07/03/2014 South Today

The vulnerable woman being dvicted BBC's news

The vulnerable woman being dvicted because of a court row over business

dates. They can't put straight into Clare's name and leave her to cope.

The platforms which have stood idle for years are set to ease

congestion. Why, and intensive care pathents are

getting on their bikes before they have left their beds. ``, coma.

How wartime experience and football are being used to boost litdracy

levels. You realise what it was like and you get shivers and everything,

it was really scary. Three young women with learning

difficulties are facing eviction from their Hampshire home. They have

been dragged into a long`running dispute over a business debt owed by

one of the women's mothers. Bridget McCabe bought a house in new Milton

for her daughter Clare in 2009. Two years later she filed for

bankruptcy. Now two account`ncy firms want to repossess the New

Milton property to help recoup those debts. Rob Powell went to mdet the

family. It is disgraceful, it shouldn't be

happening. Clare and her two housemates have

learning and emotional difficulties, but the property is

owned by her mother. The accountants are repossessing the property after

her mother declared bankruptcy so Claire and her housemates whll be

evicted. It is my home and they should not

just go after such fundable adults that need the support and lhving

skills. We saw this house, we bought it with

the sole intention of it behng feckless. We can't put it into her

name. `` being for Clare. In a statement, BT said...

The McCabe family say they will pay BT's money but they say addhtional

charges have caused the tot`l debt to grow to around ?1 million. Grant

Thornton and KPMG said... The government minister for

insolvency has now written to Grant Thornton asking for the famhly's

debt to be itemised. Claire is due to be evicted at the end of this

month, her parents from thehr London home the week before.

Relief for hard`pressed South West Trains commuters is on the way. For

years passengers have seen the former Eurostar platforms at

Waterloo standing empty. But from May they will be back in regular

use. Today the first of a fleet of refurbished trains departed on a

demonstration run to Berkshhre. Our transport correspondent Paul Clifton

was there. Waterloo International, mothballed

seven years ago, when Eurostar trains moved to Saint pancrdas. Not

any more. From May, one platform will be back in regular use for

refurbished longer trains to Berkshire. Two more platforls will

follow in the autumn. Every platform at Waterloo requires to be tsed 100%

during the morning and evenhng so if anything goes wrong it immediately

has a big impact on our service By having this spare platform `nd

having a bit more capacity from the older Eurostar legacy, it allows us

to provide a bit more resilhence. That will also enable short

platforms at the other end of the station to be extended, ready for

longer trains on the routes as well. The Transport Minister took a look

at the first refitted train to ease overcrowding on Berkshire sdrvices.

It was delivered last Octobdr but arrived with 280 separate f`ults.

The project is running nearly a year late. Of 36 trains, just three are

ready. They are late and thd delay has been frustrating for passengers

but let's celebrate the fact they are here. The driver very mtch likes

his new train. They are verx responsive, they accelerate well,

they feel safe. This train will carry paying passengers latdr this

month. An extra 108 carriagds will arrive later this year, meaning

another 123,000 rush hour sdats every day. To make that possible

these abandoned platforms whll have to be brought back into use. With no

passengers each day than He`throw, Gatwick and Stansted airports

combined, this is by far thd `` Britain's busiest railway station.

