THE 200th birthday of one-time Ongar resident David Livingstone is to be celebrated.

The explorer, missionary and scientist was born on March 19, 1813, and he lived in the town for a while during 1838.

Commemoration events have been announced in Parliament and Epping Forest MP Eleanor Laing was pleased that the Scot was being remembered.

She said: "I am sure the whole House will be pleased to hear what the Scotland Office is doing. It is fitting, especially to those of us who well remember childhood trips to Blantyre, the birthplace of David Livingstone, that tribute should be paid to him here in Parliament."

Events were announced by Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Scotland, David Mundell. He said: "He was both a great Scot and a great Briton who had an outward, progressive attitude to the world, which exemplifies why Scotland and Britain are better together."

Last month the Scotland Office hosted a reception following a commemorative service at Westminster Abbey in the presence of President Joyce Banda of Malawi.

Dr Livingstone preached in the Ongar area and lived in a room near the United Reformed Church in the High Street before he left for London to complete his medical studies.

CONSTRUCTION of Witham's new leisure centre can begin now a crucial land deal has been agreed between the district and county councils.

Work on the £9.5 million sports facility started on Tuesday and should take about 15 months, with a tentative opening date set for summer next year.

The site of the leisure centre is next to the current Bramston Sports Centre and will be on land currently occupied by parts of Maltings School.

A section 77 agreement was needed from the Secretary of State so that Essex County Council could sell the land to Braintree District Council.

A section 77 relates to the disposal of school land – any decision on granting such an order is dependent on it being in the school's interest to complete the deal.

Bill Rose, Witham Town Councillor for community, said: "It's a welcome addition to the town as the Bramston Sports Centre was very well used by hundreds of people.

"But this one will have much more up-to-date facilities and equipment that will be greatly appreciated by the community."

The new centre will include a 25-metre, six-lane pool and a separate 13-metre learner pool, as well as a large fitness suite, a steam room, sauna, two dance studios, squash courts and four outdoor tennis courts.

District councillor Chris Siddall, cabinet member for prosperity and growth, said: "I think it's a good investment – one of the key reasons being that it will actually cost less to run than the current Bramston centre.

"Cost effectiveness was one of the main objectives and it will be a much nicer facility with increased footfall for the area. As the school will be able to use the facilities, they will benefit as well."

The facilities will be more energy efficient and are expected to cost £300,000 less a year to run than the previous facility.

At a Leisure Partnership Board meeting in March it was agreed that Barr Construction would design and build the centre.

A "Meet The Constructors Day" was held to give local sub-contractors the opportunity to come forward and bid for contracts as part of the project.

AT FIRST glance these paintings could be of any metropolitan European city – with tall, narrow buildings bathed in sunshine, people gathered outside restaurants and cafes or leisurely walking around shops.

But under closer examination these are not the streets of Amsterdam, Bruges or Lille – it is in fact our very own Chelmsford.

Painted by Jim Cole, 82, they depict everyday life in the city as well as some of its most recognisable streets and landmarks.

Mr Cole, of Lawn Lane, Springfield, took up painting nearly 17 years ago after taking an adult education class, following retirement in 1996 from his engineering job at the Marconi factory.

A resident of 46 years, his acrylic paintings now hang in Broomfield Hospital and Whitley House surgery in Writtle Road on three by two-foot wooden boards.

A rare aerial photograph of the Marconi factory will also accompany Mr Cole's paintings.

"I've definitely seen some changes in my time, I've got a lot of love for the town and I wanted to capture a different side to the place," he told the Chronicle.

"For anybody that worked at the Marconi factory we have a sentimental attraction to the building.

"I've had a lot of positive feedback so far – when people see my paintings they stand there and talk about the old days," said Mr Cole.

Each picture takes about a month to create from start to finish and this will be the fourth time his paintings have appeared in Chelmsford library.

The artworks will be exhibited in Chelmsford library from May 1 to 31 as part of 'Celebrating Chelmsford'.

