Monday, 7 February 2011
KFC creating 30+ jobs in Whitstable area
KFC has finally announced its Whitstable Thanet Way restaurant will be opening at the end of March, creating more than 30 jobs in the area. Julian Coppock, operator of KFC franchise in Kent said “The restaurant will create approximately 30-40 jobs and we’re really looking forward to welcoming Whitstable residents to try our delicious chicken”.
Chlamydia Tests. How much do you actually know?
Chlamydia. The sex taboo of the century. It’s the most common STI in the world, but if it’s so common why doesn’t anyone talk about it? I was shocked to discover that out of 9 of my friends, I was the only one that knew anything about the most common sexually transmitted infection. Max Reynolds a student at Canterbury Christ Church university said “I just don't hear about it or what actually happens to you when you get it”.
1 in 10 men and women under 25 in the UK have it. It’s known as the ‘silent’ infection because 75% of women and 50% of men don’t have any symptoms. If there aren’t any symptoms why should you get checked? Well it can cause a number of health problems if not treated. The infection can spread to other parts of the body and cause pain, mainly in the abdomen and it can also stop you from having children. Chlamydia is caused by a bacterium called Chlamydia trachomatis, which is found in semen and vaginal fluids. You don’t have to have sex to catch Chlamydia; you can pass it on just like any other infection through oral and anal sex. You can also catch it in your eye, this is called Chlamydial conjunctivitis. If you are one of the unfortunate ones to have funny things going on down there visit www.nhs.uk/chlamydia
The test
I can understand why people wouldn’t want to take a test because it sounds intrusive and embarrassing but when I asked my local doctor he explained to me that there is no examination of your bits down there, it’s basically a DIY test. You can go to your doctors or get the test sent through the post to your house. I was curious about the home tests kits so decided to order one myself. It didn’t take me long to find a number of websites that advertised free home test kits through a Google search. I decided to use an NHS website that my local doctor had advised me to use. www.iwantatest.nhs.uk On the webpage I found the form straight away towards the bottom of the page, there was no searching for it which made my life easier. I filled in the form which took me about 7 minutes. I then waited for the package to arrive in the post. Three days later a white envelope was posted through my door, nothing that looked like a Chlamydia test kit, which made me feel more comfortable about it. Included in the package was a swab in a plastic container, instruction on how to take the test and how to fill in the form, a specimen form, a self addressed envelope and a leaflet on Chlamydia. I followed the instruction, took the test and sent it back in the envelope provided, requesting they contact me via mobile phone.
About seven days later I received a text saying ‘Lydia says all clear’ which was the text I was told I would receive if my test results were negative. With the option to receive results through a text, I felt a lot more confident and not embarrassed taking the test. For men, the test is just as easy and is possibly easier, using just a urine sample to test for it. Instuctions and a container is included in the male version of the home test kit.
In January 2010 the NHS launched its newest ‘Worth talking about’ campaign to raise more peoples awareness of Chlamydia testing. The campaign has included a new TV advert and magazine adverts. This will hopefully provide more information and encourage more people to get tested. Having Chlamydia isn’t a big deal if you know you have it and you get it treated. The treatment is just a simple course of antibiotics and no sex for a week.
