The law's the law, but what about common sense?

As a recent visitor to Chichester, I feel I must comment on the behaviour of a female traffic warden in Little London.
At 3.10pm on Saturday, September 27, as a pedestrian, I noticed a female motorist who was waiting to drive into the public car park.
The boot of her car was just in the box junction markings and the traffic warden threatened to issue a penalty notice. However, the car in front moved towards the car park, enabling the 'offending' car to move clear of the markings completely.
Nevertheless, the warden said she would still issue a ticket if she didn't reverse and drive away from the feed road.
The driver of the car in front expressed her concern about the unfairness of this instruction but the lady motorist, after having to reverse, drove away, obviously not wanting to challenge the warden.
I spoke to the warden and told her I had seen the whole event and that her attitude was most unjust.
She replied in a very unconcerned way that she was 'just doing her job'.
As a driver, I know it is important to ensure smooth traffic flows, but the motorist involved was causing no problem.
Any job should be carried out with a measure of common sense which was obviously lacking in this particular public servant.

Patricia Parker, Preston New Road, Blackpool

Returning to my car after shopping in Chichester, I found two middle-aged men arguing over my parking space.
I had to ask them to move their vehicles and they moved a few feet each. When I did get out of the space, they continued arguing.
I just want to say, if those two men are reading this: come on guys, are you starving, dying of thirst? No. Grow up guys!

Clare Haddaway, Bognor Regis



Selection by back door it's discrimination

Emma Bailleu's complaint (Observer letters) about the lack of tax-payer funded transport to Bishop Luffa School fails to recognise the pernicious discrimination meted out by faith schools.
While Luffa is largely funded by us tax payers, we don't have access to the school unless we are practising Christians. And as my wife and I are secular, our child will not be eligible for a school which, being co-ed, would have been one of our choices.
We are not denied service at St Richard's Hospital for lack of faith, or our three children denied access to West Wittering Parochial school, which they all attend. And as far as I am aware, there is no other state-funded institution that discriminates on grounds of faith.
Surely, if the C of E funds Luffa to, say, ten per cent of its total budget, shouldn't it be able to chose only ten per cent of its pupils, instead of the 98 per cent it currently is allowed?
Never has 'selection by the back door' been such an appropriate phrase.
For us 'non-Christian tax-paying parents' in the Witterings, mindful of environmental costs of travel and wanting a co-educational experience for our children, we would like to be able to put Luffa down as one of our choices.
We could, like many parents, bite our tongues and attend church for the required two years, and, like many parents, revert to 'Christmas-only Christianity' once our children areattending the school. We choose not to.
We understand why parents do this and support their actions – they are just trying to be good parents who are taking the only action possible to get the school of their choice for their children.
I agree school transport should be free to all children attending state schools, but only once there is a free and fair system of admission for all.
So please do not expect understanding or sympathy for your issue over paying £90 a term, from tax-paying parents who are in effect subsidising your children's education, when we are denied entrance to what feels like a private members' club.
In previous years, when Bishop Luffa didn't enjoy the reputation it now has, the Christian parents weren't banging down the doors to get their children in. They were putting the high schools down as their number-one choice, not because they were defaulting on their Christianity but because they were simply choosing the best school for their children.
It is not about belief, it is about education. It's not even a question of which is the best school – this is dependent on the varying needs of our children. It is simply a question of equality. When it comes to state-funded education, we should all have the right to choose and in Chichester, we don't.
It is time for the government and local authorities to remove religion from school admissions policies, or for faith schools to become independent fee-paying schools like Quaker schools.
Emma Bailleu complains about the unfairness of preferential treatment for some children – we know exactly what that feels like.

Toby and Kathryn Crosby Wilsher, Coney Road, East Wittering

Some parents of new Year 7 children have been experiencing a few problems with the school bus service to Bishop Luffa School. Not about timings but the lack of seats.
For the first week we had to take our children to school by car. The council issued Stagecoach passes to some but not all.
The Stagecoach service is not suitable as the children then have to walk almost a mile from the bus stop to school – not a good idea for 11-year-olds just starting out at secondary school, because very soon it will be dark at the time they have to be at school.
They are anxious enough about the transition from primary school to secondary school without extra worries like this, especially as we were led to believe that we were paying for a service that would be basically door-to-door.
Happily the county has sorted this out for Year 7, but unhappily not for Years 9, 10 and 11 as they have had to go on the service bus instead to make room for the younger children.
The county council says it cannot put on more buses – it says it is not an option as we are a church school and it would cost too much.
From this month, only Year 7 has to pay £90 a term towards the bus service, and each new school year thereafter. We shall have to pay this each year until our children leave school.So much for council tax.