The government is to pay ?2.4 million towards coastal projects in

the South. That could creatd more than 200 jobs. The main chunk of

funding will be used to regdnerate Bognor Regis's town centre. ?65 ,000

will be spent on all`year`round visitor facilities in Wareh`m and

Weymouth. And some money will go towards refurbishing Ventnor's

coastal enterprise centre. The focus is on creating jobs, and

if you look a scheme like the Bodnar Regis scheme where we have

rejuvenated the town centre, that is a really big boost for the `rea

BBC South has learned that experienced Hampshire probation

managers are quitting the sdrvice because of fears over government

reforms. 11 of the county's 35 probation chiefs are leaving ahead

of radical changes which will see private companies take on

responsibility for managing offenders. Hampshire's Police and

Crime Commissioner set out his concerns at a national confdrence on

reducing reoffending held in Winchester today. Our home `ffairs

correspondent Emma Vardy was there and joins me now. So how will the

changes work? Nearly half of those who ard

released from prison go on to commit more crime, and the governmdnt

believes there are too many offenders stuck in this cycle. So in

future the majority of prob`tion work is going to be outsourced to

private firms and charities rather like this Southampton project called

Women's Wisdom that helps fdmale offenders. Groups like this will get

paid to supervise low to medium risk offenders when they are reldased

from prison and they will bd paid more if they are successful in

reducing reoffending. A new national probation service is being formed to

look after high risk offenddrs. For many in the probation service this

means the job will effectivdly cease to exist and they are being

redeployed within the new sdtup We heard today that 11 of Hampshire's

35 probation chiefs have decided to leave, including the chief

executive. We have to be honest and sax that?

`` probation chiefs have expressed concerns about the risks behng taken

by dismantling trusts, separating this into two organisations and

separating the caseload between high risk and low and medium risk

offenders, so we feel this programme will need very careful

implementation if it is to hmprove on what we currently do.

Will the public be any safer as a result of this?

If the new ways of rehabilitating offenders will be successful, yes,

we could be less at risk, btt this system of payment by results has

been said will need to be h`ndled very carefully. The company coming

in needs to make a profit and they are making a profit out of offenders

and we need to be careful how we direct that.

The Ministry of Justice argtes in the long term the public will be

safer and it says for the fhrst time there will be measures in place to

support thousands of offenddrs who previously were left to thehr own

devices. The Culture Secretary has vhsited

Southampton's Sea City Musetm. Maria Miller, who is also MP for

Basingstoke, praised Southalpton Council's plans for a cultural

quarter in the city and the way the Titanic story was engaging visitors.

This story is poignant and part of Southampton's history but also

working with the University to make Southampton into a thriving cultural

hub for creative industries, so I think very important in cultural

terms but very important in terms of the economy as well.

Officers from Sussex Police who were called to a domestic incident at a

house in Worthing discovered a cannabis factory. When they arrived

in Elm Grove, a woman was throwing cannabis plants down the st`irs

Inside, officers found 25 plants and specialist equipment. A 47`xear`old

man from Worthing was arrested on suspicion of cultivating cannabis.

He admitted the offence and was cautioned.

South Parade Pier in Southsda has been sold, according to one of its

owners. There has been much controversy surrounding the future

of the Grade II listed structure, which has been closed to thd public

since 2012 over safety concdrns Co`owner Dawn Randall says `

contract was exchanged last week but would not say who bought it or how

much it was sold for. Still to come in this evening's

South Today... Can Yann be the man as the Cherries

head north? We look ahead to the weekend's action.

Critically ill patients in Portsmouth are being put on exercise

bikes to help them recover lore quickly. In trials some havd cycled

up to three miles a day while they are still in intensive care. It can

even be used by patients in a coma. Our health correspondent David

Fenton reports now from the Queen Alexandra Hospital in Coshal.

For five days Barbra Hickman has been seriously ill with pnetmonia.

She is in intensive care and these troops helped her to breathd. ``

tubes. I had been out of brdath for a few days, I was put on antibiotics

but they did not seem to do the trick. So they told me to come in

and the next thing I was in here. Now she is going to start

exercising, a strange thing to somebody who is already strtggling

for breath. She is going to cycle three miles in 20 minutes. We don't

have to disconnect any of hdr attachments, the monitors, the

oxygen, we just bring it to the end of her bed and she exercised ``

exercises quite quickly. Barbra has not ridden a bikd for 50

years but this will help strengthen her muscles and hopefully ldt her

leave hospital earlier than planned. They try to get you out as puick as

they can, get you motivated again. And I think this is the answer. Many

of the patients are obviously very ill, they have had car crashes,

strokes, blood poisoning, btt almost all of them will need some kind of

exercise rehabilitation within just a few days of arriving here.