1 in 10 men and women under 25 in the UK have it. It’s known as the ‘silent’ infection because 75% of women and 50% of men don’t have any symptoms. If there aren’t any symptoms why should you get checked? Well it can cause a number of health problems if not treated. The infection can spread to other parts of the body and cause pain, mainly in the abdomen and it can also stop you from having children. Chlamydia is caused by a bacterium called Chlamydia trachomatis, which is found in semen and vaginal fluids. You don’t have to have sex to catch Chlamydia; you can pass it on just like any other infection through oral and anal sex. You can also catch it in your eye, this is called Chlamydial conjunctivitis. If you are one of the unfortunate ones to have funny things going on down there visit www.nhs.uk/chlamydia
The test
I can understand why people wouldn’t want to take a test because it sounds intrusive and embarrassing but when I asked my local doctor he explained to me that there is no examination of your bits down there, it’s basically a DIY test. You can go to your doctors or get the test sent through the post to your house. I was curious about the home tests kits so decided to order one myself. It didn’t take me long to find a number of websites that advertised free home test kits through a Google search. I decided to use an NHS website that my local doctor had advised me to use. www.iwantatest.nhs.uk On the webpage I found the form straight away towards the bottom of the page, there was no searching for it which made my life easier. I filled in the form which took me about 7 minutes. I then waited for the package to arrive in the post. Three days later a white envelope was posted through my door, nothing that looked like a Chlamydia test kit, which made me feel more comfortable about it. Included in the package was a swab in a plastic container, instruction on how to take the test and how to fill in the form, a specimen form, a self addressed envelope and a leaflet on Chlamydia. I followed the instruction, took the test and sent it back in the envelope provided, requesting they contact me via mobile phone.
About seven days later I received a text saying ‘Lydia says all clear’ which was the text I was told I would receive if my test results were negative. With the option to receive results through a text, I felt a lot more confident and not embarrassed taking the test. For men, the test is just as easy and is possibly easier, using just a urine sample to test for it. Instuctions and a container is included in the male version of the home test kit.
In January 2010 the NHS launched its newest ‘Worth talking about’ campaign to raise more peoples awareness of Chlamydia testing. The campaign has included a new TV advert and magazine adverts. This will hopefully provide more information and encourage more people to get tested. Having Chlamydia isn’t a big deal if you know you have it and you get it treated. The treatment is just a simple course of antibiotics and no sex for a week.
Friday, 12 February 2010
CRUSH
Studio 41 in Canterbury announced its new under 18’s night on Facebook. Tickets to ‘CRUSH’ the new weekly event went on sale yesterday ready for its launch night on Friday 19 February.
Stephen Sullivan, face of Studio 41 night club in Canterbury sent out a message on Facebook announcing the launch of the clubs latest venture. Stephen has been DJ at the night club for many years alongside his day job as Heart radios afternoon presenter. Stephen said “Studio 41 always thinks differently to most clubs, giving a Friday night slot for Under 18s events are almost unheard of for a club our size.”
Studio 41, located in Planet laser near the cinema is famous for its Saturday gay night, which sees a range of people from all sexual orientations. It also hosts ‘Soap’, a student based night, which also allows non students to attend. The club has two rooms, each with a bar and 2 DJs.
Crush is for ages 13-17 and runs from 7pm 'till 11pm and of course will be an alcohol free zone so Studio 41 will be offering ‘designer’ milkshakes and soft drinks.
Tickets for CRUSH are £5 and are being sold at Planet Lazers main reception. On launch night 10,000 glow sticks are being given way along with candy floss and popcorn there will also be entertainment such as stilt walkers and performers along with face painters.
Stephen Sullivan, face of Studio 41 night club in Canterbury sent out a message on Facebook announcing the launch of the clubs latest venture. Stephen has been DJ at the night club for many years alongside his day job as Heart radios afternoon presenter. Stephen said “Studio 41 always thinks differently to most clubs, giving a Friday night slot for Under 18s events are almost unheard of for a club our size.”
Studio 41, located in Planet laser near the cinema is famous for its Saturday gay night, which sees a range of people from all sexual orientations. It also hosts ‘Soap’, a student based night, which also allows non students to attend. The club has two rooms, each with a bar and 2 DJs.
Crush is for ages 13-17 and runs from 7pm 'till 11pm and of course will be an alcohol free zone so Studio 41 will be offering ‘designer’ milkshakes and soft drinks.
Tickets for CRUSH are £5 and are being sold at Planet Lazers main reception. On launch night 10,000 glow sticks are being given way along with candy floss and popcorn there will also be entertainment such as stilt walkers and performers along with face painters.
