Local News

Willen Hospice would like to thank 17 intrepid trekkers for raising a phenomenal £44,000 for the charity, by taking on their Borneo Jungle Adventure. Back in October, the group departed from the cold, autumnal weather of Milton Keynes, to the humid heat of Malaysia, ready for a four-day trek through the thick Borneo jungle. This week, the Trekkers were invited to a Thank You evening at the Hospice to celebrate their fantastic achievement, and to find out how much they had collectively raised. They also heard from Willen Hospice Chief Executive, Peta Wilkinson, on how the money will help the Hospice to continue providing compassionate care and support for local families, when and where they need it most. Louise Egerton, Borneo Trekker, said: “This challenge really was an awe-inspiring experience, with memories I’ll treasure forever. It was extremely tough at times, but I just kept reminding myself, and the group,..

A brand new development of homes have been completed for buyers in Milton Keynes, giving local people the chance to live in a new neighbourhood comprising green space and a wealth of community amenities. A range of apartments and town houses are now available for immediate occupation, offering a wide variety of living options. Prices start from £249,950 and Help to Buy available on all properties – a dedicated Help to Buy event being held on Saturday 9th November to inform customers of their buying options and show them around. Places for People are the developers creating the new community; the company’s sales manager Francesca Tizzard, based at the development, says: “We are thrilled to complete these homes, including two show homes which are now open for people to come and view; we look forward to showing people around at our November event. “That event is a chance for people..

Following the publication of the national exam results, Ousedale School is once again the top school in Milton Keynes at GCSE for both progress and attainment:  with a progress score of 0.27 and attainment 53.6. This puts them once more in the top 30% of schools in the whole country. Fantastic results were achieved in the core subjects of English, Maths, Humanities and Science. English results were very impressive with over 90% of children achieving grade 4 and 78% gaining 5 and above, again these were the top results in Milton Keynes. “We are absolutely delighted with these results and they are very much testament to the considerable hard work and dedication given by students and staff.” Mrs Sue Carbert (Headteacher) Ousedale School have an absolute belief that all children can succeed.  The vision is shared by all staff and increasingly communicated throughout the school by students.  It is: “Ousedale School..

Destination Milton Keynes (DMK), the official tourism and information service for the city, has announced the appointment of Ian Stuart as its new Chief Executive. As a long-term resident of Milton Keynes, Ian is a huge advocate of the city having held a number of key roles within the business and leisure community including Managing Director of Milton Keynes Herald newspaper, General Manager at Willen Lake; and for the past 17 years the position of Managing Director at Heart FM, Milton Keynes. John Cove, Chair of Destination Milton Keynes said, “We are delighted that Ian is joining us to lead the organisation through the next stage of its development. The visitor economy sector is a critical part of Milton Keynes and Ian will be key to ensuring that we make Milton Keynes a destination of choice.” Ian Stuart, commented, “I’m keen to revitalise the role of DMK and ensure the..

It has been a superb summer cycling season for Bedford Girls’ School (BGS) Upper Sixth student Sophie Lewis, who recently produced magnificent results on the track. Representing the Great Britain Cycling Team, Sophie bagged gold and silver medals at the U23 and Junior European Track Championships (9th-14th July) in Ghent, Belgium and silver and bronze medals at the UCI Track Junior World Championships (14th-18th August) in Frankfurt, Germany. This was an incredible achievement as she competed against the very best riders across the globe in the team pursuit and multiple different bunch races. Sophie, who also represents Cycle Team OnForm said: “At the start of the summer I competed in the European Track Championships in Ghent, Belgium. This was a very tiring but successful week at my first major championships representing Team GB. I was delighted to kick-start the week with a silver medal in the team pursuit. On the..

Milton Keynes Development Partnership (MKDP) and Milton Keynes Council (MKC)have reached an agreement with Milton Keynes Dons that will allow the Football Club to develop a new state-of-the-art training facility at the MK Bowl. MK Dons expect to make the planning application for the 49-acre site early in the new year, including plans that will see the Bowl used 365 days a year by the First Team, Academy and the Milton Keynes community. As well as 12 football pitches, the community hub will include changing, fitness and medical facilities, classrooms, administration as well as food and beverage provisions. Plans also ensure that the MK Bowl will be available as an enhanced hub for cycling and as a music venue for artists from around the world. This news comes in the National Bowl’s 40th Anniversary Year and shortly after confirmation of Milton Keynes as a European City of Sport for 2020. Charles Macdonald, Chief..

Ride High, a local children’s charity that uses horses to transform the lives of disadvantaged children, will showcase its members’ artwork alongside that of the English painter George Stubbs at a world-class exhibition at MK Gallery this autumn. Stubbs (1724-1806) is one of the UK’s greatest artists. Best known for his paintings of horses, he was the first artist to eloquently depict the close relationship between horses and people. Ride High members are recreating some of Stubbs’ most iconic work for display in their very own exhibition ‘Ride High Take on Stubbs’ in the MK Gallery Project Space from 9th October, sponsored by RB Equestrian, Shoosmiths and WSA The Communications Agency. The collaboration between Milton Keynes’ recently opened Gallery and the city’s unique charity will see the children create their own interpretations of Stubbs’ work, including his greatest masterpiece, Whistlejacket (on loan from the National Gallery) through various mediums including..