Rehabilitation is one way they can see, this is what I can do to make

myself better. The earlier we can start that going, the earlidr we can

get them moved up, involved with their care, and I think that is

fabulous. This bike costs ?7,000 and the

hospital is fundraising to buy one. Eventually they hope will intensive

care patients will use it jtst like Barbara.

The Army band based in Blandford Forum in Dorset paraded through the

town for the very last time today. The Blandford camp has been home to

the Army musicians for the last 33 years. Hundreds of people lhned the

streets to watch the ceremonial sendoff. The band is being relocated

to RAF Cosford in the Midlands. It has played all over the world and

performed at high profile events including the changing of the guard

at Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle.

The government minister in charge of repairing army bases for thd return

of soldiers from Germany is asking local residents to comment on the

plan for housing 4000 troops and their families. A public

consultation is under way to get peoples' views on the plans. ``

people's. Just as the Army cut the nulber of

regular soldiers, Salisbury plain is going to get an extra 4000 troops.

It is because regiments are being brought back from Germany. Ht will

mean almost 15,000 soldiers by 020. There are plans for new homds, even

a new school. Today the govdrnment minister with responsibilitx for

delivering the new base str`tegy was at Lark Hill to check on progress.

He wants local residents to give their views on the ?800 million

project. Clearly it is a huge logistical challenge and I `m happy

to say it is going very well but I think it is important that we have

local people commenting on the plans and proposals, which they c`n do

until the 1st of April. It hs the extra homes for Army familids that

will have one of the biggest impacts. The Army wants 540 at Lark

Hill, just to the east of the camp. At Bulford there will be 240 homes,

at a number of possible sitds. Tidworth will get an extra 200,

namely to `` mainly to the north of the town, and there will be a

similar number at larger sh`ll. There are concerns about whdther the

area will cope with the numbers but there are huge economic bendfits, ?1

million of `` ?1 billion of spending coming from the MoD, the spdnding

power of people moving here from overseas or other locations, so it

is a real economic boost thd South Wiltshire. There is also gohng to be

a lot of development within the lid `` within the military bases

themselves on Salisbury plahn, with new accommodation, leisure `reas,

workshops and storage facilhties. It has to be completed by 2020.

On Monday's programme we will be taking a special look at thd

government's campaign to recruit more part`time soldiers. As the size

of the regular force is cut, ministers want more reservists to

plug the gap. We have been filming in Cyprus with part`time soldiers

from the South's infantry Rdgiment, who are currently serving whth the

United Nations. Being in the reserves, it h`s been a

big learning curve. The fridndship and life experience, it has been a

good aspect of civilian and Army life.

That starts on South Today on Monday.

Football is being used to inspire thousands of children to re`d and

learn more about the First World War at the same time. The centrdpiece of

an education campaign which aims to reach 3000 youngsters is a book

written by a lifelong pompex fan. Jim Riordan's children's novel

starts at Fratton Park and dnds in the trenches. Nikki Mitchell

reports. They are no use when a bit of metal

comes whizzing through the `ir. . The reality of a century`old battle

hits home. This workshop will be rolled out the primary schools

across Portsmouth and they have the backing of the city's foot tall

club. Players of today posed as soldiers for this special edition of

When The Guns Fall Silent. The book tells the story of two aspiring

players who make their debut for Pompey in 1914 after several of the

first time in list. They thdn join up and fight as well. We ard looking

at trying to educate the chhldren not only on aspects of the First

World War but also to raise the literacy levels in the city and the

surrounding areas. This is what the British soldiers were using...

I have learnt a lot because we were learning about who they werd and

what they did. When you see it you are like, oh, wow, that is what it

was like and you get shivers. I can imagine how hard it would h`ve been,

very emotional. You can imagine the moral bunched together. The book at

the heart of the campaign concludes with its characters playing in the

infamous Christmas match in no man's land. Getting children to rdad was

very important for my dad btt he did not want them to read anythhng, he

wanted them to read things which were historically correct. He tried

to make his writing very descriptive for them. He would have been over

the moon to know that his book was being used in this way. A free copy

of the book will be given to 30 0 pupils to make sure their ldarning

continues when the workshop ends. A great way of learning to read and

a great way of learning abott the First World War. Now let's love on

to sport. Cherries, do you think Yann can do it again?

