Category: Suffolk

The crash happened in Crowshall Lane in Attleborough at just after 8.20am today (Wednesday, November 27).

The driver of the school bus suffered minor injuries in the crash, but the school children were not hurt. They were transferred to another bus.

Fire crews from Attleborough, Dereham and Thetford went to the scene.

The road was cleared by 11am.

David Green was fatally injured at the Summers Park Development site near Colchester on December 3, 2016.

Mr Green, a groundworker working for Rose Builders Ltd, was manoeuvring a nine tonne front-tipping dumper truck on a spoil heap to off-load top soil at the site in Lawford, Manningtree.

An earlier inquest, in March 2017, ruled the Clacton site worker’s death was accidental after he was thrown from the truck at the housing development.

The 32-year-old, of Little Clacton, lost control of the truck, which toppled forward and came to rest upside down at the base of the spoil heap.

A colleague noticed the overturned truck and ran over to assist, but Mr Green had sustained a serious head injury during the fall and died on scene.

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A postmortem ruled the cause of death was a bleed on the brain and skull fracture.

Essex senior coroner, Caroline Beasley-Murray, highlighted concerns about the death and urged Rose Builders to improve its work safety measures.

This week, Rose Builders Ltd of Riverside House, East Lawford, pleaded guilty to breaching Sections 2 (1) and 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 at Chelmsford Magistrates’ Court.

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found major deficiencies in the management of tipping operations on the spoil heaps.

The investigation established that the operation was not properly planned; drivers were not given instruction or training on how to safely operate vehicles and tip on spoil heaps, and the job itself was poorly supervised.

The victim did not have his seat belt fastened and the investigation confirmed that this was common practice on the site.

The company has been fined £225,000 and ordered to pay costs of £11,822.90.

Speaking after the hearing, HSE inspector Kasia Urbaniak said, “This was a tragic and wholly avoidable incident, caused by the failure of the employer to assess the risk related to tipping operations, implement safe systems of work, and failure to ensure that such systems were communicated to groundworkers and were followed.”

The college, in Bury St Edmunds, was the setting for a visit by RS Components Titan II.

This is a 35 tonne interactive truck and mobile innovation centre which provides interactive experiences allowing students to get ‘hands on’ with the latest technology.

Parked up at the college’s new Science, Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Innovation Campus in Western Way, Titan II gave students the opportunity to get involved with some of the latest innovation.

This included 3D printing, robotics, Raspberry Pi mini-computers, thermal imaging and augmented reality.

As well as providing an opportunity for the college students and staff, three primary and secondary schools from Bury – St Benedict’s Catholic School, Walsham Le Willows Primary and St Edmundsbury Primary – also attended, with pupils fully immersing themselves into the interactive world before them.

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Nadine Payne, director of STEM Partnerships at the college said: “It was fantastic to have Titan II in with us for the day.

“This, for us, is about raising aspirations of young people and students across the county so they really can believe they could be scientists or engineers one day.

“We are also trying to make students aware of the different career pathways available to them in STEM and to work with different businesses across the region to help bridge the gap between industry and education and to address the skills shortage in STEM areas.”

As well as the Titan II activities, the schools were also invited into the STEM Campus where they enjoyed a session on what an engineer is and the type of jobs they do.

RS Components is the world’s largest distributor of electronics and maintenance products.

Ms Payne said the college plans to work with RS Components again, booking Titan II for different college events and giving local schools and businesses the opportunity to attend.

West Suffolk College is home to 14,000 students and 1,500 apprentices studying at the new STEM centre, its main site in Out Risbygate, and the Milburn Campus in Anglian Lane.

FARMERS’ AND COOKWARE MARKET, BUTTERMARKET

Essex Bakery

Simply sublime brownies, with a crackly top and gooey, moreish underside. Not too sweet, these brownies sing with cocoa and range from the classic variety to mint chocolate, chilli, orange, white chocolate chunk and gluten-free. Just the thing to nibble on with a cup of hot chocolate.

ABBEY GARDENS

The Tudor Bakehouse

Sugar and spice and all thing nice will adorn this stand – all handmade with love and care and (being baked goods) portable enough to eat on the go as you make your way around all the attractions the fayre has to offer.

Expect buttery shortbread, sweet breads (such as cinnamon, apple and sultana brioche), and warm mince pies.

Hadleys

Best known for owner Jane’s remarkable, fine, high quality ice creams and sorbets, Hadleys has another trick up its sleeves for the cooler months – hot chocolate.

And award-winning hot chocolate at that. Thick, smooth and beautifully rich, each cup is made with Pump Street single origin chocolate and served with homemade marshmallows and Christmas biscuits. They’ll also be selling hot chocolate melts, hampers and jars of flakes so you can recreate the experience at home.

Tuk In Street Cantina

Two words…halloumi fries! Who can resist? In addition to these vegetarian delights, the guys will be starting your day with bacon and hash brown wraps, and will have pulled meats, in addition to sweet potato fries, all served from a Piaggio Ape Tuk Tuk truck.

Under the Eagle

Authentic, hearty, warming Polish food from this popular family restaurant in west Suffolk. The kitchen team will be making venison sausages, grilled pork, pea soup, hunger stew, potato pancakes, dumplings, sour rye soup and more.

