27/05/2014 BBC Oxford News

European election results. That's all from the BBC News at Six - so

it's Hello and welcome to South Today

from Oxford. The former Oxfam employee sent to

prison for stealing thousands. Why the number arrested

here's going down. A non`smoking policy is trialled

in a park in Aylesbury. Later, the scheme that could

save thousands for the NHS. Elderly patients are moved out

of A and treated separately. A man from Oxfordshire who was one

of the senior bosses at Oxfam has been jailed for nearly

two and half years, after pleading Edward McKenzie`Green from Chipping

Norton took nearly ?65,000 in 2011. He used a fake name, false

invoices and created companies. It is a global charity with a

reputation for fighting poverty and campaigning for justice. Here,

Oxfam's one anti`fraud chief was scamming them out of tens of

thousands of pounds from the inside. Or money deleted for charitable

work. The man from Chipping Norton took almost ?65,000 between February

2011 and no. He made up companies and handed in fictitious invoices.

He had paid money into the accounts of his father and friend before

transferring the cash into his own account and spending it. A charge

against his father, accusing him of helping him launder ?35,000, was

dropped. Oxfam say they have introduced strict measures. We have

focused on segregation of duties. It is a very important element of our

control that the person who is requested on the invoice should not

be the person who is approving an. In this case, that was abused. We

are taking a close interest in that part of our controls. Today, he was

sentenced to two years and five months for different in a charity.

Oxfam have introduced strict that ground checks for future employees.

They say they will seek to recover the money.

A man has been released on bail after a body was found

Michael Broadway, who was 33, was discovered at his home in

Post mortem results have come back inconclusive.

A 55`year`old man arrested on suspicion of murder has been

in the run up to next year's general election.

It is one of several areas in England where there's strong

UKIP, which wants the UK to leave the EU, topped the European polls

after a campaign calling for lower levels of immigration from Europe.

Police are still looking for a prisoner who walked out

of an open jail in Buckinghamshire over the weekend.

Wayne McLeod, who is 36, escaped from Springhill Prison in Grendon

Officers believe he may be in Reading, but haven't said why he

A child is arrested every four minutes in England

and Wales yet the number arrested in the Thames Valley is falling.

In 2008, more than 12,000 children under the age of 17 were arrested

But last year fewer than 4,000 were questioned by officers.

National trends suggest the majority of these young people

Earlier I spoke to Frances Crook from the Howard League for

Penal Reform, the group behind these figures.

I asked her how authorities tackle this issue of crimes committed

This is a great success story by Thames Valley,

It is not a question of arresting children who have committed crimes.

Actually what they were doing was hitting arbitrary targets.

So it?s much easier to arrest a child who was kicking a football

What the police are doing now is much more intelligent policing

That is better for children, better for victims,

better for the taxpayer, better for community relations.

Children in England and Wales can be arrested from the age of 10.

That?s the lowest age of criminal responsibility in Europe.

Do you think that age is about right?

It is absolutely obscene that the police have to deal with

More than 1,000 primary school age children were arrested in England

We should raise the age of criminal responsibility

so that it is not the police who deal with 10`12 year olds.

If there are problems, it should be social services

and children?s services who deal with them, not the police.

Police are taking responsibility away from parents

Police are looking for a man from Oxfordshire who has gone missing

Ewan Powell, who is 42 and from Benson,

His daughter, Tanith Powell from Worcestershire,

Campaigners against badger culling are protesting across parts

of Oxfordshire as part of a ten day walk.

They started their 112 mile journey in Gloucester

and will finish in London on Saturday, the day before cull

The government say culling badgers will curb TB in cattle.

A new anti`smoking campaign has started in Buckinghamshire asking

people to avoid smoking in parks or children's play areas.

Signs will be put up and the county council will be working with schools

Will these signs stop this common problem?

Buckinghamshire County Council and Aylesbury District Council

don?t agree with that. We think that we must do everything we can to

prevent them from starting habits early on which could develop into

more serious smoking later in their lives. A six month pilot across five

parks in the town will be assessed before being expanded. But if it is

not enforceable, will it make any difference? It?s a good idea, even

though my son smokes. You?re never going to stop people from smoking in

public areas like this, unfortunately. But I think it would

help if there was ash trays provided. A UK wide ban on smoking

in public places has been law since 2007, and lighting up in cars with

children is likely to be made illegal next year. Research shows

more than 300,000 children visit the GP every year, suffering the effects

of secondhand smoke. Councils here in Buckinghamshire hope this small

poster will have some impact on this very big health issue.

Thousands of pounds has been raised to buy a horse to help people near

west Oxfordshire with physical and learning difficulties. The Riding

for the Disabled Association based in Chipping Norton runs therapy

sessions for adults and children. The new member of the family.