He certainly did it last tile so I think so.

Bournemouth will be hoping to build on their record Championship win

last weekend. They've got two games in five days coming up, both in the

North West, and manager Eddhe Howe was in a positive mood when I went

to see him at the training ground earlier.

Last week's 5`2 thumping of Doncaster moved them up to 06th

place and it has focused eyds up the table. If we put a good run

together, everything is possible. We are not putting barriers on what we

can achieve. The next few g`mes will be key, we would like to get

back`to`back wins. The win was capped by a hat`trick from Xann on

his debut. The first goal w`s very welcome. With a fast developing

partnership upfront, the Chdrries head to their next match in full

confidence. Everybody can bdat each other, it is tight between the top

and bottom teams. Blackburn midweek exit two games in five days and has

prompted the squad. Well, ndarly everybody has been flying. He does

not like flying. You can't force people to do something. I always

listen to my players, as long as they are there for the games. A

couple of wins this week and the Cherries fans will be flying high.

Saints are looking to halt ` run of poor results. Brighton and Reading

are both just outside the play`off places. The Robins have not one in

five. `` have not won. And I've got to mention Sholing FC.

What about this for an opportunity? The Premier Wessex League tdam are

just two wins away from Wembley They host of Wisbech town from

Cambridgeshire in the quartdrfinals of the FA Vase Trophy tomorrow.

Three o'clock kick`off for that one ` good luck to them!

Athletics now, and the World Indoor Championships got under way in

Poland today, and we've got a couple of local stars taking part. Look out

for Sophie Pape's from Bracknell. Here she is in yellow ` she competes

in the 60 metres sprint. And Andy Vernon from Fareham goes in the 3000

metres at 7:25pm tonight. All action live on BBC Two and via the red

button. And today has been a special day for

Portsmouth boxing coach Quinton Shillingford, who received his MBE

for his work with young people. Q, as he is known to friends, has been

boxing since he was ten and coaching youngsters at the Heart of

Portsmouth Boxing Club for six years. We featured him in otr Unsung

Heroes award last year. Tod`y he picked up his MBE at Windsor Castle.

A proud day for Q, his family and all those involved with the boxing

club. Brilliant. I understand why he is calldd Q He

has five names. The MBE will give an extenshon to

his name! Shall we move on to the weather? It was glorious today. The

temperature in my car, 17 ddgrees. Yes, it has been beautiful ` for

most. We had an exception, ` little corner of Sussex had some cloud

We do have a nice weekend to come and settled conditions for next

week. Thank you for all of your

photographs. We have the cloud beginning to work its way in but

today we had some lovely temperatures, 16 in Bournemouth The

exception to the rule, sure, just making 11. Here we kept mord cloud.

`` Shoreham. We start with ` fine evening but gradually the mtrky wave

makes its way northwards from the channel, so we will see somd mist,

some folk are perhaps some drizzle, and temperatures overnight down to

five or six. It is a bit of a grey and dull start to Saturday, but it

is an improving picture. Thd breeze picks up gradually and you can see

the cloud making its way out and into the afternoon some beattiful

sunny skies. Warm in the sunshine, up to 13 or 14 degrees but H would

not be surprised if it nudgds a degree or two higher. A bit cooler

on the south coast. Through tonight, settled, clear spells

overhead, and temperatures holding out at six or seven degrees.

Sunday, another fine day, lovely sparkling sunshine for much of the

day. Through the afternoon we may start to see the cloud creeping in

from the north`west and that could bring a bit of haze through the

afternoon. 14 degrees on thd charts, I think we will see two or three

degrees higher. This high pressure is staying in control so sole

settled conditions to come, dry as well. A bit of and certaintx as to

whether it will be cloudy or wall`to`wall sunshine. ``

uncertainty. I would give the weather a B+ for this time of year.

You have been a lucky charm for us but the weather. `` for the weather.

That is it for us. We are b`ck tonight at 8pm and 10:25pm.