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The Lights wins Industry Award

Andover�s theatre The Lights has walked away with the top award for Show Guide of the Year in theatre industry magazine Encore�s 2008 Theatre Awards.

The Trophy, sponsored by Talent Entertainment was awarded at the Encore Theatre Awards luncheon which this year took place at the Fairfield Halls, Croydon on Wednesday 13 May.�� Representing The Lights, Director Heather Whittam and Marketing Manager Teresa Bradley were thrilled to win the prestigious award after being in a short list of three venues.

Heather commented ��Test Valley Borough Council made a commitment to the arts when they opened The Lights in 2006.�� The venue has proved to be a success on many levels and we are delighted to win this award which recognises our guide which has played a major part in that success�

The award is especially valued as it recognises the increasing value and importance of quality, essential information, clarity of design and show promotion content and most importantly is voted for by the general public.��

Created by Hampshire based graphic designer Sue Tinkler, The Lights strong branding has been a winner from the beginning, attracting over 200,000 visitors to the venue since it opened.�� The striking logo has been used on everything from flower beds, to carpets, banners, postcards, the website and the brochure, which is now mailed to over 7,000 people each season.��

Encore is a monthly magazine for the theatre professional, recognised by the industry as the leading publication that links the show producer and the venue manager. ��Besides providing that vital link, Encore has been presenting its prestigious annual theatre awards since 1995, with categories which reflect the various integral sectors of the industry including Producer, Manager, Gaffer and Show Guide of the Year.

Sparkling Tag in the Sunshine

Sparkling Tag in the Sunshine

380 boys and girls from primary schools across Andover and Test Valley took part in the 3rd Annual Sparkling TAG rugby tournament today in glorious sunshine at the Goodship Ground.

The event is sponsored by Newcotech and is organised by Andover RFC, Testway 7s, Mountbatten Schools Sports Partnership and the Police. It was also supported this year by students from Andover and Sparsholt College and Year 10 Winton School pupil Matt Moore gained valuable experience taking part as a Sports Leader. The Community department at London Irish were also on hand to provide advice to the young players and, as ever, �Digger� the Irish Wolfhound mascot of London Irish was an extremely popular supporter!

85 games of TAG rugby were played and there were some very impressive displays of skill both in the tagging and try scoring. With so many competitors, players and supporters really appreciated tracking their positions on white boards and video and everyone praised the standard of refereeing and fair play which made the event great fun and enjoyable for all. Winners of more than one stage of the competition had to be decided on fair play points because of equal final scores.

There were two competitions � for Years 5/6 and Years 3/4. Teams competed in A, B, C and D pools and then went through to cup, plate and bowl matches depending on their positions in the pool. A fair play trophy plus a player of each pool award were also presented at the end of the day.

Congratulations to cup winners Anton School in the Years 5/6 event who now go forward to represent Andover area in Regional finals at Newbury RFC later in the summer and to the runners up Wherwell Primary who go forward to represent Test Valley at Hampshire Youth Games at Aldershot in July.

THE MOUNTBATTEN SCHOOL SPORT PARTNERSHIP

Other Years 5/6 results:

Plate Winners: Barton Stacey

Runners Up: Hatherden

Bowl Winners: �Roman Way

Runners Up: Anton B

Fair Play

Pool A Vernham Dean

Pool B Kimpton

Pool C Knights Enham

Pool D Amport

Player of the Pool

Pool A Shane Havell - Whitchurch

Pool B Adam - Kimpton

Pool C Keno Rowe - St John the Baptist

Pool D Frayer - Amport

In the Years 3/4 competition, congratulations to cup winners Clatford Primary and runners up Whitchurch.

