Man injured in car crash

Posted on February 28, 2011 by Wenli Cheng

Car crash

A car crash that took place at midnight last week left a man needing hospital treatment.

The witness, Mr. Stratford, saw everything and helped the police to remove the damaged vehicles.

A white KIA car was travelling along a corner on the Hoyle Street, when a black taxi suddenly emerged from the road in the left side. The two cars were seriously damaged.

Mr. Stratford said the taxi driver was taken to hospital for treatment, but he did not know which hospital it is. The driver of the KIA escaped without serious injuries.

Enjoying new creative constructions in the Moor

Posted on February 28, 2011 by Christine Cawthorne

By Nancylu

Architecture students of the University of Sheffield published their construction works to the public in the Moor on weekend, 26th March.

A construction assessment also a competition was assigned to first year students of the school of Architecture, the University of Sheffield. The practice, called A place for Conversation, required student to design and build their works with using various materials including timber, bricks, polymers, stone, metal, bio materials and glass.

The assessment is part of the project Matter Reality which mainly aims at helping students to understand the importance of materials and their impact on detailing in construction. The first year students need to design a place for conversation in the project.

Jennifer is one of students who took part in the project. Her group use brick as building materials. According to Jennifer, it was a challenging work for her since she found a bit limited to building their works with brick.

They have been struggling on seeking other materials to help to stabilise the brick construction. “we ended up using plastic tubes through frogs of the bricks in some places to give extra support, but other than that the the structure held itself up”. Jennifer said.

The whole activity is lasting about three weeks. Students need to take part in a field trip and go to factories in different factories where they would study the materials and learn how materials are produced. Then students need to present their research results and designs in middle March.

Two people arrested in crackdown on city’s metal theft

Posted on February 28, 2011 by William David Wilson

metal theft is on the rise in Sheffield

Two people have been arrested as police officers and partners in Sheffield joined together to tackle metal thefts in the city.

The crackdown comes amid increasing concern from members of the public regarding such theft.

Along with the two arrests, the operation carried out on Wednesday 16 February saw 125 vehicles stopped, plus a significant quantity of what is believed to be stolen items recovered. Plus over 20 fixed penalty notices were issued for traffic offences and four vehicles seized for having no insurance.

The process involved officers checking vehicles travelling to scrap dealers to ensure no stolen goods were being carried and officers working closely with scrap dealers giving out crime reduction advice in a bid to tackle metal thefts.

Partners involved in the operation included Safer Neighbourhood Team officers, along with officers from specialist departments and partner agencies including Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA) and the Environmental Enforcement from Sheffield City Council.

Good results

Inspector Jason Booth from the Woodhouse and Mosborough Safer Neighbourhood Teams praised the efforts of the partners in aiding the police crackdown.

“After responding to people’s concerns about metal theft, some on local forums, we have worked with a number of partners to achieve some really good results and we will be repeating this initiative again in the near future,” he said.

Superintendent Martin Hemingway added: “I am delighted with the outcome of this operation, which because of strong leadership and the positive approach of front line staff has been achieved without any significant extra costs.

“It shows that all of the partner agencies can find efficient ways of working together and delivering results for our communities even during times of austerity.”

If you know of anyone committing this type of crime please report it to South Yorkshire Police on 0114 2202020 or call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

Council rejects plans to build new Tesco in Halfway

Posted on February 28, 2011 by Christine Cawthorne

Councillors reject plans for new Tesco superstore

By Hanne Poulsen and Iulia Rosu

Councillors have rejected the proposed plans to build a new Tesco store and petrol station off Oxclose Park Road, Halfway.

A land patch to the south of Arnold Lavers is to be used for housing instead of a Tesco superstore, decided the council at a public meeting on Monday the 28th of February.

The verdict comes after substantial objections from the local residents against the development.

A potential increase in traffic, noise and pollution as well as fear of a decrease in road safety, especially for children, are among the concerns raised by the residents. They have sent over 150 letters to the council complaining about design and environmental issues.

“There are too many shops in the area and it is taking all the greenery away,” says Barbara Finch and adds: “This will cause traffic conjestion,” as another argument for not building the superstore and petrol filling station in south east Sheffield.

Potential appeal

Matthew MacGee from Tesco Ltd was disappointed by the verdict: “We still think this place is best used as a supermarket,” he said and confirms that Tesco will consider an appeal. “It is clear that the council’s planning committee welcomes the investment and the jobs,” and refers to the proposed 450 jobs that the store would create.

Although Tesco representatives have tried to persuade residents and councillors to approve the new store and petrol station, Sheffield Council’s planning officers have not agreed with the intentions of the supermarket giant.

Tesco and its developer, Sigma Planning Services, claims to have worked with the public in creating the best possible solution for all. This includes many green and sustainable initiatives such as a rainwater recycling facility.

The planning officers say that the residents’ concerns are unfounded, the site still cannot be used because the area is needed for housing, as the council needs to meet its quota to fulfill its five-year planning strategy.

Update From BBC: Wayne Rooney escapes FA punishment

Posted on February 28, 2011 by Kuang Fu

Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney will face no action from the Football Association after he appeared to elbow Wigan midfielder James McCarthy.

The incident occurred during Saturday’s Premier League match at the DW Stadium in which Rooney scored one of the goals in United’s 4-0 victory.

TV replays showed Rooney catch McCarthy on the side of his head with his elbow.

Referee Mark Clattenburg gave a free-kick but Wigan boss Roberto Martinez believed Rooney deserved a red card.

Clattenburg told the FA on Monday that he felt he took the appropriate action, which means the governing body cannot launch disciplinary proceedings against the 25-year-old England forward.