F Carlton, East Wittering

The parents and pupils of Chichester High School for Girls should not worry too much about detention slips for a late bus. They make an effort at the beginning of term and hand out detention slips willy nilly, but then it all collapses within a week or so.
Instead, the school fail to deal with difficult issues and target well-behaved children who would not usually answer them back, handing out detention slips for things like uniform and lateness.
What about smoking in the toilets, swearing at teachers, truancy, seriously disrupting classes and bullying? Should the school not be trying to deal with this type of behaviour?

D Kennedy, Emsworth



Smack in the face for clerk

Having read The Observer's front-page story, friends of Denis Borsberry, clerk to Bosham Parish Council for 29 years, like me will feel utterly disgusted at the shameful treatment he has received from the council over the matter of his small gratuity after so many years of loyal, conscientious and indispensable service.
Citizens such as Denis, who spend years in providing an essential public service, would normally be afforded the courtesy of thanks for a job well done and, hopefully, upon retirement, a small financial recognition from the council served.
However, this council appears to have had nothing but arrogant disrespect for their clerk.
Having set aside the money for his retirement, they all decided not to pay it to him – regardless of the moral implication of their decision. Such a smack in the face is incomprehensible, and personally devastating, to the recipient.
My question now is what has been done (or will be done) with the money set aside for the clerk's gratuity? Perhaps it helped to pay the council's legal expenses, incurred in defending the indefensible before an employment tribunal?

Mrs S Walker, Norwich Road, Chichester



Naked old men are offensive...

Please can I clarify for Norman Langridge and Malcolm Boura that the problem in the debate about naturists sunbathing is not about whether the human body is offensive or not, in its naked form.
It is about the offensiveness of a group of naked old men who lie hidden among sand dunes which are frequented by many children and families.
These men are hidden so we stumble across them without warning.
Norman Langridge and Malcolm Boura choose to be naturists – fine, I choose not to have to look at the bodies of naked old men. Why, then, is my choice taken away from me because naked old men lie on a public beach?
West Beach, Littlehampton is a public beach which is not a designated naturist beach.
If it were a naturist beach with the signs up to say as much, then everyone would be able to make an informed choice about whether to walk there or not.
I do agree with Norman Langridge a warning notice advising of the presence of naturists would help and I wonder why the group of men don't do this?
Malcolm Boura mentioned naturist families, which neither myself, nor the many other walkers on the beach I have talked to, have ever reported seeing – it's always a group of old men.
A group of men who are very tolerant of 'textiles' (the name they give to people wearing clothes) as they have one as their lookout.
One can only wonder that if these men are so proud of their natural state, why do they need a lookout? Have they something to hide? Perhaps a scrap of 'textile' might help?

Pauline Setters, Yapton



We need to tidy up our city

The sun makes a great deal of difference to our outlook on life, and with the Revival we saw yet another Goodwood-based event pour many thousands of visitors and many thousands of pounds into the local economy.
What a shame that yet again we cannot support these events by tidying up our roundabouts, avenues and verges, particularly for those who visit our city for the first time.
Many people do stay, but many also come and go on a daily basis. Surely we can find a way, either through our own budget or through sponsorship, to beautify these approaches that skirt our city, so it shows we care about the environment we live and work in.
Driving through our city day to day, we often miss the build-up of poor maintenance and landscape. It really does need to be addressed.
These weekends just show us up. We do have a lovely city, but we sit on our laurels at our peril if we don't get our act together.

Andrew Finnamore, chairman, City Centre Partnership

The article in the Observer about dropping litter seems to be an object in stating the obvious.
Firstly, most people are reluctant to challenge bad behaviour because of a fear of the reaction they may have to endure from the type of idiot who committed the offence.
Secondly, there seems to be a view held by many that challenging the offender is in itself offensive as it can humiliate and belittle, as shown by the response from Arthur Randell and other widely-reported cases in the national press.
Thirdly, good citizens can often find charges pressed against them by the the very people who committed the original offence and are therefore reluctant to get involved.
While dropping litter may not be considered the most worrying of crimes, these concerns and fears lead to most people being unwilling to assist in more serious situations.