A TOAD patrol group carried more than 1,000 of the amphibians across a country road this spring.

The Little Leighs Toad Patrol boasts as many as 25 members and leader David Scott believes 50 per cent of the creatures would be squashed by cars if it were not for the group's work.

The 75-year-old wildlife expert says local children love getting involved.

"It can be chaotic when there are big numbers but when the cars see the signs and us in our yellow jackets it warns them what is happening," said the Essex Reptiles and Amphibian Club member.

The group ferried 1,084 toads across a 200-metre stretch on Church Lane to help them cross from the shrubbery to the nearby lake for mating season.

The patrol group, which was out for two hours every night from April 11 to April 18, was started by one of the resident's grandchildren about ten years ago.

Grandmother-of-nine Jean Sly, 70, of Church Lane, said: "They were horrified when they saw the toads squashed.

"So they made posters saying 'please don't squish us' which they put on posts either end of the road.

"It's hard to see them squished and the common toad, like many species, is not so common any more.

"I believe one year we carried more than 2,000 toads."

Jean is nagged at church by children – otherwise known as "picker-uppers" – to join in the patrol.

Three of her young grandchildren from Manchester deliberately time their visits in the spring to coincide with mating season.

Last week the Chronicle reported that about 50 toads had been killed on Moulsham Hall Lane in nearby Great Leighs during mating season, fuelling calls for warning signs or a similar patrol.

Essex County Council said that it takes the welfare of animals and animal species very seriously.

A spokesman said: "To potentially install a toad crossing sign, a member of the public first has to register a toad crossing with FrogLife, who will then register it with the Department for Transport.

"FrogLife will then send them a letter which can be used as evidence of the registration for the highways department."

To register with Froglife, residents must provide a road name, a brief description of the site and the number of toads usually seen crossing.

A BUS route that residents and parish councillors fought to get installed is due to be cancelled because it has not been used enough.

Brentwood Community Transport's 228 service started on May 9 last year but has since seen few regular passengers.

The route starts in Doddinghurst and stops at the Brentwood Centre, Brentwood railway station and Thorndon Country Park.

Driver Barry Hindley, 65, said: "It's a shame what's happened to this area, there's this great bus service that would be great for kids if they wanted to go into town, but no one's taken it up.

"I had a few regulars at the start but not much even since May.

"It's just not economically viable to keep it going."

One of the few users of the service was Beryl White, 75, of Brentwood Road, Ingrave.

She said: "Without this bus I shall have to go to town on a different day and the other service is not reliable – sometimes it breaks down."

The charity's chief executive Tina Tickner said: "It's sad news, we tried but there wasn't the interest."

IN RESPONSE to all the comments made regarding the Essex Chronicle article on my situation, I must take the opportunity first to thank all those who have shown compassion and understanding for myself and my son Alfie.

Your words of kindness and support have been very encouraging and I assure you I will not give up this battle to get housed and as a mother finally provide a loving home where Alfie can grow up safely, as he so rightly deserves.

Second, I'd like to say to those who posted negative feedback online you too have encouraged me to keep fighting as one day you may well need to rely on social housing.

If and when you do fall into this situation you will sit back and remember me, the woman that got off her backside and fought against all the odds and came out the other side.

Third, the council's response on the article was typical and pathetic.

Not once has any member of staff actually asked about my circumstances, they have only demanded evidence which has been provided.

They claim everyone is encouraged to pursue accommodation through the private sector, as well as socially rented accommodation, due to the severe shortage of available social housing.

Had any member of staff dealing with my case actually read the evidence, they would see why I have no option but to rely on social housing.

My landlord wanted to sell the flat I was living in, and instead of making the process easy, the council instructed my landlord to get an eviction order.

He helped me and Alfie by letting us stay for an extra six months, as Alfie needed to get settled in a stable home.

I had to leave my job to have Alfie, which is hard because I have always worked, and now I am on a waiting list for a home indefinitely.