Council to slash £3million for budget
Canterbury is one of the biggest student cities in England, but does its Council consider its largest group of people? And are we paying for the development of the Marlowe?
Canterbury Council released its second budget proposal on 15 January and is set to save £3m over the next two years. It anticipates that after the next elections, the new government will reduce the grants it would normally receive. This is the reason for a two-year proposal: they are planning ahead to compensate for the loss in revenue they would normally receive from the grant. To save this amount of money the council has to propose “money saving schemes” which will be set in stone on 18 February.
Many people in and around the Canterbury area are speculating that the development of the Marlowe has left the council needing to find another £3m. The Marlowe development started in April 2009 and is costing in total £25.5m; this being funded by Canterbury Council among three other organisations.
There are three things in the budget that affect students: parking fee changes, the closure of the Westgate Hall and recycling bag charges.
Firstly there is a huge hype about recycling and the Council even threatened to fine people that don’t recycle enough. In the first budget proposal, Canterbury, Whitstable and Herne Bay residents were going to be charged for the clear sacks. This time the council is proposing to provide one roll per house every quarter for free and any extra clear bags have to be paid for by the residents. That seems fair enough but on each roll there are only 17 bags. The Council proposal states that “most households find 17 clear sacks per quarter sufficient and these are provided free”. Most student houses have six people living in them; this means that there are six independent people who buy and cook their own food, living in the house.This therefore amounts to a lot more recycling than in your average family home. In an average student household four to five recycle bags are used every two weeks, resulting in a consumption of 30 bags. Therefore 17 just aren’t enough, so we are going to either have to buy the clear sacks or not recycle – Which would you choose? The council hopes to save £30,000 with this proposal.
The Council plans to raise £266,000 by raising the price of parking in and around the Canterbury city centre, including the Longport area and North Holmes Road. The price per hour will begin at 90p per hour but could rise throughout the year. Also the main city centre car parks are increasing their prices. Castle Row, Castle Street Multi-Storey, Miller’s Field, North Lane, Queningate, Rosemary Lane and St Radigund’s car parks are all increasing by 10p to £1.00 per hour. Pound Lane will decrease by 10p. That leaves seven car park prices being raised and one being decreased. It may not seem like a huge increase but the cost of a rise of 10p per hour paid five times a week, if you commute to university, does mount up. “Parking in Canterbury district will remain good value for money when compared to similar towns and cities,” said the council.
The council plans to save £400,000 by demolishing the Westgate Hall. It is in need of enhancements so that it meets health and safety requirements. So what’s the big deal? Well, the hall is used by hundreds of people for societies, dance classes and performance space. Once the Marlowe is built that will become the main community performance area, but what’s going to happen in the time between the demolition of the hall and the rebuild? There won’t be a place for people to use, which is going to cause problems for Canterbury’s arts and entertainment industry. Once it has been demolished the area is going to be used as temporary parking, which ties in with the Council’s proposal for parking fees. The new proposal will be set in February, but until then the future looks uncertain for Canterbury residents.
Canterbury Council released its second budget proposal on 15 January and is set to save £3m over the next two years. It anticipates that after the next elections, the new government will reduce the grants it would normally receive. This is the reason for a two-year proposal: they are planning ahead to compensate for the loss in revenue they would normally receive from the grant. To save this amount of money the council has to propose “money saving schemes” which will be set in stone on 18 February.
Many people in and around the Canterbury area are speculating that the development of the Marlowe has left the council needing to find another £3m. The Marlowe development started in April 2009 and is costing in total £25.5m; this being funded by Canterbury Council among three other organisations.
There are three things in the budget that affect students: parking fee changes, the closure of the Westgate Hall and recycling bag charges.
