AS 2020 has been a year like no other, we look back at how life unfolded for the town over the past 12 months and revisit some of the top stories from the year.
JANUARY brought with it the closure of a much-loved and long-standing staple of the local area – Newman’s shoe shop.
The store closed after 126 years serving the town from its home in Crowthorne’s High Street. Owners said it was a sad choice but one made due to many people opting to shop online.
The move left many shoppers gutted to see yet another independent business forced to close.
Elsewhere, police were preparing themselves locally for ‘Brexit Day’ in January.
On the final day of the month police warned of fireworks and celebrations/commiserations in the countdown to the official depart from the European Union.
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February was the first month in which Bracknell was faced with a much closer-to-home concerns over coronavirus. Boundary House Surgery, in Bracknell, was unexpectedly closed to patients and initially authorities refused to link it to Covid-19.
Later it was revealed the surgery shut for precautionary measures to clean after a patient had reported symptoms having recently travelled abroad. The closure was followed by backlash from patients who slammed the lack of communication.
With a slightly lighter town to the trip down memory lane, also in February, one man made headlines for his alternative way of proposing to his girlfriend.
Adam Eaglefield from Bracknell enlisted the held of Domino’s pizza to write the big questions on their delivery box. The romantic boyfriend decided to order from the franchise in memory of the couple’s first date in September 2017 when they shared a pepperoni passion pizza.
It was a celebrity start to March in Bracknell as camera crews were spotted in Bracknell’s KFC filming Christ Eubank. The star was inside the restaurant working on an advert with staff at the local fast food restaurant. Whether the advert made it to the big (or tv) screen is yet to be determined.
Much of March – and 2020 in general – was dominated by Coronavirus of course. The virus was only really starting to emerge locally in March and Bracknell had two positive cases confirmed, as well as the first few school scares with pupils isolating having been on European school trips.
There was the inevitable doom and gloom that comes with Covid-19, such as the shocking abuse that key workers were getting as people tried to get their heads around lockdown, the many stuck abroad needing help to get home, and the several flouting rules in local parks.
Despite all that making headlines, the most memorable coronavirus headline of all in April was the efforts of Waitrose shop worker Louise Crawford who entertained shoppers queued up outside.
The 29 year old usually worked behind the welcome desk of the Bracknell branch, however took on a far different role on Friday, April 10, singing to customers in the car park.
Her efforts went viral and gained huge praise from around the world including from celebrities such as former Pop Idol judge turned TV presenter Nicki Chapman who said 'Love this', and the esteemed paralympian and Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson also commented 'It's lovely'.
Olympic and World Rowing champion James Cracknell also shared the video simply saying 'boom', and BBCSport's Dan Walker also retweeted the video saying 'Well played Louise', plus adding 'tremendous apron'.
In May, we gave a salute to the 75th anniversary of VE Day and a special edition of the Bracknell News marked the moment.
Despite lockdown being in full swing, scores of families and neighbours joined together – from a safe social distance – to toast the occasion.
Union Jack flags decorated the streets and many took up residency for the day in their front gardens to enjoy the day with nearby neighbours.
Music, bunting, finger food, and fizz, was a staple for many that afternoon.
In the same month the newspaper also created a special 8-page pull out to mark the 200th birthday of Florence Nightingale. 2020 has never been a more vital and important time for the NHS and the year’s events coincided with it being the ‘Year of the Nurse and Midwife’ in part to mark the historical figure’s contribution to nursing and remaining impact today.
In June, it was the first the town heard of the potential loss of the beloved ice rink and leisure complex.
Bosses at the John Nike Leisure Centre revealed to staff the potential threat to jobs as it struggled to fight back against the developing Covid-19 financial crisis.
The decision – that eventually lead to the closure of the popular go-to site for many of us during childhood – proved to break a lot of hearts in Bracknell.
A petition was launched to keep the site and gained more than 11,000 signatures but with a heavy heart owners decided to close down.
Elsewhere, South Hill Park was another business calling for support as it started to crumbling under the weight of the pandemic. A campaign was launched to help financially secure the site’s future.
July brought with it a host of plans set to change the face of Bracknell in times to come.
