Cllr Roy Gerstner – Community Activist

An accident involving a female runner in the Wisbech parkrun at the weekend has prompted an inspection of the town park’s pathways.

The Mayor of Wisbech Sidney Imafidon accompanied by Fenland’s head of parks and open spaces, Phil Hughes, and Terry Leftley, a regular participant in the town’s park run, carried out an inspection of all the pathways on Monday.

The ambulance service attended and checked the woman over.

Cllr Imafidon said: “I have been calling for work to be done for months now, and although the place where this accident happened is not damaged, and it seems likely it was more of a balance issue, it led to Phil Hughes contacting me to carry out an inspection.

“We identified several areas that were in need of resurfacing and urgent attention, and looked at other ways to improve this valuable town asset.”
He continued: “Of particular concern is the bottom corner near Park Street, which is quite rough and always gets very muddy and slippery when it rains.

“It was agreed that work is needed, and Phil said he would get the contractors out to survey the area to see what needs to be done.

“We are also hoping to try to incorporate the improvements into the Fenland Council Inspire project – so it is unclear how soon the work will be carried out, but we are hoping it will be sooner rather than later.”

Cllr Imafidon posted about his park inspection to Facebook and among those to comment was a regular runner.

The woman runner, who has run in aid of charity and takes part in runs across the country, said: “The issue with this part of the parkrun course has been a concern for a long time. When I used to time keep, I saw many runners injure their ankles here, and it’s frustrating that it took a serious incident at the weekend for action to finally be taken.

“As a regular park user, I’m disappointed that concerns about safety weren’t addressed sooner.

“I hope this incident leads to real improvements, not just a reactive response, and that the council takes responsibility for properly maintaining the park to prevent further injuries.”
©Fenland Citizen

“We do the daily fitness walk around the park, and I have had a number of people come up to me complaining about the state of that area and asking for something to be done.

“I have also had mobility scooter users complain to me about it.

Dear Roy,

We were contacted by a concerned mum recently who was worried her daughter was being groomed or exploited.

The woman from Huntingdonshire said she had seen an increase in her daughter’s phone use and she had received mysterious gifts – including phones and designer goods.
The teenager’s change in behaviour had become more intense and she was being hostile when challenged.

Other calls include one from a worried dad in South Cambs, who discovered his 12-year-old daughter had been speaking to people online using a hidden phone, and a headteacher in Fenland who said a boy had confided in him that he was being exploited to sell drugs by his friend.

Cases like these are flagged up to our dedicated Child Exploitation Hub every single week and our officers work hard to safeguard children, but we can’t do it alone. You may think children aren’t exploited where you live or it won’t happen to those you know – but these cases prove differently.

Do you know the signs to spot this Child Exploitation Awareness Day?

Please take the time to speak to your children, those you care for, or family and friends, about any concerns you have. One conversation could be a start towards making a real difference.

Concerns can also be reported to us, like the parents and headteacher did here. Find out more information about child exploitation on our dedicated web pages.

Kind regards,

I don’t know whether any other Councillor spent 45+ minutes filling in this survey about planning in our area and the challenges it brings – I did and I did highlight issues around infra-sctructure – be it doctors, dentists, schools roads and transport….
Ask your Candidate when knocks on your door next time….

Due to some ageing and safety concerns, Cambs CC are going to romove the footbridge and replace with a new one.

‘The Walk’ which leads from the footbridge to the rear of Jenner Health Centre will be closed also.

©RG

https://www.cambsnews.co.uk/

Today 17th March 2025 @ 12:15

As John Elworthy appears to have gone off the radar in the last few days..and news that his flagship web-news – CambsNews has gone off-line, some are having withdrawal symptoms and have asked me to post this up, which would have been right up JE’s priority – Rather ‘old news’ – but still very much alive lately over how money was spent.

Employer of the Year (Nestle Purina) was Rai & Rai General Builders of Whittlesey, with Pure Heart Homecare of Wisbech a close second.