Firstly there is a huge hype about recycling and the Council even threatened to fine people that don’t recycle enough. In the first budget proposal, Canterbury, Whitstable and Herne Bay residents were going to be charged for the clear sacks. This time the council is proposing to provide one roll per house every quarter for free and any extra clear bags have to be paid for by the residents. That seems fair enough but on each roll there are only 17 bags. The Council proposal states that “most households find 17 clear sacks per quarter sufficient and these are provided free”. Most student houses have six people living in them; this means that there are six independent people who buy and cook their own food, living in the house.This therefore amounts to a lot more recycling than in your average family home. In an average student household four to five recycle bags are used every two weeks, resulting in a consumption of 30 bags. Therefore 17 just aren’t enough, so we are going to either have to buy the clear sacks or not recycle – Which would you choose? The council hopes to save £30,000 with this proposal.
The Council plans to raise £266,000 by raising the price of parking in and around the Canterbury city centre, including the Longport area and North Holmes Road. The price per hour will begin at 90p per hour but could rise throughout the year. Also the main city centre car parks are increasing their prices. Castle Row, Castle Street Multi-Storey, Miller’s Field, North Lane, Queningate, Rosemary Lane and St Radigund’s car parks are all increasing by 10p to £1.00 per hour. Pound Lane will decrease by 10p. That leaves seven car park prices being raised and one being decreased. It may not seem like a huge increase but the cost of a rise of 10p per hour paid five times a week, if you commute to university, does mount up. “Parking in Canterbury district will remain good value for money when compared to similar towns and cities,” said the council.
The council plans to save £400,000 by demolishing the Westgate Hall. It is in need of enhancements so that it meets health and safety requirements. So what’s the big deal? Well, the hall is used by hundreds of people for societies, dance classes and performance space. Once the Marlowe is built that will become the main community performance area, but what’s going to happen in the time between the demolition of the hall and the rebuild? There won’t be a place for people to use, which is going to cause problems for Canterbury’s arts and entertainment industry. Once it has been demolished the area is going to be used as temporary parking, which ties in with the Council’s proposal for parking fees. The new proposal will be set in February, but until then the future looks uncertain for Canterbury residents.
Wednesday, 10 February 2010
Assassins Creed II review
If you liked the first Assassins creed then Assassins creed II will blow your mind away! I wasn’t the biggest fan of the first, as it didn’t have anything to really grab my attention and keep me interested but ACII definitely did this. The game continues from the end of the first game with Desmond Miles, still a prisoner of Abstergo Industries, after playing through Altair’s memories to uncover a Pieces of Eden. Lucy Stillman a former employee of Abstergo industries helps Desmond escape to a secret hideout before Dr Warren Vidic can kill him. Lucy, Shaun Hastings and Rebecca Crane have come together to design their own Animus system ‘Animus 2.0’ which They invite Desmond too, to help uncover the memories of another assassin ancestor, Ezio Auditore da Firenze to find other pieces of Eden before Abstergo industries does.
Set in 15th Century Italy you will explore the beautiful Florence, Venice and the Tuscan country side to play through Ezio’s memories. Players are introduced to Ezio at the moment of his birth and then taken to his younger years as a womanizer and the son of a wealthy banker. Ezio isn’t a likeable character, but the game pushes us towards a revenge plot that will definitely provide you with plenty of motivation to stick with it. Ubisoft have tied up all the loose ends from the end of the last game and have introduced a brilliant collection of brand new game elements, which include puzzles, treasure hunting and item collecting. Along with the brand new stuff the original elements like finding viewpoints to revel the maps to each city is still incorporated into the game along with many off the track missions such as races, assassination contracts and beat up events.
Without giving too much away Ubisoft have incorporated a brilliant puzzle solving system where Ezio has to find glyphs on historical and noted buildings around Italy and solve them to uncover information placed into Ezio’s memories by a former Abstergo industries subject. Some of the puzzles are overly easy and some of very difficult but a lot of fun to solve, even if you do cheat a little, as they do become frustrating after a while. Along with this, shops have become available for you to buy weapons, dyes and ammunition such as smoke bombs and a collection of art work to show case in the Auditore family home. You also get the chance to hire prostitutes to help you blend and distract guards and other groups of people to aid in your mission. The Xbox version of the game gives away gamer points any chance it can get.