14`year`old Rotary Blue is now making friends at this farm in

Gloucestershire. He is one of about 20 horses and ponies used as part of

therapy sessions here to help people with physical and learning

disabilities. Nearly ?3,000 was collected to buy Blue, raised by a

local community club. Blue has made a fantastic difference. The feedback

from RDA has been great. The children have very much enjoyed

riding on him and they are developing very well. One of those

children is Guy. I come here every Thursday. Normally. I enjoy it very

much. The main thing he is here for is stability. His muscles are quite

wobbly in his body, so he needs it to strengthen his body frame. The

therapy sessions are held once a week and run by volunteers who are

part of the Riding and Disability Association. The charity relies on

donations to deliver these kinds of services. Harry is one of the

smaller ponies used here at the farm. The RDA claims about 80% of

people with either physical or learning disabilities see added

improvement to their communication or wellbeing as a result of horse

riding. One young lad, when he started coming, he couldn?t speak

very well. By the time he left here, he was speaking, he was cheerful,

happy. The hope is more horses like Blue will soon be able to dig their

heels in and help those who need it. That's all from me. I'll have the

headlines at 8pm and a full bulletin at 10:25pm. For more of today's

stories, here's Sally Taylor. The families

of the four missing sailors of the Southampton yacht, the Cheeki

Rafiki, have spoken in public for the first time since the hull of the

vessel was found in the Atlantic. James Male, who was from Romsey,

and Andrew Bridge, from Farnham, were part of a crew sailing back to

the South when their yacht got The boat's upturned hull was found

by the US Coastguard on Friday We would like to say how much we owe

to the public. It is overwhelming and unprecedented. The men would

have been enormously touched to have known that they were in the minds of

so many people. It would have brought them great comfort in their

moment of need. It could, just code, have made a vital difference to

saving their lives, had the circumstances been slightly

different. A motorcyclist from Portsmouth has

been jailed for causing the death Kristof Fairley's bike collided with

a car at the junction of Eastern Road and

Airport Service Road in January. His new wife Ashley,

who was also on the motorcycle, was Fairley was disqualified

from driving He admitted causing his wife's death

and was today jailed for 32 months. Plans for an asbestos waste facility

in the New Forest have been approved The site at

Hardley Industrial Estate near Hythe would specialise in the disposal

of the harmful mineral. Solent Environmental Services

submitted the plans ` which were today unanimously approved by

the council's regulatory committee. But some residents feel it's not

a safe distance" from homes. Hundreds of elderly patients

in Southampton are being moved out of Accident and Emergency `

to a new department treating falls, The aim is to prevent them

from being admitted ` and possibly The unit is now seeing 20 patients

a day ` mostly over the age of 65. Our Health Correspondent David

Fenton reports. This woman is 84 and has ruptured

her tendon. She has been to a indie and was sent to a special unit for

elderly people. The emergency department is a

terrifying aches in this, often with queues of people coming in and out

and lots of loud noises. We are trying to move through `` move

people through that area quickly. This is a specially dedicated area

for frail, older people. It costs two point ?5,000 each time

a patient is admitted to hospital as an emergency. `` it costs two and a

half thousand pounds. Your muscles will atrophy and your

brain will forget what it is doing if you leave someone in bed for a

couple of days. You have almost aged than two years in the effect it will

have on them. The aim here is to get the patients

treated and home again as quickly and safely as possible.

In the last three years, I have been in hospital twice. They have been

very good but it is nothing like home.

Even so, the number of elderly patients in our hospitals is

increasing. Southampton General has about 1,100 beds, this many occupied

by older patients. In the last year, those numbers have gone up by

6%. Of course, it is not their fault. Many would prefer to be at

home, but that often means complex social care organising.

We discharge mostly two thirds of our patients. Some that we assess

our really quite unwell and need to come to hospital. All we can say is

that we add to that patient experience.

This unit has been very successful, keeping at least 20 patients per

week out of hospital. Five hours after pro's accident, she is going

home with a care package arranged by the team. `` after her accident.

An organisation that works with vulnerable people in Hampshire says

it's concerned about the impact of a proposed cut to the funding it

Hampshire County Council needs to make ?4 million of savings to

its Supporting People budget ` money which pays for emergency

The Crescent here in Yateley has been Wanda's home

for more than 40 Its bungalows allow the tenants the choice to lead

independent lives, safe in the knowledge that help is nearby.

But now a 37 percent cut in funding from the Hampshire County

We used to have social activities in the evening, and doing painting

and card making and watching the karaoke on the big screen.

We don't have anything like that now.

