentagon and State Department on behalf of the Deghayes family, continued: "One thing that was apparent from discussions I had in America was that officials there were all of the opinion that should the Government decide to accept consular responsibility for whatever reason, this could make a difference." Former Brighton and Hove City Council leader Simon Burgess said he hoped the council's decision to pass a motion in support of Omar and lobby the Government may have had a "small part" to play in the decision. He said: "We felt very strongly Guantanamo is an absolute affront to decent standards of humanity, which only gives ammunition to terrorists to accuse us of double standards."

Bong Arm of the Law

By Miles Godfrey © The Argus

David Vernon faces charges of cultivating cannabis after police discovered plants at his Saltdean property A Neighbourhood Watch co-ordinator has been raided by drugs cops. David Vernon, 40, owned up to a £50-a-day pot habit after police discovered a number of the plants at his property in Heathfield Avenue, Saltdean.
Mr Vernon said: "The thing is none of the people on my neighbourhood watch patch are bothered about me smoking it - nobody I know is." The unemployed carpenter, who has been Neighbourhood Watch co-ordinator for his road for the last ten years, faces charges of cultivating cannabis and is due to appear before Brighton magistrates on Friday. He admits he is a cannabis user - although he is not charged with possession - but he denies growing the drug. At one point he was a regular at a number of cannabis cafes which sprung up in Worthing.
Mr Vernon, a practising Druid who has been smoking cannabis since he was ten, claims it his religious right to take the drug and needs it to treat mild depression. advertisement He now says has no regrets about being taken to court over the issue. He told The Argus: "When I began smoking cannabis it was like my third eye had opened. "I had an okay childhood - I wouldn't say really happy. My half brother used to hit me and one day I smoke cannabis and it all the pain went away. "I was like wow man, this is so amazing'. "I carried on smoking it for most of my life because I suffer a bit of depression and I find it helps with that. "Then the police came around and knocked on our door, smashed their way into the garage. "I believe it is in our genes to smoke cannabis and it is my religious right."
Mr Vernon claims he has done a great job of fighting crime in his area - despite admitting not really knowing what he is doing and rarely turning up to meetings. He said: "Nobody has ever told me how to do the job so I just got on with how I thought best. I knock on all my neighbours' doors and make sure they are okay and they always are. It's a great place to live. "I couldn't really go to many meetings because they were usually at 4pm and I was normally working then. "But there hasn't been any crime here in recent years. The only crime was when my own car got stolen." Mr Vernon's prosecution comes as the Government is considering upgrading cannabis from a class C drug to class B. If the move goes through tough penalties will be re-introduced for possession of the drug.

RESIDENTS INVOLVED WITH THE GRAND HOTEL WANTED FOR PHOTOS

If you have ever been involved - or are aware ogf any local residents who have been involved - with the Grand Ocean in the past please email me here. A ohotographer is very keen to find ex-woprkers - residents fo the Grand Ocean to photgraph them next to the interior stage and surroundings in the hotel BEFORE they are taken out by the end of July. Intertested - get in touch!

Midland Hotel Article in The Visitor

Not quite dedicated to the Ocean but anyway....Thanks as always Anna

Telscombe Tye Information

I am starting to put together some info on Telescombe Tye here - it's badly scanned but I hope to get some decent info for you shortly.