The only problem with the game is the fighting scenes, its quiet difficult to get used too but is similar to the first game, the only problem with it is that once you go into defense mode your enemies will just stand staring at you waiting for you to attack, it is very tedious and spoils the fight scenes totally.
Ubisoft has also introduced a new reward system called Uplay. While playing you start to receive points which you can exchange for a choice of 4 things which include Altair’s outfit and access to the Auditore family crypt. But by the end of the game you would have collected enough points to exchange for all 4, so I’m unsure as to the aim of this scheme.
There are a few teething problems that Ubisoft should attend to before the release of the 3rd instalment but as a whole this game is a highly rated, improved, more appealing and exciting game which will keep you hooked for hours.
Set in 15th Century Italy you will explore the beautiful Florence, Venice and the Tuscan country side to play through Ezio’s memories. Players are introduced to Ezio at the moment of his birth and then taken to his younger years as a womanizer and the son of a wealthy banker. Ezio isn’t a likeable character, but the game pushes us towards a revenge plot that will definitely provide you with plenty of motivation to stick with it. Ubisoft have tied up all the loose ends from the end of the last game and have introduced a brilliant collection of brand new game elements, which include puzzles, treasure hunting and item collecting. Along with the brand new stuff the original elements like finding viewpoints to revel the maps to each city is still incorporated into the game along with many off the track missions such as races, assassination contracts and beat up events.
Without giving too much away Ubisoft have incorporated a brilliant puzzle solving system where Ezio has to find glyphs on historical and noted buildings around Italy and solve them to uncover information placed into Ezio’s memories by a former Abstergo industries subject. Some of the puzzles are overly easy and some of very difficult but a lot of fun to solve, even if you do cheat a little, as they do become frustrating after a while. Along with this, shops have become available for you to buy weapons, dyes and ammunition such as smoke bombs and a collection of art work to show case in the Auditore family home. You also get the chance to hire prostitutes to help you blend and distract guards and other groups of people to aid in your mission. The Xbox version of the game gives away gamer points any chance it can get.
The only problem with the game is the fighting scenes, its quiet difficult to get used too but is similar to the first game, the only problem with it is that once you go into defense mode your enemies will just stand staring at you waiting for you to attack, it is very tedious and spoils the fight scenes totally.
Ubisoft has also introduced a new reward system called Uplay. While playing you start to receive points which you can exchange for a choice of 4 things which include Altair’s outfit and access to the Auditore family crypt. But by the end of the game you would have collected enough points to exchange for all 4, so I’m unsure as to the aim of this scheme.
There are a few teething problems that Ubisoft should attend to before the release of the 3rd instalment but as a whole this game is a highly rated, improved, more appealing and exciting game which will keep you hooked for hours.
Rupert The Bear irthday Celebration
Rupert the Bear, created in 1920 in Canterbury celebrated his 89th Birthday last week. Fans gathered in the Stour street museum on Saturday 7 November for the 89th Rupert Bear birthday celebration. The event started at 10am and saw people of all ages coming to see Rupert the Bear himself.
Rupert was first created in 1920 and was originally launched as a short cartoon strip in the Daily Express on 8 November that year. His creator was Canterbury-born Mary Tourtel who was trained as an artist at the city’s Sidney Cooper School of Art. The museum In Canterbury is the official Rupert Bear museum with authentic Rupert the bear products including the first Rupert the bear stuffed toy.
The action-packed day included a visit from Barry Purves, who shared some animation secrets from the ‘Rupert Bear Follow the magic’ series, the latest Rupert creation which is aired on Channel 5’s Milkshake show.
Rupert illustrator Stuart Trotter made a special guest appearance, chatting to visitors and signing fans copies of this year’s annual, the 74th annual. In addition, there was Rupert storytelling and singing.
