York swimming pool closure challenged

The decision by the Joseph Rowntree Housing Trust to close the New Earswick swimming pool has come under fire.  The Trust announcement yesterday claimed that the pool was losing £130,000 a year and needed £1.3 million spending on building repairs.

The statement came as a surprise with the last published accounts of the Trust (covering 2016) making no reference to the pool or the looming financial crisis.

The accounts do however reveal that the Trust had assets of over £163 million including reserves of £45 million.

The organisation made an operating surplus of £1.9 million last year.

The cost of supporting the swimming pool fell from £147,000 in 2015 to £133,000 in 2016.

The Trust spent £12 million on salaries last year including £185,000 on the remuneration of its Chief Executive.  Pay increases of 2.6% were agreed for staff last year.

Huntington and New Earswick’s three Liberal Democrat councillors have launched a petition calling on the Joseph Rowntree Housing Trust to reconsider plans to close the swimming pool in New Earswick.

Cllrs Keith Orrell, Chris Cullwick and Carol Runciman are encouraging residents to sign the Liberal Democrat petition online: www.yorklibdems.org.uk/neswimmingpool.

Cllr Keith Orrell said: “The swimming pool’s closure has been announced by the Trust without any consultation with users of the pool or local people, and with no attempt to explore alternative funding options.

“We appreciate that the 1% rent reduction forced on Housing Associations by the Government has put even more pressure on their budgets but we would urge the Trust to work with users and local people to explore ways of maintaining a facility which has served local people for 50 years.”

What’s on in York – The Snowman at York Minster

Big Screen. Iconic Film. World Class Musicians. A truly magical Christmas show.

  • 16th Dec 2017

2:30pm & 7:00pm

From £12

BOOK TICKETS

Delight your family this Christmas with a screening of two enchanting films accompanied by live orchestra.

Following on from their highly acclaimed sell-out tour last December, Carrot Productions are bringing their Snowman magic to York Minster on 16 December with two performances (2.30pm for the matinee and 7pm for the evening show).

Hear some of the UK’s top musicians perform Howard Blake’s beautiful soundtrack – including the evocative ‘Walking in the Air’ sung by a local child soloist – in perfect synchronicity with the film shown on a giant screen. Not a dry eye in the house!

This extra special performance includes a light-hearted Guide to the Orchestra, including an angelic harp, Frozen on the flutes, and a very naughty drummer!

You’ll also experience the wonder of that most Christmassy of seasonal pieces, The Nutcracker, brought to life by Tom Scott’s mesmerising animated film. Along with a toe-tapping Christmas overture – and a visit from a VERY special conductor! – this festive treat has something for all ages. Cherished by children and adults alike, the concert is fast becoming an annual custom, providing the perfect winter outing for all the family.

What’s on in York – Christmas Carol concerts at York Minster

The perfect start to the festive season.

  • 14th and 15th Dec 2017
7.00pm – 8.30pm
From £12.00

BOOK TICKETS

Tickets now on sale

York Minster’s popular Christmas Carol Concerts take place on Thursday 14 and Friday 15 December and offer the perfect start to the festive season.

The concerts feature the York Minster Choir performing a mixture of classical and popular Christmas music, with the Yorkshire Volunteers Band leading the audience in Christmas carols.

The concerts will take place in the Minster’s awe-inspiring Nave and include special seasonal readings by celebrity guests.

Tickets are priced at £25, £18 and £12 and will be available from Tuesday 26 September from the York Theatre Royal Box Office online, by telephoning 01904 623568 or in person at the theatre in St Leonard’s Place, YO1 7HD.

The box office is open Mondays 10am-5pm, Tuesday-Saturday 10am-8pm* (on non-show days or until 6pm on show days). Please note that a booking fee of £1.50 is payable for all transactions apart from cash payments at the Box Office in person.

Westfield School promotes private swimming lessons

The Westfield primary school is writing to parents urging them to take up an offer of swimming lessons at the Energise pool.

The letter reveals that some organised trips to the pool have been poorly supported in the past.

Now the school is offering to subsidise the costs of personal lessons if parents choose to participate.

We hope that the scheme is successful. We have had too many tragedies in a City where there are two rivers, both of which pose an accident risk!