Other results:

Plate Winners: �Shared between Anton and Portway

Bowl Winners: �Balksbury

Runners Up: �Rookwood

Fair Play

Pool A Smannell and Enham

Pool B Broughton

Player of the Pool

Pool A Ollie Cox - Smannell and Enham

Pool B Kayleigh - Anton

Dave Kane, Sports Development Co-ordinator at Testway Housing, said:

"What a fantastic day�s rugby for Andover�s young players. We saw a real improvement in the standard of tag this year which proves just how popular the sport has become in our area. The sun shone and there was a brilliant atmosphere at the club. Thank you to everyone who was involved in sponsoring and organizing the event, which is now becoming a firm fixture in the local schools sporting calendar. We are already looking forward to next year!"

Press Enquiries to Philippa Scudds � Cathcart Communications

Tel: 07801 867619

Andover - A Rights, Respecting & Responsible Community

A first draft will be unveiled on 6 May during the Business of Learning conference at The Lights in Andover.

The draft Charter aims to build on the Rights Respecting School initiative spearheaded by Mrs Anne Hughes, headteacher of Knight�s Enham School, which became the first school in the world to attain the status.

Since then the idea has spread to all schools in Andover, and John Hanson Community School became the first secondary school to win the accolade.

Now the aim is to extend the movement into the community featuring the three Rs � Rights, Respect and Responsibility.

Already the campaign has been joined by the Andover Advertiser and is gaining momentum with the backing of Test Valley Borough Council, Andover Churches Together, Andover Vision, Hampshire Constabulary, Hampshire County Council, North West Hampshire MP Sir George Young and UNICEF.

The University of Oxford, Harris Manchester College, is supporting and monitoring the project.

And at a conference last year called Towards a Rights Respecting Community, the Children�s Commissioner for England, Prof Sir Al Aynsley-Green, said: "What is happening in Andover is truly exceptional."

Although the Charter is designed to be the foundation of the enterprise, it is also a living document � based on the Human Rights Act, but encouraging people who sign up to it to develop rights and responsibilities that are appropriate to their situation.

Mrs Hughes, who will unveil the draft charter at the conference, said: "As all schools in Andover have signed up to the rights, respect and responsibility ethos this is an exciting opportunity for the citizens of Andover to be at the cutting edge of potentially life changing skills that can have a profound effect on themselves and future generations within the community and perhaps even the world!"
It is hoped that many businesses will sign up to the campaign on Wednesday, but ultimately the campaign is about creating a network of tolerance where individuals and groups stand up for the rights of everyone.

The Business of Learning conference will run from 9.30am to 12pm.

For more information or interviews call Mrs Hughes on 01264 394777

Beat the credit crunch

eHampshire.org�is launching a new series of workshops designed to help your business get more from the web and beat the credit crunch.

The event is being held at Test Valley Borough Council, Weyhill Road, Andover SP10 3AJ

on Thursday 26th March - �9.30 - 4.30

Registration is at 9am and a networking lunch at 1pm

�28.75 (inc. Vat) per head

Click here to book a place

Cafe Culture at The Lights

NEWS RELEASE�

Caf� Culture at The Lights

Artists and craftspeople who often work as lone workers are being offered the opportunity to get together with others working in the same field. � � In the latest Test Valley Borough Council initiative to support the arts in Test Valley, creative people are invited to a Caf� Culture event at The Lights in Andover on Wednesday 1 April at 7pm.

Organised by Faye Bradley, Senior Arts Officer for the council, Caf� Culture is a regular informal networking event. � � It�s for anyone interested in helping to develop a lively arts scene in the area, whether just starting out, already a self-employed artist, developing a career as a freelancer, or expanding a creative business. � It�s an opportunity to meet like minded people in an informal atmosphere and find out about new arts initiatives.

The guest speaker for April�s meeting is practising Silversmith Ndidi Ekubia who�ll be sharing her experiences of making a living as a maker. �

Faye Bradley commented� �Over 40 people came to our last event and we�re hoping for an even better turn out for April.� � The more people who come, the more information we have to share, the better the Test Valley Arts scene�

The event is free but places should be booked by contacting the Box Office on 01264 368368