The museum is open all year round, Monday to Saturday 11.00 until 16.00. Admission charge for Rupert Bear Museum only from 1 April 2009 until 31 March 2010: Adults £2.30, Concessions £1.25, Family Ticket £5.95
Rupert was first created in 1920 and was originally launched as a short cartoon strip in the Daily Express on 8 November that year. His creator was Canterbury-born Mary Tourtel who was trained as an artist at the city’s Sidney Cooper School of Art. The museum In Canterbury is the official Rupert Bear museum with authentic Rupert the bear products including the first Rupert the bear stuffed toy.
The action-packed day included a visit from Barry Purves, who shared some animation secrets from the ‘Rupert Bear Follow the magic’ series, the latest Rupert creation which is aired on Channel 5’s Milkshake show.
Rupert illustrator Stuart Trotter made a special guest appearance, chatting to visitors and signing fans copies of this year’s annual, the 74th annual. In addition, there was Rupert storytelling and singing.
The museum is open all year round, Monday to Saturday 11.00 until 16.00. Admission charge for Rupert Bear Museum only from 1 April 2009 until 31 March 2010: Adults £2.30, Concessions £1.25, Family Ticket £5.95
Hate Crime Suicide
Temporary Chief Constable of Leicestershire police Chris Eyre publically apologised for the negligence of the hate crimes towards Fiona Pilkington and her daughter Francecca Hardwick that resulted in both their deaths in 2007.
“We are extremely sorry that at times our actions failed to meet the family's needs and in retrospect there are things we would have done differently. I would like to offer my unreserved apologies to the family, community and wider public.” Mr Eyre said during a press conference yesterday in Loughborough Town Hall.
The jurors at the inquest into the unlawful killing and suicide said the response of the police and two local councils had contributed to their deaths, which encouraged the chief of police to make an apology. Mr Eyre said no individual officers are being disciplined, but the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) is now investigating.
Fiona and her daughter were ‘tormented’ for two years by residents including the Simmons family of Bardon Road, Barwell, that resulted in Fiona killing herself and her daughter in a burning car. During the two years of torment an injunction against the Simmons family expired as neither the council nor the police bought forward any further evidence against them.
Mr Eyre on behalf of Leicestershire police has taken the blame for not doing more to stop the suicide and explained that the police have introduced measures to prevent incidents like this happening again. These include a scheme in which every incident an officer is made aware of any other incidents involving the family.
Local residents in Barwell have started a petition to have the Simmons family evicted.
Chris Tew, former Assistant Chief Constable of Lincolnshire police explained ‘Things have moved on quite considerably - there would be a totally different response today than there was then.’
“We are extremely sorry that at times our actions failed to meet the family's needs and in retrospect there are things we would have done differently. I would like to offer my unreserved apologies to the family, community and wider public.” Mr Eyre said during a press conference yesterday in Loughborough Town Hall.
The jurors at the inquest into the unlawful killing and suicide said the response of the police and two local councils had contributed to their deaths, which encouraged the chief of police to make an apology. Mr Eyre said no individual officers are being disciplined, but the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) is now investigating.
Fiona and her daughter were ‘tormented’ for two years by residents including the Simmons family of Bardon Road, Barwell, that resulted in Fiona killing herself and her daughter in a burning car. During the two years of torment an injunction against the Simmons family expired as neither the council nor the police bought forward any further evidence against them.
Mr Eyre on behalf of Leicestershire police has taken the blame for not doing more to stop the suicide and explained that the police have introduced measures to prevent incidents like this happening again. These include a scheme in which every incident an officer is made aware of any other incidents involving the family.
Local residents in Barwell have started a petition to have the Simmons family evicted.
Chris Tew, former Assistant Chief Constable of Lincolnshire police explained ‘Things have moved on quite considerably - there would be a totally different response today than there was then.’
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