Coastline - May 2023 edition

Free community skips

The council's free community skips scheme gets under way again this month.

The scheme brings skips to local neighbourhoods so residents can dispose of bulky household rubbish free of charge.

Skips are available from 9.30am until 11.30am. Sessions may end earlier if all skips are full.

Upcoming dates are as follows:

• Saturday 20 May     Gosport Leisure Centre car park, off Forest Way
• Saturday 27 May     Walpole Park South car park, off Haslar Road
• Saturday 3 June      Alver Valley West car park, off Cherque Way, Lee
• Saturday 17 June    White's Place car park, off Forton Road (to be confirmed)
• Saturday 1 July       Green Lane car park

Find out more: search 'community skips' at www.gosport.gov.uk

Tourist info centre re-opens

Gosport's tourist information centre has re-opened following a deal between the council and a local holiday business. Maritime Heritage Tours, run by Mike Critchley, has taken over the centre and will offer local travel and tourism advice.

Until last month, the council paid a contractor to run the centre. The new set-up is at no cost to the council and will save public money.

The new-look centre, at Gosport's bus station, is open 9.15am to 1.15pm, Monday to Saturday. Mr Critchley said: "We will provide as full a service as we can, adding in more as we go. We can offer information on local sights and attractions, and local public transport. We also have souvenirs and naval books for sale, and will be offering our own holidays."

Gosport In Bloom

Our annual gardening competition is under way, with a deadline for entries of 23 June. Judging will be from 3 to 14 July, and an awards ceremony is planned for 12 October.

Categories include best front garden, best container, best street, best business, best allotment plot and best community project. You can enter some categories just by photos, including best back garden, most original gnome and most visually entertaining vegetable.

To enter, go to www.gosport.gov.uk/gosportinbloom or call 08000 198598.

New mayor takes office

The new Mayor of Gosport is Cllr Martin Pepper.

He will be actively supporting a number of worthy charities throughout his mayoral year, including Y Services, FirstLight Trust for Veterans, Community Spirit and other local organisations.  He will be accompanied by his Mayoress, Mrs Suzanne Pepper.

New CCTV cameras

CCTV is being extended across Gosport. After a successful bid for government funding, the council has installed a permanent CCTV camera at Elson Recreation Ground. The council is also installing two CCTV cameras at Jackie Spencer's Bridge: one in Gosport Park and another nearer the bridge, to give a good view of the whole area

Marine Festival is back

Gosport Marine Festival, on Saturday 20 May, is a free family event including kayaking, sailing, stand-up paddleboarding, windsurfing, rowing, dinghy sailing and Wet Wheels boat trips.

Plus, you can visit historic vessels, see entertainment in Timespace, enjoy refreshment stalls and watch model yacht demos.

The event is supported by the council. Most activities need to be booked. Find out more at www.gosportmarinefestival.uk or call 023 9400 1073.

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