RK Hodge, Oaklands Court, Somerstown



Harold Kidd unit deserves praise

Letters from past patients at St Richard's Hospital extolling the care and attention provided by the medical staff there are frequently seen in the Observer.
From experience I know they are well deserved but similar letters about the care provided at The Harold Kidd Unit at Graylingwell are rarely if ever seen.
My wife and I have been visiting Grove and Vine wards there recently and have been amazed at the level of tender care given to their mentally-ill patients.
The professionalism of the doctors and nurses is of the highest order, but they go far beyond this treating their patients with loving care, consideration and respect at all times.
The staff clearly do their work under the usual difficulties of being under-funded and with staffing levels difficult to maintain, but these problems are never voiced to patients or visitors.
They warmly welcome visitors and show great concern for the well-being of close relatives of their patients who may themselves be under considerable stress.
Local people should be very grateful to have such a remarkable facility near the city.
Sad to say an increasing number will need its services in the future, but they can rest assured if they do, they will get the best and kindest help available in their distress.
I note in the article on health plans by the West Sussex PCT for the next five years, no mention is made of better funding for the development and expansion of mental health care services, which will inevitably be coming under more severe pressure in the future.

AD Stiles, Lavant Road, Chichester



Apology needed for cathedral peregrines

I'm sure I won't be the only person to point out the bird of prey given such a prominent place on the letters page is in fact a sparrowhawk – probably one of this year's females as it looks pretty big in the photographs (as with peregrines, females are bigger than males) .
However, the lower photograph clearly shows this bird is not as big as a peregrine, and Mr Appelbe has described absolutely typical sparrowhawk behaviour.
While we all know about the diet of peregrines, ie other birds, they do not kill and eat blackbirds etc in people's gardens.
Another 'small print' point is the eye of the pictured bird is, again, typical sparrowhawk, with its big yellow ring; the juvenile peregrine has a smaller bluish ring while the adult's is also yellow but relatively smaller.
While it's distressing to have one's garden birds taken from time to time by sparrowhawks, which need to do this to survive, at least it implies there's a good food chain out there – and at least Mr Appelbe's blackbird wasn't taken by a well-fed local cat!
So, perhaps an apology to Chichester's peregrines?

Hugh Horne, Midhurst

I can assure Donald Appelbe the bird in the photographs is definitely not one of the young peregrine falcons.
How can I be so sure? Because the bird is a sparrowhawk and not a peregrine falcon. It had distinctive yellow legs and yellow eyes.

Graham Perks, Waters Edge, West Ashling



To the point...

Outside Birdham school, there is constantly dog poo on the path and the children step in it and take it into school, or bring it home afterwards.
I am not alone by complaining and it is getting very serious. The local residents who let their dogs do it should be named and shamed.
My grandson attends this school and he stepped in it last night. When they step in it in the mornings it is taken into school – and, of course, as you know, the children sit on the floors.

C Hammond, The Street, Itchenor

The contract to build the footbridge over the A27 began in mid February and was scheduled to take 18 weeks. On October 2, the scheme was completed – some 33 weeks after the first sod was turned. The Highways Agency must feel very proud.
So we now have an eyesore on our doorsteps (did they pinch the paint from Butlins?) at an estimated cost of £1.25m.
Obviously a safer pedestrian crossing was crucial, but surely it would have been more financially prudent and environmentally friendly to give taxi tokens of £125,000 to each of the bridge's users, thereby saving taxpayers a considerable sum.

Nigel Lockley, Priors Acre, Boxgrove

I was greatly amused to read David Hopson's version of the apocryphal story about the guest at a social occasion and the indiscreet council officer.
I was equally amused the very first time I heard it, though on that occasion it was about Members of Parliament, the cabinet, and civil servants!