The council department has even frozen my account online while they wait for a decision as to whether I will be moved up to the high priority band due to my son's ill health.

I am frustrated that they have housed a single, alcoholic man in a one-bedroom flat below a friend of mine instead of one of the 4,000 other homeless people in the borough of Chelmsford who are desperately in need of settled accommodation.

Furthermore, I know another single man housed in a one-bed flat, has conveniently got his girlfriend pregnant and mouthed off that she is living in a family based unit as apparently "homeless" she'll get given £1,000 and a two-bedroom property when baby is born, making that a total of two separate properties and three bedrooms between the pair.

In my opinion she should move in with the boyfriend and apply for a transfer at a later date to free up another property for those more in need.

The said young man has also stated that he won't allow her to move in as if they split up she will gain the property.

Since Monday, April 8, the council has made no effort to contact me regarding any housing. It constantly states that there is a severe shortage of properties yet I have bid on 30 properties since August 31, 2012 – two just last week.

Where is Alfie's father in all this you ask?

He was kept out of the paper to avoid arguments between us.

I can state that he is doing his bit. We have a family-based arrangement between ourselves where if I need it, he will provide more milk, nappies, wipes, food and clothes, once I have asked.

Alfie's father visits every week and every other weekend with his parents.

Myself and Alfie's father are not an item but we remain amicable for the sake of our son.

Alfie's father will always remain in his life, I wouldn't stop them seeing each other.

Alfie enjoys time with his dad and his father is backing me 100 per cent.

Because there are the two of us, I am unable to bid on one-bedroom flats on the Chelmsford council housing website, and therefore I can only bid for two bedrooms on the home option page.

I would happily settle for a one-bedroom place if it meant being able to cook for myself and my son, to be able to give him a bath in a bath tub instead of a plastic box, and to do our washing and normal household chores instead of relying on other people to do these simple things.

I would love to be able to go back to work and pursue my career, but as it stands I am unable to do so.

When my circumstances change and I have my own place I will find myself a job and cease relying on the Government and other people.

Since being here Alfie has been ill with a cough and cold. Medicating him with Nurofen for children and baby cough mixture had not worked.

Having taken him to see our GP we were informed that Alfie has mild asthma, I strongly believe it's the result of pollution from the heavy traffic surrounding the Miami Hotel where we are staying, and our room backing onto a petrol station, where fumes are always in evidence. These factors have contributed to Alfie's ill health.

Alfie has a heart monitor which I put under his bed to monitor his breathing but I am unable to use it on my single bed because the sensor pad under his mattress will not detect anything through anything more than 10cm thick, and my mattress is more than 10cm thick.

I do not want to risk his health, therefore I stay awake.

I sincerely hope the people who have criticised me never end up in a situation like mine. If they do it may teach them to have a little respect and compassion for those less fortunate, but willing to stand up for themselves.

Maybe then they would realise just how hard it is raising a child in these conditions with a Government that is unwilling to provide its own people with more suitable accommodation.

A TOAD patrol group carried more than 1,000 of the amphibians across a country road this spring.

The Little Leighs Toad Patrol boasts as many as 25 members and leader David Scott believes 50 per cent of the creatures would be squashed by cars if it were not for the group's work.

The 75-year-old wildlife expert says local children love getting involved.

"It can be chaotic when there are big numbers but when the cars see the signs and us in our yellow jackets it warns them what is happening," said the Essex Reptiles and Amphibian Club member.

The group ferried 1,084 toads across a 200-metre stretch on Church Lane to help them cross from the shrubbery to the nearby lake for mating season.

The patrol group, which was out for two hours every night from April 11 to April 18, was started by one of the resident's grandchildren about ten years ago.

Grandmother-of-nine Jean Sly, 70, of Church Lane, said: "They were horrified when they saw the toads squashed.

"So they made posters saying 'please don't squish us' which they put on posts either end of the road.

