On this week in 1998 and 2011: 25th celebrations for Narborough Playgroup and excited shoppers queue up outside King’s Lynn’s new Primark store
In our regular On This Week feature we look back to what was making the headlines in 1998 and 2011…
On this week: March 24 – 30, 2011
Hordes of excited shoppers queued outside Lynn’s new Primark store, when it opened for business. More than 100 people waited outside the fashion store in High Street for half-an-hour and as soon as the doors were unlocked T-shirts, jewellery and dresses, as well as many other items were grabbed off the shelves. Lynn’s Primark, which covers two floors, is the company’s 216th store and has created 138 jobs. It was announced more than a year ago that the fashion chain was coming to town and it replaced BHS. Alistair Cox, town centre manager, said: “Primark is a massive boost for the town’s shopping credentials as it is one of those shops which will bring people to the area.”
A communal lounge at Freebridge Haven sheltered scheme in West Winch has been reopened by North West Norfolk MP Henry Bellingham. During his visit he met residents in the lounge, which has benefited from a £350,000 revamp. As part of the refurbishment, environmental improvements have been made to make it more energy-efficient, and bat bricks have been built into the external walls to provide additional roost sites.
The enfant terrible of British cuisine, Marco Pierre White, is to take over two of West Norfolk’s leading gastro-pubs in a multi-million pound deal. The world-famous chef and restaurateur and star of ITV1’s Hell’s Kitchens, has announced that he and business partner hotelier Paul Clark, had concluded a deal to buy the Maypole Group, owners of the Lifeboat Inn and the Old Coach House in Thornham. Altogether, White and Clark have bought six pubs, all in rural and coastal settings, including the two in Thornham.
Lynn’s Springwood High School has received a double boost – winning Ofsted praise and a go-ahead from the Government for its academy plan. The school was judged good, with several outstanding features after an Ofsted inspection earlier this month. And now it is about to become a new-style academy, opting out of local authority control and receiving its funding directly from the Government. The school has specialist performing arts status and achievement in performing arts was said to be outstanding, reported Ofsted, as well as pupils’ contribution to the school and wider community.
Lecturers from Lynn’s College of West Anglia took part in a nationwide walk-out over pay and pensions. Many lessons were cancelled when members of the University and Colleges Union took to the picket line, but lecturers said students had been very supportive. The Union says it has been trying to negotiate for more than a year and there has not been a pay rise for three years. A change to the pension was the final straw and so it was felt a stand had to be made.
Diners are once again able to sit outside the Wimpy restaurant on the corner of New Conduit Street and High Street in Lynn, but only in small numbers. As reported in the Lynn News last month, Wimpy was told to remove seating from outside its premises which had been there since it opened five years ago. Norfolk County Council ruled they were an obstruction to the highway, but Wimpy has managed to squeeze three tables into one small area outside the restaurant which it owns and will meet council officials to try to negotiate to put more tables back.
The Linnets crashed out of the FA Vase at the semi-final stage after losing 3-0 away to Coalville in the first leg. It led joint Linnets boss Gary Setchell to admit his side had been left with a mountain to climb ahead of the second leg at The Walks. He said shoddy defending helped contribute to the side’s downfall and many players were not up to the standards required. [In the second leg at The Walks, Coalville won by 3-2 for a 6-3 aggregate victory, but crowd violence at that match later resulted in both clubs being fined £150 by the Football Association].
A retired school dinner lady has left a £667,000 fortune to charity. Widow Sheila Bird, who had no children, chose eight organisations in and around West Norfolk that touched the lives of those closest to her and each will receive an equal £83,377 windfall. Mrs Bird, who had worked at the former Necton First School, died in May last year, but her estate has only just been finalised and the eight chosen organisations have received their cheques.