Cllr John Connor, Selsey North ward, Chichester District Council, Gill Way, Selsey

Tim Hudson (welcome back to your soap box) describes Pallant House as being 'award-winning'. Sorry Tim, inverted-commas are wrong, you should have said award-winning, the Gallery having won the 2007 Gulbenkian Prize in the face of serious competition – the strongest-ever shortlist, I think.
No, I don't like everything at the Gallery any more than I like everything I see at the Theatre ('six characters', providing the most indulgent directorial ego-trip I have seen in 50 years of theatre-going) but I do celebrate what these marvellous organisations bring to Chichester plc.
And of course the New Park Cinema, and the Jazz Club and the Oxmarket Arts Centre, and the Festivities and …

Paul Randall, Stirling Road, Chichester

I came over from France to visit my mother in Hove, a visit I do regularly. I checked online about the Arundel bridge closure at about 11pm. Neither the AA nor RAC reported any closure.
I know my way around Arundel so I ignored the first sets of 'A27 diverted' signs and continued towards Arundel.
There were lots of 'A27 diverted' signs but I was unaware of any Worthing or Brighton signs – perhaps I was not looking.
I drove on to the Arundel station roundabout and was promptly 'A27 diverted' back towards the west.
I chose to go down Ford Road and not back west. In due course I arrived at the A259 and there was the 'A27 diverted' sign sending me back west; not a mention of Chichester, Portsmouth, Worthing or Brighton. Incredible.
It was very sad all the multitude of signs had just not been thought out to give proper guidance.

John Curd, Le Puy Notre Dame, France

In view of the recent remarks made by the Archbishop of Canterbury, criticising greedy bankers, he might like to reflect, when he visits Chichester for the cathedral's anniversary, on where the enormous sum of money came from to construct the building 900 years ago.
Why, of course, the priests of the day took it from folk doing 'real' jobs. Before making his remarks, he might have considered the old saying 'People who live in glass houses...'

G Williams, Mill Lane, Sidlesham

Until A year ago, house prices were rising and rising from all quarters there were cries of 'This is disastrous: house prices must be restrained'; then bang, the bubble burst and house prices fell and are still falling; now the universal cry is 'This is disastrous, house prices must stop falling'.
In our market-dominated financial system brought into chaos by sheer greed, where is there any bastion of stability and consistency? No wonder Jesus Christ threw the money lenders out of the temple.

Jake Wright, Stane Street, Halnaker

I would like to thank most sincerely the kind gentleman who picked up a bunch of keys in North Street and took the trouble to hand them in at the police station. They must have fallen from my husband's wheelchair.
How lucky we are to live in a place where people are so kind and considerate.

Freda James, Chichester



Nyewood Juniors deserves praise

Having read the recent article about bullying at Nyewood Junior School, I felt it only fair readers heard from a parent who is more than happy with the school.
My son is in Year 5 and I cannot praise the school enough for the help and support given by all staff at the school, from the administration staff, teaching support staff, teaching staff and especially the head teacher Mrs Wells and her deputy Mrs Farrow.
When my son arrived into Year 3, his academic and behaviour was less than perfect.
Within a few weeks of being at the junior school, his behaviour was noticeably improved and the support given to him to improve academically was outstanding.
Sadly I had made many visits to Mrs Wells office to discuss his behaviour during Year 3 and always came away from the meetings feeling the matter had been dealt with in a fair manner.
I had tried for three years to get help with my son's behaviour and learning progress while he was at the infant school, but sadly they just labelled him as a naughty child and my efforts made at home were wasted.
If it wasn't for the staff at Nyewood Junior School, my son would not be the happy, keen-to-learn little lad he is now. The time and effort all the teachers put into making the children feel comfortable and lessons a joy needs rewarding, not criticising.
I think with all the emphasis at the moment on how badly children behave and how poorly schools perform, we need to take a moment and celebrate their achievements.
I would like to thank Mrs Wells and her team for all their support, without your faith in him, I strongly believe he would have become another bad-boy statistic.

L Boakes, Pagham



Lovely verse

In the obituary column of the Observer last week I read the following beautiful verse:
Some time at eve when the tide is low,
I shall slip my moorings and sail away.
And greet the friends who have sailed before
O'er the unknown sea, to the unknown shore.
I wonder if any readers could tell me the origin and the writer of this poem.

Elizabeth French, Worcester Close, Bognor Regis



Grow up, guys

Returning to my car after shopping in Chichester, I found two middle-aged men arguing over my parking space.
I had to ask them to move their vehicles and they moved a few feet each. When I did get out of the space, they continued arguing.
I just want to say, if those two men are reading this: come on guys, are you starving, dying of thirst? No. Grow up, guys!