"It's hard to see them squished and the common toad, like many species, is not so common any more.

"I believe one year we carried more than 2,000 toads."

Jean is nagged at church by children – otherwise known as "picker-uppers" – to join in the patrol.

Three of her young grandchildren from Manchester deliberately time their visits in the spring to coincide with mating season.

Last week the Chronicle reported that about 50 toads had been killed on Moulsham Hall Lane in nearby Great Leighs during mating season, fuelling calls for warning signs or a similar patrol.

Essex County Council said that it takes the welfare of animals and animal species very seriously.

A spokesman said: "To potentially install a toad crossing sign, a member of the public first has to register a toad crossing with FrogLife, who will then register it with the Department for Transport.

"FrogLife will then send them a letter which can be used as evidence of the registration for the highways department."

To register with Froglife, residents must provide a road name, a brief description of the site and the number of toads usually seen crossing.

 
A Witham man who has pleaded guilty to two charges of downloading child porn from the internet could face jail.

As he adjourned sentencing Colin Kirk, 42, of Virgil Road, Witham, until next month for pre-sentence reports Judge Charles Gratwicke warned him today : "All sentencing options open."

Kirk admitted downloading hundreds of images, the majority at the lowest level of one on a scale of one to five, but several at scales four and five.

A third charge of downloading four movies at level one was dropped after the prosecution said they were pictures of babies in nappies dancing which had been downloaded from You Tube.

Remanding him until 3 June, Judge Gratwicke told Kirk : "This court is adjourning sentence in your case - I make it clear all sentencing options are open."

Stephen Levy, mitigating, said: "Due to levels of the images, I would be asking for a pre -sentence report."

Kirk was granted bail

As final speeches from lawyers drew to a close today at the Billy Boy Martindale murder trial defendant Paul Groves' counsel, Graham Trembath QC, denied that Mr Groves had tried to "blacken" Mr Martindale's name.

He said that prosecution claims that he had were "not quite right."

He told the jury : "What Mr Groves has said is exactly what has been called into evidence by Mr Martindale's partner, Paul Meeking, who knew him best and was one of his best friends.

"He said Billy could be a brave guy, a good laugh, good fun but he had a short fuse, a violent temper."

However, prosecutor Simon Spence QC claimed in his summing up that the account Groves had given to the court of his going to the farm where Mr Martindale was battered to death was "totally lacking in credibility."

He continued : "Whatever you find the circumstances to be a man has lost his life and another was seriously injured in an argument over nothing much at all. Mr Martindale's battered and bleeding body was seen by others.

"If the defendant genuinely believed he was about to be attacked he is entitled to be acquitted of both charges.

"However, you may find his account totally lacking in credibility as we urge you to do."

Groves, 34, of Queensway, Ongar, denies murdering William Martindale, 39, at Mr Martindale's smallholding Meadow View Farm, Mill Lane, High Ongar, on 7 September last year.

He has also pleaded not guilty to inflicting grievous bodily harm to Mr Martindale's friend Paul Meeking, 54, of Barking, with intent.

The hearing continues.

 
An inquest into the death of a 54-year-old man found stabbed to death in a Chelmsford flat at the weekend was opened and adjourned at Chelmsford Coroner's Court this afternoon.

Essex Coroner Caroline Beasley-Murray was told that police were informed that someone had been stabbed at a property in Moulsham Street at about 12.30am on Saturday.

They found Paul Simons of Bushey, Hertfordshire, with stab wounds. Paramedics attended and confirmed that he had died at 1.00 am.

A provisional post-mortem examination has revealed he died from a stab wound to the heart, said coroner's officer Lynsey King.

The coroner adjourned the inquest to a later date and said the body could not yet be released.

Michael Brennan, a 22-year-old cleaner from The Green, Melbourne, Chelmsford, has been charged with murder. He appeared before city magistrates yesterday and is due at Chelmsford Crown Court tomorrow for a preliminary hearing.