The site provides work for residents and others with

Cuts to council funding haven't just hit quality of life

but threaten the very survival of one resident, after a wake`up visit

by staff was branded extravagant by the site's paymasters.

The residential support manager was asked to investigate.

She went to his bungalow and he was collapsed on the floor in a coma.

He had to be rushed to hospital and is still not working now.

Had he not been working that day, had it been a weekend or holiday,

then he would have been missed until it was too late.

Yateley Industries will survive the cuts.

Hampshire County Council insists what it is doing is prioritising

But the idea that the policy isn't being felt

on the front line, that helps those with disabilities, seems rather

A club for blind people in Dorset has found itself

While more and more people want to join, it's funding is falling.

The club offers a way out of isolation

But now there's a real danger it could close down.

So, as Roger Finn reports, it's mounted

What would you miss if you went blind?

That's the question being posed by the Dorset Blind Association `

and this You Tube video is one of the responses being posted

Along with pictures of sunsets and loved ones.

The idea is to draw attention to what these people might soon miss.

Seven years ago the Dorset Blind Association set up

There are over a hundred members and this group meets regularly

This club is fantastic with the people who come here. It gives them

a chance to get out and socialise. It sounds so simple but it is

actually quite difficult for people with visual impairments. Two thirds

of people with sight loss say they barely ever go out.

members have taken part in a variety of activities including cricket,

But in recent years income from local authorities

and donations has been falling while demands to join have been rising.

The club now needs ?12,000 just to survive.

What is most frightening is when you start losing contact with people.

You can't drive and are constantly relying on family. Being able to do

something like this gives us independence. It means so much for

your self`esteem. I was very scared of coming here. I got confidence

here from doing things. Talking to other people who were in your shoes

is really helpful. It supports that you need because there are few blind

people around. By coming here to the coughing warnings, you can talk with

people that have a similar problem that you understand. There is

evidence that the number of blind people in Britain is growing. At

charity says this is because of the greater survivability of severely

premature babies. A fact that this group

believes makes it's own Sussex Cricket manager Mark Robinson

has said On to sport, and it's been confirmed

within the last hour that Mauricio Pochettino has resigned

as Southampton manager to take over He moves to the London club

on a five year contract. We thought this news was coming.

They have confirmed in the last will be joining them on a five`year

contract. When he initially joined Saint Mary 's last year, he was

relatively unknown will stop in the past 16 months, he has transformed

the club. This now provides a big test to new

Southampton chairman Ralph Kruger, who crucially must find

a new manager to help Southampton It's really tight teamwork

between all of you. Each boat is different how

the teamwork works. We get two hours

of practice a set for each event. One of the key things

when you're sailing is feeling When you're sailing upwind,

it gives you quite a lot of field. Without me telling you

which way to put the tiller, you are Our boats are relatively heavy,

not particularly fast. The race is not so much

about the speed of the boat, It's really

the tactical element to the race. Each race on the tour is a cat

and mouse chase. Reputations count for nothing

and that is the highlight for me. Your results how you perform

on the day. Dan Smith took this photo

of a mute swan cygnet in Petworth Ginny Boxall captured flowering

chives in her garden in Alton. And Nick Lucas took this photo

of the rain drops on a Blue Moon Through tonight, we will see rain

and showers at times which could be heavy. The best of any drier skies

down towards parts of Dorset. We've seen quite a number of heavy showers

through Weymouth and is. Through the night, little respite from rain in

some areas, with temperatures falling to a mild ten or 11. Not

particularly cold through the night and similar tomorrow. Some rain or

showers at times, more likely in northern areas. Along the south

coast, we may see the cloud break for a time with some sunshine,

that's generally a cloudy day with temperatures reaching 15 Celsius.

Tonight, one or two showers with some mist patches. We hold onto the

wet conditions through Thursday, with temperatures overnight similar

to tonight at 11 or 12. A fairly unsettled picture with low pressure

on Thursday. Rain it could be heavy with the possibility of thunder. The

good news is that come Friday we will start to see this area of high

pressure start building further. The wind will feel lighter and it will

turn more settled with some sunshine. This week rain and

showers. Even the odd rumble of thunder. There will be some

sunshine, but that is more likely towards the latter part of the week.

Turning drier come Friday with that high pressure building in from the

Atlantic. Showers and rain expected tomorrow, which could be on the

heavy side. More likely for northern areas. The best of brightness along

the south. There could be thunderstorms on Thursday. Friday

and Saturday, that high pressure building from the Atlantic. Turning

more settled and drier with more sunshine.

Tomorrow, we will meet the ten`year`old athlete who is

competing at swimming. She's pretty good! Will also be talking to ``

talking about free school meals. Make sure you join us. Thanks for

watching. Goodbye.