Clare Haddaway, Bognor Regis



Learn a lesson from wise King Solomon

I have been following the story about the vision groups for Bognor Regis with considerable interest.
It appears Bognor does have a history of jeopardising good things out of a lack of agreement.
We are in momentous times for our town and we are in danger of throwing away something truly special because we are fighting over who is right.
Nick Stuart-Nicolson is absolutely right in his comment 'the main losers of the row will be Bognor Regis'.
Hugh Coster began his piece by stating: "It is disappointing and frankly silly we now have a situation where there are two Bognor Regis Regeneration Vision Groups."
I concur, and am reminded of a story which I feel is a warning to us now in Bognor.
In the time of King Solomon, two women came to him to solve a dispute over who was the true mother of a baby. Both had given birth to a child within days of each other, but one woman's child died in the night and each claimed the surviving baby was theirs.
Not knowing who to believe, the king called for a sword and said: 'Cut the living child in two and give half to one and half to the other'.
The first woman, filled with compassion, implored the king to let the child live and was prepared to give it up for that sake.
The second woman declared: "Neither I nor you shall have him. Cut him in two!"
The point of this story is not to say who is the first woman and who is the second woman – the fact is, both gave birth to a child.
I would like to appeal to the people involved across this town in the regeneration process in Bognor – and I include in that people who have not been highlighted in this particular dispute.
Many people have their own visions for what should 'come to birth' here in Bognor. However, over time, some of those visions will 'die'.
The challenge in all of this is: do we fight to retain our own piece of the vision and refuse to let it go – at the expense of the wider issue and belief in our own rightness – or do we accept sometimes we must put our own visions aside to see a bigger thing emerge?
Stuart Nicolson said if these two sides cannot solve their differences, he can see neither of these groups will survive.
If you cut the baby in two, you may get your share, but at what cost? There is no longer any life in it!
On behalf of this town, which stands poised on the brink of a new beginning, let's stand together and call for what is best here.
The people saw Solomon had the wisdom to administer justice. Let that be our goal in Bognor Regis!

Kate Pollard, Chichester Road, Bognor Regis

Surely, common-sense must finally prevail with regard to the 'debacle' of the two opposing Bognor Regis Regeneration Vision Groups.
We have been presented with a number of comments regarding this recent 'spat' between Tom Frears (Vision 1) and Hugh Coster (Vision 2), but clearly the offer made by the much-respected and stalwart president and chairman of Bognor Regis Chamber of Commerce Nick Stuart-Nicolson to arbitrate is an admirable suggestion.
I would therefore recommend the battling duo (Hugh and Tom) warmly accept his very generous offer of arbitration, and let the regeneration programme proceed with dignity.

HC Braid, Aldwick, Bognor Regis

In the September 25 issue of the Bognor Regis Observer, Hugh Coster writes the Vision Group was initiated by the Civic Society. In the same issue, the president and chairman of the Bognor Regis and District Chamber of Commerce correctly points out this is not true and that it was set up by Paul Rigg, the-then chief executive of West Sussex County Council.
The minutes of the first meeting of the group read as follows: "Paul Rigg said he had been approached by a number of those present expressing their wish for a forum at which numerous key interest groups could work together through some overarching body and thereby air their views together and more fully on economic regeneration."
Those present included the Chamber of Commerce, the University, Bognor Regis Ltd, the Civic Society and BEAM.
The minutes also state: "The Duke of Richmond thanked attendees for responding to his invitation to join the special interest group."
At the meeting a document was presented headed 'Proposals for a new body proposed by Paul Rigg'. Under 'proposed membership' it states 'councillors will not be eligible for membership' and under 'modus operandi' it states the group will have an independent chair.
It is clear beyond doubt Hugh Coster's account is completely inaccurate and that the breakaway group he has formed is not following the procedures of the original
Vision Group.