Make Believe, the UK’s leading children’s international performing arts school, is taking its talent-finding platform One Dream to Milton Keynes, in partnership with intu Milton Keynes. On 12 October, hundreds of children will gather at the shopping centre to showcase their talents in hopes of winning a £1,000 cash prize and the opportunity to join the MB Talent platform. Singing and dancing auditions will be judged across junior (6-11 years old) and senior categories (12+) to whittle the hopefuls down to 30-40 finalists. The finalists will then compete for the crown and £500 each on Sunday 17th November at the Stratford Circus Theatre. Make Believe founder and managing director Joel Kern will judge the competition alongside industry experts and leading talent agent Eilidh McCole. Previous winners of this initiative have gone on to become stars, with 2018 finalist Klaudia Gjergji starring in West End production On Your Feet this year,..

Last week, staff working at Willen Lake in Milton Keynes made an extraordinary discovery – what they believe to be an ‘ancient’ sword. Cassius Whiley-Morton from Aqua Parcs felt a solid object hit his foot when clearing the park on Friday 23 August at approximately 8.20am. Cassius said: “I looked down and could see something reflecting the light from the surface so I reached down and felt something solid and heavy.” Cassius held onto the side of the inflatable park and with one motion, drew the object from the bed of the lake. To the shock of the staff, they saw it was an ‘ancient’ sword, almost perfectly preserved. He added “I couldn’t believe it; I’ve worked on the lake all summer and have never come across anything like this. It was clearly visible from the surface so the undercurrent must have dislodged it from somewhere beneath. My colleagues said..

Milton Keynes' popular outdoor space around Willen Lake now has a lot less rubbish thanks to Whitespace Yoga & Wellbeing Studio, who partnered with Conscious Living MK for a community litter pick on Sunday. An army of volunteers joined Whitespace Studio for an hour and a half walk around the beautiful green space, where they gathered 20 bags of rubbish and recycling which otherwise may have ended up in our waterways. Deborah Berryman, Yoga Teacher and founder of Whitespace Studio comments: "We were thrilled to partner with Conscious Living and help to clean up Willen Lake. It's more important than ever before that we continue the fight against litter and plastic pollution, so thank you to everyone who joined us to take action on improving our local environment.” Codie-Leigh, Conscious Living MK organiser also comments: “Coming together in this way gives us so much hope for the future of our..

Recruitment is now underway at the new H&M logistics hub in Milton Keynes. The site, which is bringing 800 new jobs to the region, is currently looking for Logistics Associates that will play a crucial role at this centre.  Once operational, the 73,000 square metre Milton Keynes distribution centre will become the retailer’s first logistics hub to serve both its stores and online business, with a high degree of process supporting technology. As a Logistics Associate, new colleagues will have the opportunity make a direct contribution to the customer experience in store and online, using technology to make sure that customers have access to the right products, at the right time.  Rachel Wells, Logistics Manager for H&M UK said: “H&M is a value-driven business, so its really important to us that we find fantastic people that will embody the H&M spirit. We believe in our people, and we hope to..

A school in Milton Keynes has launched an innovative new service to help schools, and people who want to work in education, make their recruitment experience the best it can possibly be. RISE, operated by education specialists at St. Paul’s Catholic School, actively recruits, trains and supports potential candidates and offers tailored introductions to schools. Candidates, seeking employment as teaching or support staff, can register with RISE’s online Talent Pool and are contacted as soon as an appropriate vacancy becomes available. They can also benefit from expert advice on low cost, accessible training opportunities and guidance on how to become an even more attractive candidate for future employers. For schools RISE offers an upfront, competitive introduction fee, with an assurance that every school using the service will be introduced to the most suitable candidate for their pupils and that an on-going training programme is available to candidates if required. Another..

Local runners who represented Willen Hospice in the Virgin London Marathon have raised more than £51k for the local charity. This week, some of the Team Willen members met at the Hospice to celebrate their success and find out how much they had collectively raised. Dawn Clark, Challenges Fundraiser at Willen Hospice said “Our London Marathon runners this year were a real team, supporting each other through their running journey, offering each other support at their various fundraising events. We are delighted to share with them the grand total raised, and know this will inspire others to take up this unique and prestigious challenge. Please contact us if this has inspired you!” The team was made up of 12 Gold Bond runners plus four runners with ballot places. They all raised fantastic amounts with some individual achievements of over £10 000. The London Marathon is one of the events that..

MK Playday is pleased to announce it has received a grant from the MK Community Foundation. These funds will support the event held in Campbell Park. MK Playday will be held on Wednesday 7th August 2019 in Campbell Park 11am-4pm. MK Playday provides fun, free accessible activities for all children, young people and their families across Milton Keynes as part of the nationally recognised Playday which celebrates children’s right to play and highlights the importance of play in children’s lives. There will be a wide variety of activities to choose from and a special tournament with local mascots. Julie Dawes, the Interim Chair of MK Playday Partnership said, ‘We are very pleased to have secured support from MK Community Foundation, these funds help ensure the partnership can provide an enjoyable free day for families and communities of Milton Keynes. We value the support MK Community Foundation has given us and..

Willen Hospice is inviting cycling enthusiasts to take part in their popular Sportive, Ride for Willen, on Sunday 1 September. Last September, the Sportive saw over 250 participants take to their bikes for the event, raising almost £15,000 for the charity. This year organisers are excited to announce that there are four routes to choose from; 40 miles, 65 miles, and the new 85 miler, and Family 5 mile route for adults with children aged 7-14 years. Each route starts from Cranfield University, passing through the beautiful areas surrounding Milton Keynes, including the Woburn Abbey Estate and Aylesbury Vale. Tracey Jago, Senior Events Fundraiser at Willen Hospice, said: “Ride for Willen offers something for all, whether they’re a novice rider, experienced cyclist, or a young family. We’ve planned some fantastic routes, marshalled by MK Grand Union Rotary Club, which include varied landscapes to both challenge riders and offer them attractive..