The rules do not allow retrospective action against a player if the official sees the alleged offence.

For more click here to BBC Rooney escapes FA ban over clash

New phone app leads you to the right NHS service

Posted on February 28, 2011 by Christine Cawthorne

An iPhone application has been launched by the NHS, which allows its users to locate the most appropriate service with a touch of a button.

The application works in the area of Yorkshire and Humber. It also provides information about the nearest GP, NHS Walk in Centre, dentist, A&E department, sexual health service or pharmacy – as well as first aid and emergency advice, and reminders about health appointments and medication.

Daniel Mason, lead on Unscheduled Care at NHS Sheffield, said: “Here in Sheffield we have a really high student population, many of whom are not necessarily from the area and the phone App is really useful to anybody who is unsure of which service is the most appropriate.”

Our reporter Meixing Mah tried it out for herself

Doncaster’s veteran goalkeeper Neil Sullivan injured

Posted on February 28, 2011 by bcastma

Doncaster Rovers’ veteran goalkeeper Neil Sullivan may be out for several weeks through injury, which may threaten the South Yorkshire outfit’s mini-revival.

The former Wimbledon, Tottenham Hotspur and Leeds United favourite has been struggling with foot and shin injuries in recent weeks, and missed Saturday’s game against play-off contenders Watford.

Rovers could decide to try and bring in another experienced keeper on an emergency loan, depending on the prognosis, after youngster Gary Woods shipped six goals in a recent Championship match against Ipswich Town.

Tomorrow’s rearranged fixture at Pride Park will take on even greater significance for Rovers, after Derby County climbed above them following their win over fellow strugglers Sheffield United at Bramall Lane.

Rovers fell to 19th, their lowest position of the season, following their 1-1 home draw against Watford. It was another valuable point nearer safety, though, as the three teams in the relegation zone all lost.

The return of top scorer and former Scunthorpe United striker Billy Sharp is also a bonus, as he played a full 90 minutes after passing a late fitness test on the groin injury which had kept him out for the previous three games.

Rovers, who have had as many as 14 players out injured this year, were also boosted by the inclusion of midfielder Simon Gillett on the bench. The former Southampton man has recently returned following his lengthy lay-off, with back-to-back medial knee ligament injuries.

Students receive free pizza this week

Posted on February 28, 2011 by Christine Cawthorne

Young people queuing for the free Domino's

By Nancylu

A Domino’s Pizza outlet in West Street is sending thousands of free pizzas to students this week.

This offer is attracting thousands of young people to the store, who are queuing for their free meals today.

Gareth Brown, a student at the University of Sheffield, said that it is worth waiting for quite a long time as the pizza is free and nice.

Two girls also said that they spent about one hour queuing and waiting for their free pizzas, after they were given free vouchers during last September’s freshers’ fair.

Each student will receive a free pizza by handing over a voucher. They will also need to write down their names and emails on the voucher card.

“We are doing this for students and we want to give student good values”, said a worker at the store. “The Domino’s store is planning on sending about 6,000 free pizzas this week and about 1,000 everyday”. The offer has been successful as they have sold around 350 pizzas by 2.00pm.

Worst air pollution in Sheffield’s suburb

Posted on February 28, 2011 by Emma McHale

View Air pollution hotspots in Sheffield in a larger map

Statistics have shown that the suburb of Broomhill has the worst air pollution in Sheffield.

The worst reading of air pollution was at the junction of Whitham Road and Crookes in Broomhill. The amount of toxic gas, that was produced by vehicle exhausts, in Broomhill was almost 50% more than the level considered as safe.

The joint-second worst areas for air pollution were at Chesterfield Road and Meersbrook Park Road, as well as Fitzalan Square – which are hotspots for traffic.

A car causing air pollution

The third worst area for air pollution is at Derwent Crescent in Brinsworth, which is close to the traditional pollution hotspot of the M1 motorway. This area was ten percent lower in pollution, than the suburb of Broomhill. Further pollution hotspots can be seen on the embedded Google map.

Community members are urging Counsillor Andrew Sangar, the cabinet member for climate change, to take “tough action’ against the high amounts of pollution.

Nail Parry, a member of the Sheffield East End Quality of Life Initiative, also commented that national government and the local council needs to take action against air pollution.

An interview with Broomhill Counsillor Alan Whitehouse

Collect Tesco clubcard points for uni fees

Posted on February 28, 2011 by Wei Yan

: Tesco clubcard points for uni fees

Tesco will allow customers to save clubcard points towards the cost of distance learning courses at ten universities.

The supermarket has signed a deal with Resource Development International (RDI) which means that, from April, those who use the supermarket’s loyalty card will be able to use points earned on the weekly shop, towards the cost of a degree. Sheffield Hallam University is one of the ten universities which has signed up to the scheme.

The government will increase tuition fees from the current cost of £3,290 per year to £6,000 from 2012, with universities allowed to charge £9,000 in exceptional circumstances.

The announcement has caught shoppers’ attention.

“It’s only marketing, and everyone will think it’s amazing,” said Niall McLoughlin, a student learning Automotive Design, from PistonHeads forum.

“But if you sit down and think what’s actually useful, the tuition fee is a loan anyway, so it doesn’t have any effect until you start paying it back so it genuinely makes no difference to any student.”

A person named blueg33 at PistonHeads forum also stated: “I think it’s a good idea. Previously, Tesco points from family shopping just got me £1200 of stay (2 room 2 nights) at Park Lane Hilton. I would happily forego that long weekend to contribute to Junior’s tuition fees.”