READ MORE: Everything you need to know about Bury St Edmunds Christmas Fayre 2019

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CATHEDRAL COURTYARD

Samphire

All the products here are made with the best free-range pork from the business’s own smallholding on the Norfolk/Suffolk border. If you’re a traditionalist you’ll love one of their rare breed pork pies for lunch at the fayre. Or perhaps one of their signature sausage rolls, encased in flaky, homemade rough puff pastry.

Dimsum King

Steamed and fried bundles of yum inspired by dishes from China and the Philippines.

On the menu are siomai, those delicate steamed open-topped parcels, siopao (a version of char sui buns), and vegetable and meat filled spring rolls.

ANGEL HILL

The Village Deli

An award-winning stall selling hot, crispy Scotch eggs made from scratch by the team. They begin with free-range, locally sourced ingredients, which are lovingly hand made into the finished product, which has a delectable runny centre. Flavours include traditional, chorizo, black pudding and vegetarian (using falafel in place of sausagemeat). And there sides too – from sweet potato fries to coleslaw.

The Sizzling Kitchen

A mainstay at this event every year, and bringing a touch of the continent to festivities. Follow your nose to the bratwurst, currywurst and bockwurst sausages, and frikadellen (meatballs) served with traditional relishes and sauces. Oh, and there’s hot German gluhwein (mulled wine) too.

Meat Street BBQ

Do you like your meat cooked low and slow, until it’s so tender you barely have to chew? If so, make a beeline for this concession, which specialises in regional American barbecue, smoking locally sourced meats for up to 12 hours to infuse every cut with flavour. From Kentucky pulled lamb to a Texas chilli, there’s something to warm your bones.

Shepherd’s Hut Catering Co

Lip-smacking, savoury, meaty treats with a twist of the Med. In addition to traditional doner kebabs (with a vegetarian halloumi version available), the team will rustle up beef and pancetta burgers, lemon pepper chicken burgers and Moroccan lamb burgers. Piled with fresh garnishes, the patties are served in fresh salt and pepper seasoned baps.

And visit Blackthorpe Barns while you are in the area too.

‘Mollie’ is sitting in a car park behind the Fiveways pub in Earlham.

Café Britannia’s once proud blue, cream and red food truck marks a sad end for a business which for the last five years has been praised for helping prisoners and ex-offenders get back into work.

At the start of the month Britannia Enterprises Community Interest Company (CIC), which was behind five cafés at Norwich Prison, the Guildhall, Waterloo Park, Gibraltar Gardens and Norwich Crown Court appointed a liquidator and published a state of affairs document, showing how much money it owes.

The figures are eye-watering and open up many questions about how the company collapsed.

It has assets of just over £9,000 but owes almost £630,000.

How did it rack up such large debts when it had so few assets to borrow against?

At what point did its directors realise it was never going to be able to pay back the hundreds of thousands of pounds owed to other businesses?

We have sent a series of questions to the CIC’s director, Davina Tanner and the company’s liquidator, Stewart Bennett, but they refused to answer.

The CIC, which is run as part-profit, part-charity was facing problems before it went into liquidation.

Police are investigating an alleged fraud at the company dating back to 2018 and have interviewed one man in his 60s.

But in its last accounts, for 2017, Britannia Enterprises owed £91,000 to trade creditors; less than two years later that figure has tripled to £270,000.

Meanwhile the assets of the company have collapsed since 2017 from £357,000 to £9,000.

In its last accounts its assets included £244,000 in investments and £83,000 worth of vehicles.

One of Ms Tanner’s companies, called Moody Deals Ltd, runs the Fiveways pub, which would explain why the Café Britannia food truck is there, but what has happened to the rest of the company’s assets? That question was not answered.

Ms Tanner said in August that it was her intention to pay suppliers back, but the liquidator’s documents show this will not be possible.

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We also asked Ms Tanner why such large amounts were owed to individual businesses.

Two of its biggest creditors, owed almost £42,000 and £45,000, are finance leasing firms who fund vehicles and equipment, called Academy Leasing Limited and Credo Asset Finance.

More than £90,000 is also owed to one of Ms Tanner’s companies Brand Strategy Partners Ltd.

It lists its function as “management consultancy activities”. We asked why this company was hired by the CIC and what work it did? Again no response was given.

Another £90,000 is owed to HMP Norwich, where Café Britannia was based. We asked how long has this amount had accrued over and what exactly it was for? No answer.

Employees are also owed £65,000, directors are owed £45,000, while the taxman has lost out by £40,000.

Another £16,000 is owed to Norwich City Council.

The biggest losers are other businesses which were hired by the CIC.

But speaking in August, when the closure of the café was announced, Ms Tanner said she was the “biggest loser” from the collapse.

“I stupidly invested my own money into this and I’ve had to make my peace with the fact I’m not getting it back,” she said at the time.

She also said she had not taken a salary from the company for two years.

Ms Tanner has an OBE for her work rehabilitating prisoners at Café Britannia.

She also has a long track record in business, including as manager at Chapelfield shopping centre, but this is the third business she has been a director of which has gone into insolvency.

The most recent one was last year, called D T Properties Great Yarmouth Ltd.

While The Park Britannia at Waterloo Park has now been taken over by a sole trader, the other outlets have shut with the loss of around 50 jobs.

However the Café Britannia name could still live on.

Several other companies with its name are registered on Companies House as still being active including, Britannia Holdings Norwich and Café Britannia Limited.

PUBLISHED: 16:28 12 November 2019 | UPDATED: 16:32 12 November 2019
Sophie Barnett

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