Tom Frears, chairman, Bognor Regis Regeneration Vision Group

Oh dear! Not content to being the UK's most ridiculous town, it appears poor old Bognor Regis is now suffering from double Vision.
Reading the many and various letters over the past three weeks, they seem to me to suggest rejected scripts from a cheap version of Spartacus.
I trust the two protagonists will soon take up the offer of mediation to resolve the issue with just a modicum of dignity.
Failing this may I suggest Bognor goes the whole hog and gets Harry Hill to have the battling pair on to his TV show to resolve the matter in his own inimitable style.

Brian Green, Southway, North Bersted, Bognor Regis

Hugh Coster displays a total lack of vision! He parades the democratic credentials of Civic, of which he is vice-chairman, yet obviously ignores such principles in his conduct within other organisations.
Last March, as a member of the original Vision regeneration group, he called a secret meeting of all members to depose Tom Frears as chairman. Tom was not told or invited.
When the others wouldn't play ball, he and Derek Trotman, the treasurer of Civic, elected Hugh as chairman. Is that democracy? I think not!
Despite Civic's claim, they did not create Vision or invite the Duke of Richmond to chair future meetings.
That was undertaken in 2000 by Paul Rigg, the chief executive of West Sussex County Council. Civic was merely one of the seven organisations Paul Rigg invited to join Vision.
Civic cannot claim original ownership of Vision to justify mischievously forming a breakaway Vision group comprising sympathisers.
Neither can they claim the patronage of the Duke of Richmond as they tried to do until His Grace asked them to cease!
Small wonder Tom Frears' Vision group retains recognition of those who count and continues to flourish with enhanced membership including local church bodies and the university.
By his actions, Hugh risks not only becoming a laughing stock among the big players in the regeneration of the town but also makes Bognor Regis, the town he purports to cherish, the subject of further mirth.
Thus he diminishes the chance any of CIVIC's views being taken seriously, irrespective of their merit.
Such egotistic behaviour distracts everyone from the important task of regenerating Bognor Regis

Kate Whiteley, Marshall Avenue, Bognor Regis

The story of double Vision is pure Enid Blyton. Really you couldn't make it up!
Tom and Hugh have an argument where Hugh seeks to deny his involvement in advice and decisions taken by the Vision Group.
Looking backwards – not a good idea when running forward – Hugh realises he was there when the Vision group backed St Modwen – 168 flats on the front and all. Woe! woe!
Hugh is upset and Tom, independent chairman of the Vision group, tells the group he will resign. Not one of the group accepts this.
Later, without telling Tom, Hugh tries to call a meeting of the Vision Group. Only one mate agrees to come. Guess what? The 'meeting' of two people votes Hugh as chairman in place of Tom!
Sadly this is not a joke. Statutory councils are involved and they cannot accept such manipulative and undemocratic behaviour, hence the county and district councils have rejected Hugh Coster's crowning of himself. It's not a children's story, either. Such tactics are more like Kafka than Blyton.
Most important, however, this is about representing people living and working in Bognor Regis.
There are fundamental disagreements about moving the town forward or letting it stagnate. That requires difficult decisions and honest representation, not publicity-seeking huffs and puffs.

Peter Coles, Devonshire Road, Bognor Regis



Tried-and-tested ways to keep cats out of your garden

I have sympathy for Mr Madeley as regards his problem of cats using his garden as a toilet (Observer letters).
It is an age-old problem suffered by devout gardeners, mainly as the soil in their gardens is prepared exactly how cats like it – soft and easy to dig in!
As a cat and a dog owner, I can tell you that, while (unlike many of our local dog owners), my husband and I fastidiously clean up after our dog. Our cats, however, are a different story.
As free-roaming creatures, which most British pet cats are, there is very little I can do to control where my cats go to relieve themselves.
Case in point, I have a litter tray in place for a new cat I have added to my household, but now he is allowed to go outside, he prefers to 'go' the way nature intended – with the sun on his back and the wind in his fur.
I can offer a couple of tried-and-tested deterrents, such as removing 'calling cards' as soon as possible to remove their familiar scent. Citrus peel,
coffee grounds and lavender are scents that are reported to be deterrents to cats, so sprinkling these on the bare soil should help.
Alternatively, if you should ever catch the culprit in the act, a well-aimed squirt of clean water from an empty washing-up liquid bottle will help to discourage the cat.
If it were my pet, I would rather they returned home a little wet than injured by a disgruntled gardener.