Cheeky Monkeys July Newsletter

Dear All, Thought I'd start with a police appeal I urge you to support: MISSING - ROUND YELLOW THING USUALLY FLOATS AROUND IN THE SKY. - ANSWERS TO THE NAME ''SUN'' IF YOU SEE HIM, TELL HIM IT'S JULY!!! Ha ha indeed! Still, the new range of beach goods - i.e fishing nets, aqua shoes and buckets and spades can all be used with or without sunshine! There's lots to mention in the way of activities for the summer holidays: YogaBugs will be here on Monday mornings 9.30-10.15 for ages 2.5-4yrs and Saturdays 9.00-9.45 for ages 5-7yrs £24 for a six week course. Due to start middle of July.Please call Trina on 303-370 for further details and to book your place. Music and Movement with Jane Salisbury on Wednesdays 9.30-10.15. It's open to babies and toddlers of all ages at a special summer offer of £3.50. The session will involve lots of stretches, introduction to rhythm and sound recognition and more. Run by a fully qualified and experienced ballet teacher. Due to begin on Monday 18th July. Contact Jane on 275-002 for more info. Magic Workshop Saturday 28th 1-4pm £20 (includes 3 hours tuition and a goody bag worth £12) Despite my absolute best efforts I cannot accomodate a Tuesday or Thursday lunch time slot, however this may change in the coming months. The music and movement session is open to babies and children of all ages, and hopefully other age specific groups on different days may form as a result of this. La Jolie Ronde will resume lessons in September,please call Joanna on: 01273 302 167 for more details. And Italian for ages 2 + will be starting in September also. Please speak to me for further information. Special offers for this month; Snack traps at £5 - buy 2 get one free. Perfect for journeys in the car and for day trips. The same company also do fruity-faces which are inflatable 'fruit protectors' kids love their cute faces, and it really does save fruit from getting nasty bruises! And £5.00 voucher with every purchase of the brilliant Kari-Me sling priced at £37.95. Look out for a new range of 'Shoo Shoos' soft baby pram shoes, the fabulous 'Bike with no pedals' (with a brilliant concept of encouraging children get used to balancing on a bike before worrying about pedals), the classic Bumble Bee Wheely Bug and a clever wooden activity frame for babies that later becomes a walker when their older. All coming soon as 'try-before-you-buy' items at Cheeky Monkeys! - Have to go now, baby needs feeding! See you soon Kind regards, Michelle x

Gorgeous Lido Painting

Hello I live in Hove and am fascinated with art deco architecture, so therefore adore Saltdean Lido. Please find attached an image of my recently finished painting of the Lido. 'Saltdean Lido' 90x60cm acrylic on block canvas. It is a stylised image in a 1920s / 30s poster style. The central section of the lido with its many paned windows is framed by the curve of the raised platform. I hope that you like my painting.

Kind regards Steve Williams

- thanks Steve - it's lovely!

Sreve says - Hello. I hope that you like my painting of Saltdean Lido. I thoroughly enjoyed painting it, even all of those little windows and the railings. I travel past the lido every week and never tire of viewing it when I go past, so I had to paint it. If there is enough interest in the painting I will consider having a run of limited edition signed and numbered prints made. I would like to see how popular the painting is before offering the original for sale as it would be a shame to sell the original if there were others that would also enjoy a print of the painting. If you like my work and would be interested in buying the original or a limited edition signed and numbered print please contact me at steve.williams@camden.gov.uk

lido1

lido2

Cheeky Monkeys June Newsletter

Dear All, Well, she's here! Isabella-May was born on Friday 25th May at 07.15am. Delivered by Daddy and Jessica-Ellen on the bathroom floor! She came along within 2 hours, 9lb exactly, loads of black hair and a real sweetie - we're all thrilled! Dates for your Diary: Saturday 28th July: 1-4pm learn magic with Andrew Jeffries. This will be a magic workshop, details to be confirmed, but ideal for children aged 8 plus who will learn some magic, and go away with a party trick that will last a lifetime! As I said further details to follow but spaces are limited so do book early to secure a place. New Stock in: The popular and fantastic 'Snack traps' which keep raisins etc. inside the pot, but children can still get to them, and Fruity Faces which protect fruit from getting bashed and bruised in school bags or on days out. All items priced at £5 Kari-Me slings. These are multi award winning slings priced at £37.95 and come in a range of colours. Have a look at the website, and then by all means come and 'try before you buy' - we've opted for a nice burgundy one! Also, the dancing animal music boxes will be here by the end of next week, some of you have reserved these already. And finally, I'd like to say a huge thank-you to Joanna Clarke who is doing a fab job of running the shop in my absence. All being well I should be back in the week after next. Thanks also to all the lovely cards and messages we've been receiving. Look forward to seeing you soon!! Michelle x

Beautiful Photos here

http://thinkingwithpictures.blogspot.com:80/2007/06/from-shoreham-to-saltdean.html