Freedom of the Vale granted to three local regiments At the Vale of White Horse District Council meeting this evening the Council granted Freedom of the District to three local regiments. Representatives of 3 Regiment Royal Logistic Corps, 4 Regiment Royal Logistic Corps and The Rifles attended the meeting to receive the honour on behalf of their regiments. The Freedoms were granted in honour of The Queen's 90th birthday to mark the significant contribution that these local regiments have made to the life of our local community and to the nation. As soon as operationally viable the regiments will exercise their Freedom with the RLC regiments parading in Abingdon and The Rifles parading in Faringdon. £1.7m investment in the White Horse Leisure & Tennis Centre 
Visitors to the White Horse Leisure and Tennis Centre in Abingdon are set to benefit from a major programme of investment, which will see the current gym substantially extended, new state-of-the-art fitness equipment installed and a new crèche area created. You can read more about the proposals and view a short video online by clicking here. Wantage youngsters to benefit from big play upgrade 
Children in Wantage are set for an exciting summer thanks to the installation of a whole host of new play equipment at the town’s Manor Road Recreation Ground. New swings, a see saw, a climbing area, springers and a roundabout are just some of the new equipment that children will be able to use. Each piece will be on a safe rubber mulch surface. The new kit also includes items specially designed so they can be used by people with disabilities. The refurbishment has been supported by the generosity of local residents and well known local fundraiser Ray Collins who helped to raise £10,000 for the project. Nearly £80,000 has been allocated to the park by the Vale of White Horse. Good news for gardeners Keen gardeners in the Vale of White Horse can take advantage of some of the district councils’ upcoming offers and discounts. Existing garden waste customers can leave double out for collection between 16 and 20 May. Any extra garden waste needs to be in an open box or bag by the brown bin, but not in trade bags as waste crews won’t empty these. If residents sign up to the garden waste service in June or July, they’ll get ten per cent off their annual fee. During this time existing customers can get the discount off their annual fee for an extra bin. Visit www.morerecycling.co.uk to find out more about the councils’ waste and recycling services. Helping you celebrate Her Majesty’s 90th birthday On the weekend of 10 to 12 June 2016 many people across the country will join together and have street parties to celebrate the Queen’s official 90th birthday. The Vale is already helping towns and villages across the district with grants ranging from £100 to £7,500, ensuring that everyone in the district can join in the fun. If you want to join in the celebrations and will be holding a street party the Council has also put together some helpful advice to help make sure your party goes with a swing. You can view the advice online at http://www.whitehorsedc.gov.uk/news-and-events/events/street-parties-queen%E2%80%99s-90th-birthday. Local Plan progress The Vale has now provided all additional information requested by the Planning Inspector to support the Local Plan including suggested modifications following the Examination in Public. We must now wait for the Inspector to publish his interim findings. This is hoped to be towards the end of May/early June. At that stage he is likely to indicate whether or not the Plan is capable of being found sounds and any modifications that he will require. Devolution update The machinations of the district councils devolution proposals are probably not the most exciting news to report blow by blow. In the interests of openness it is however worth noting that PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) have been appointed to carry out the study on behalf of the councils. A full public consultation is being planned for the summer once the final report has been published. A big thank you I am very grateful to everyone who contributed to my fundraising appeal forSpecialEffect. With your support I am very pleased to have raised £1,050 by taking part in the Monster Race last month.