Mrs Louisa Thompson, Outerwyke Gardens, Felpham

Neil Davey's attempt to control where a cat goes to the toilet should be regarded with as much ridicule as needing an instruction manual to put on wellington boots.
As has been pointed out, cats are free-roaming and as such there is almost no possibility of getting a cat to go to the toilet where you want, let alone when you want.
Keeping cats indoors all the time is no option either – unless constant companionship can be found, you'll probably up with no furniture and a highly-neurotic animal.
If owners could be prosecuted,will Neil be camping outside 24 hours a day with high-powered telescopic lenses (complete with night vision) to try to get a name from the cat's collar (if it has one)? If so, I do hope he doesn't expect the tax payer to buy his equipment.
And who would you prosecute if it was a feral cat?
There are laws regarding dog fouling (a much more serious problem which Neil seems to have forgotten about), but people still disregard the possible fines.
If it doesn't work for dogs, then how likely would it be to prosecute cat owners?
If home owners don't like cats in their garden, the answer is really quite simple: Plant hedges with bitter leaves and smell, with a height of at least 2ft. Aside from keeping cats out, you'll be helping the environment, too.

Nicholas Kingsley, Lime Close, Chichester



We get a raw deal compared to Spain

My wife and I have recently returned from a holiday in a seaside town, roughly the size of Bognor Regis, called Torre Del
Mar, midway between Malaga and Nerja in southern Spain. I would add that, similar to Bognor, Torre is not a mainstream holiday resort.
While we were there, we made observations about differences in the standard of living between the two towns – with remarkable results favouring the Spanish town.
* Rates – Spain between 100-200 Euros per year with nothing to pay in some rural areas.
* Dustbins – emptied daily and large items taken away without charge.
* Vandalism – virtually non-existent.
* Crime – difficult to tell but the police are in evidence and victims are not treated as crooks.
* Danger – it is safe to wander the streets at any time of day or night.
* Cyclists – with one exception, they cycled on the roads.
* Promenade – long and flat with many watering holes. Paid for by EU – that is, us.
* Weekly market – with about 1,000 yards of stalls.
* Parking – virtually all free, even in the town centre, with unlimited hours.
* Housing – plentiful and cheaper than in Bognor. There is also an excellent stock of cheapish rental property.
* Restaurants – although for UK visitors costs have increased because of the exchange rate, we were still getting dinner for less than 15 Euros for two people, including drinks.
* Supermarkets – about the same although beer could be bought for 7.65 Euros for a case of 24 bottles. There were still very few drunks about.
* Utilities – because of the climate, heating, electric and even water were all very much less than in Britain.
* Climate – the summer heat, up to 45 degrees, is somewhat high but this is one of the few things that favour Bognor.
I could go on but all in all the Spanish get much more value for their rates than we do and I would ask the two CEOs why our rates are seven to eight times more than in Spain?
Peter Oates, Canning Road, Bognor Regis



Thanks...

Grateful thanks to all who contributed to the Guide Dogs for the Blind collection which was
held in Bognor Regis on Saturday, September 27. A total of £362.89 was raised.

ME Griffiths, treasurer, The Guide Dogs for the Blind Association, Chichester and Bognor branch

The coffee morning on September 26 at Rose Green Centre of Art and Crafts raised £167.40. We would like to thank all those who supported this very worthwhile event.

Christabel Hullett

A big thank-you to the very kind lady who stopped on the very busy A27 approaching the Fontwell roundabout on Thursday, October 2 at 8.30am, to help me when my red MG car overheated.