The town centre regeneration plans were tweaked and new pictures revealed the impressive ‘cathedral-like’ roof structure expect to one day cover shoppers.
The plans are part a major overhaul of Bracknell’s town centre which has seen huge changes already, with more in the pipeline as The Deck gets underway.
Bracknell Forest also reached another “milestone moment” after plans to turn three town centre sites - Market Street, Jubilee Gardens and Coopers Hill - into 700 new homes moved a step forward. A contract was handed to developers to make this vision a reality the council gave the proposal its blessing.
Also this month, Bracknell was represented on the big screen as millions tuned in to watch a local trio perform on The Voice Kids. Sisters Connie, Nancy, and Betsy Burgess, all performed and wowed judges with Connie, 15, progressing through the tv competition. Musical Whizz Asher Bhatti, 13, and also from Bracknell was another local to take to The Voice Kids stage.
August welcomed school results days like no other as, once again, the coronavirus pandemic had a huge impact on the normality of the year.
Students were unable to celebrate with their friends in the usual fashion of opening letters and results in the school hall or playground. Pupils were able to head along and collect their results, but the usual hugs, crying, and celebratory meet ups were off the cards and all from a safe social distance.
A controversial plan was also introduced in August to make parents pay for using the picnic area and the playground at The Look out. The Discovery Centre revealed a new £10 charge as it reopened for bookings. It was met with much concern from local families and later on in the year the council agreed no other charges would be introduced at play areas locally.
ALSO READ: Waitrose hosts Bracknell's first Covid vaccine clinic as first patients given jabs
Coronavirus was once again high up in the headlines in September as children return to school in their bubbles. This brought with it much concern from parents, and a major operations from local authorities and local schools to manage the return of children to the classroom.
Inevitably, cases were announced across various schools and several children and year groups sent home to isolate. In one week, Edgbarrow School, Garth Hill College, and Brakenhale School, were all confirming cases within just days of each other.
Another site to be hit with an outbreak was Kaspa’s Desserts in the town centre after opening up just days before. The dessert bar was forced to close after staff tested positive for the virus, and was made subject to a deep clean while it worked with the council to reopen safely.
Elsewhere, Tesco was fined £160,000 for selling out-of-date food items from its store in Warfield.
Another planning heavy month came in October as plans were revealed that would potential see the Peel Centre turned into housing. Sources close to the council said homes could soon be built at the shopping centre, with some retail units remaining at the site.
In documents seen by the News, LandSec, the group which owns The Peel Centre, said: “[The Local Plan] Needs to include the site [The Peel Centre] within the mixed-use allocations. [It is] In a sustainable area and has potential for residential [use] as part of mixed-use development.”
Across town, a long-standing staple of Bracknell town centre was earmarked to be bulldozed and redeveloped as part of “elegant” new regeneration plans. Bracknell Regeneration Partnership, the joint venture group which redeveloped the town centre, submitted plans to bulldoze Fitzwilliam House.
November was a crime heavy month as a number of people were pulled up in front of the courts and jailed for local crime. ‘Violent and dangerous’ Daniel Kiely, 41, of no fixed abode, was jailed after a six-day trial found him guilty of attacking a deaf driver when he got out his car, stole his wallet, and his car keys.
Also this month, Charlie Carter, 22, of Greenham Wood, Bracknell, was jailed for 18 months after breaking into the victim’s back garden and stabbing him with a piece of glass in front of his family.
Police also brought a former teacher to justice – Graham Tattersall, of Church Street, Windsor – after he was charged with a string of sex offences that happened during his time as a teacher at Garth Hill School.
In December, Tesco was forced to pay out £500,000 after a 10-year-old was electrocuted by a faulty freezer. The youngster was reaching for an ice lolly when it happened and as a result the superstore chain was brought before the courts this month and ordered to pay out thousands of pounds in fines. It happened at the Warfield branch of the chain.
Elsewhere plans for 35 new homes to be built on top of dozens of apartments at the office site in Opladen Way, were thrown out by the council. In contrast, a £4.3 million pound overhaul and revamp of the town’s historic Easthampstead Park was nearing completion as developers and their team were spent ‘lockdown’ on site to help get the job done during the pandemic.
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