Westfield school letter to parents

What’s on in York: These Dudes Abide! The Cinema of Joel and Ethan Coen. CANCELLED

EVENT CANCELLED

City Screen Picturehouse :

Mon 2 – Mon 23 Oct :

7.00pm – 10.00pm :

£37 (adult) £35 (student) £35 (retired)

Oct _2CoenbrothersSince their stunning 1984 debut Blood Simple, the Coen Brothers have gone on to become one of the most acclaimed film making partnerships of all-time, with a career spanning 17 features and a hit TV show (Fargo). In this four week course we take an in-depth look at the work of this unique writer-director-producer team, from the noir crime-dramas (Blood Simple, Miller’s Crossing, Fargo, The Man who Wasn’t There) to the zany caper-comedies (Raising Arizona, The Hudsucker Proxy, Intolerable Cruelty, The Lady Killers, Burn After Reading, O Brother Where Art Thou), the Hollywood parodies (Barton Fink, Hail Caesar!), the bitter-sweet character studies (Inside Llewyn Davis, A Serious Man, The Big Lebowski) and the revisionist westerns (True Grit, No Country for Old Men). Topics for discussion will include the Coen’s dazzling cinematics, their brilliant genre-bending, and their astute character writing.

Each session includes a presentation/lecture followed by a tutorial where discussion is encouraged. Advance viewing is optional; select scenes and montages will be shown during weekly sessions.

Course tutor Jon Towlson is a film critic for Starburst Magazine and the author of Subversive Horror Cinema: Countercultural Messages of Films from Frankenstein to the Present (McFarland, 2014); Close Encounters of the Third Kind (Constellations) (Auteur/Columbia University Press, 2016) and The Turn to Gruesomeness in American Horror Films, 1931-1936 (McFarland, 2016).

Tickets available from box office on 0871 9025726, or website.

What’s on in York: Get Online Week 2017

Get Online Week 2017 : “Try One Thing” Digital Drop In

Huntington Library :

Mon 2 Oct :

10.00am – 12.00pm :

Free

DropinsDrop-in to get help with any of your digital queries.

For more information click here.

 

 

Get Online Week 2017 : Discover Music, Film & TV Online

Clifton Explore Library :

Mon 2 Oct :

2.30pm – 3.30pm :

Free

StreamingA guide to the best ways of streaming online films, TV and music.

For more information click here.

 

 

Muse Hack

York Explore Library :

Mon 2 Oct – Mon 27 Nov :

5.30pm – 7.30pm :

Free

Muse HackExplore, create, tinker and design. Get stuck into all manner of digital maker tools and tech and learn some coding along the way.

For more information click here.

 

Get Online Week 2017 : An Introduction to iPad Safety

Tang Hall Explore Library 

Tues 3 Oct 

10.00am – 11.00am 

Free

IpadA guide to iPad safety and security.

For more information click here.

 

 

Get Online Week 2017 : An Introduction to Android Safety

Tang Hall Explore Library :

Tue 3 Oct :

11.00am – 12.00pm :

Free

AndroidA guide to Android safety and security.

For more information click here.

 

 

Get Online Week 2017 : Discover Cloud Storage

New Earswick Library :

Tue 3 Oct :

2.00pm – 3.00pm

CloudA guide to the using the best Cloud Storage services.

For more information click here.

 

 

 

 

Get Online Week 2017 : “Try One Thing” Digital Drop In

New Earswick Library :

Tue 3 Oct :

3.15pm – 4.15pm :

Free

DropinsPop along to ask your burning digital questions. Our experts will be on hand to provide tailored support and inspire you to “try one thing” online.

For more information click here

Get Online Week 2017 : Discover Google Services

Acomb Explore Library 

Wed 4 Oct 

1.00pm – 2.00pm 

Free

GoogleA guide to Google’s many online services.

For more information click here.

 

 

 

Get Online Week 2017 : Minecraft for Parents & Carers

York Explore Library

Thu 5 Oct

12.30pm – 1.30pm

Free

MinecraftA guide to enjoying Minecraft with children you care for.

For more information click here.

Get Online Week 2017 : Discover Cloud Storage

Haxby Library at Oaken Grove Community Centre 

Fri 6 Oct 

10.00am – 11.00am 

Free

CloudA guide to the using the best Cloud Storage services.

For more information click here.