Mrs M Bradley, Easebourne



More could be done to prevent fly-tipping

Many readers will have heard Chichester District Council's adverts on local radio about
fly-tipping and reporting people who carry out such acts.
And I have to say I agree – I do not want to see vast areas of countryside with heaps of rubbish. But I do see why it happens.
I recently bought a new king-sized mattress and wanted to dispose of the old one.
The mattress measures 5ft by 6ft 6in.
To accommodate this, I borrowed a twin-wheeled trailer from work. On arrival at the Midhurst depot, I was told I couldn't enter because my trailer was over 1.5m.
Remember the size of the mattress, in metric 1.25m x 1.98m – it will not go on a smaller trailer!
I am not sure if this is because of the layout of the Midhurst depot, but having visited it several times recently, it certainly could do with enlarging - and, let's face it, there is plenty of space owned by the council there.
So rather than trailing it to Chichester, I went to Petersfield, only to be told: 'You need a permit for that trailer, sir'.
Well, I do not buy many king-sized mattresses so purchase of a permit seemed overkill to me. Thankfully the attendant saw sense and let me dispose of the mattress 'this time'.
Why are we making disposal of domestic items so difficult?
I can get up to three items collected by the council for £35, but one assumes that two operatives would arrive in a lorry or van. Would this really cost the council as little as £35? I suspect it would cost more.
I am trying to take the rubbish to the council – yes, doing the transport job for them!
I can see why some domestic items get fly-tipped. Come on, council, let's review what you are doing.
You can help the situation by enabling domestic users in with larger vehicles. Let's face it, what sized estate car would you need for a three-piece suite?

Dave West, Pretoria Avenue, Midhurst



Silly plans - just leave our church as it is now

Linch church is attractive in the way many Sussex churches are, but the corner it occupies and the surrounding farmhouse and buildings are exceptionally lovely.
The church was given Grade II listing only about 18 months ago.
Only churches are exempt from listed planning consent, so in no other situation could anyone possibly build a modern extension on to a Grade II listed building.
Modern architecture always dates rapidly, and ends up looking, frankly, rather silly. The curved wall in this extension is precisely that. Impracticable, serving no purpose other than to look, well, silly.
I have leafleted 150 homes in and around Milland and the overwhelming majority of those I spoke to had not seen a drawing of what the extension would look like, only the floor plans.
Even when I called at the Rising Sun, where fundraising activities for the extension are going on, no-one had (until then) seen what it would look like. Some were rather shocked.
It is fair the pub should take a neutral position, of course, but on the customers' side of the bar my leaflet seemed to have stirred up a lot of discussion. Suddenly a simple building has become a contentious topic, causing divisions in the village, which is wholly regrettable.
The proponents of the plan may not have anticipated this, but now it cannot be a sensible course to follow, as once built it will remain an object of contention for ever. The legacy will not be a comfortable one.
It is not easy to convert a floor plan into a visualisation in three dimensions. The comments I got when showing the artist's impression ranged from 'carbuncle' to 'tumour' to 'bungalow'. Not one person said they thought it was attractive or fitting.
Nevertheless, although a good many people thought it was a lot of money to spend on a pee and a prayer, no-one was against the idea of providing some of the facilities the proposed extension is for, namely a loo, a kitchenette and some otherwise useful space.
What they all said was that it should be done more discreetly, unobtrusively and at a more modest cost. £238,000 is a heck of a spend for one room, a loo and a kitchenette.
Most people I have canvassed favoured a small separate building which would not damage the integrity of the existing church, and indeed a local green-oak specialist offered to build a traditional barn-style construction at cost, which would be somewhere in the region of £60,000.
The only thing this would not provide would be overspill seating during a busy service. However, it is hard to see how anyone in an annexe, separated by a glass passage, at right angles to the main body of the church, out of sight of the proceedings could reasonably expect to feel included, and these busy services are only Christmas, Easter, harvest festival, weddings and funerals.
Average Sunday services are not 85 as cited to the planning committee but 35, but the church will hold 90 or so anyway. I am sometimes one of them as I take my son to the family service once a month.
Lastly, the article on the front page of last week's Observer quotes a proponent; Nola Bleach saying: 'There was nowhere to hold a prayer meeting, or even a Sunday school'. What about the church itself?

* May I draw attention to a mistake in last week's Midhurst and Petworth Observer.
Concerning the controversy over the planned modern extension to Linch church, the Observer reported I had objected to plans to build 150 homes in Milland.
This will surprise and perhaps shock many readers, as there are no plans to build any houses. What the article should have said is I delivered my leaflet about the church extension to 150 homes in Milland.

Stephen Saunders, Titty Hill, Iping, Midhurst



Golden wonder

My wife Margaret and I are pleased to announce the amount of money raised on our golden wedding day last Saturday, for the Midhurst branch of the Macmillan Nurses, amounted to more than £7,500 – with more anticipated.
We would like to express our gratitude and appreciation to everyone who donated to this appeal and to those who worked so very hard to make the event such an outstanding success.

Ivan Wadey, Butcherland Farm, Ebernoe


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