This week, six year old twins James and Joshua O’Connor will be raising vital funds for The Brain Tumour Charity, the UK’s leading charity dedicated to fighting this devastating disease.

Joshua will be running 2.6km around the estate where he lives with his mum and dad. James will be doing 26 standing jumps spread out over the week.

James’ dad Carl said: “James struggles with walking, and doing just one jump is an achievement for him, so 26 is a big ask, but one he is determined to do.”

“He was diagnosed aged two in February 2016 and has undergone two courses of chemotherapy, lasting a total of 18 months. James has also undergone two full courses of radiotherapy, one in the UK and one in America. This is more than the recommended dose for an adult, let alone a five year old (his age during the second dose).

“James and Joshua will be wearing Brain Tumour T-Shirts from when their parents, Carl and Chantelle were due to abseil down the front of the Spinnaker Tower in Portsmouth to raise money for the Brain Tumour Charity.

James said: “I want to raise money to help the brain tumour charity, because they helped me with my poorly lumps in my head”.

Joshua said: “I want to help The Brain Tumour Charity because they helped our family by helping my twin brother James.”

James and Joshua were aiming to raise £100 for The Brain Tumour Charity, however due to friends, family and people they don’t know being so generous, they have raised much more.

Their JustGiving page is: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/the-boys-2-6-challenge

Chantelle said: “The coronavirus has obviously put a stop to a lot of our plans for this year. We had hoped to take James and Joshua on holiday to Spain as well as a trip back to James favourite place on earth, Disneyland Paris.

“We hope that we will still have time as a family of four to make these precious memories. For time the being, we are just grateful to be together and safe and continue to make the most of every day.

James’ story continued in January 2019, when during a routine scan, it was found that he had three new tumours in his upper ventricles. His previous tumours were located in posterior fossa area of his brain. Due to these tumours being located in different ventricles, it was decided that surgery was not an option, it could take three or four separate surgeries to remove them.

Carl said: “His consultant decided to have an Omaya Reservoir inserted at the top of James’ head. This permitted chemotherapy to be delivered straight in to James’ brain by daily injections in the hospital. This treatment lasted five months but did its job in stopping the tumours growing to allow radiotherapy to begin.

“We needed to buy time between James’ proton radiotherapy in Florida in 2018, and this dose at City Hospital in Nottingham.

“The five months of chemotherapy and 33 rounds radiotherapy took its toll on James. He was fatigued and exhausted for months afterwards. His first scan after radiotherapy showed the tumours were stable, still there, but importantly hadn’t grown. His second scan showed a reduction in size of the larger tumour, while the other two smaller tumours remained stable.

“Since then, James has built up his strength and his energy has begun to return to normal. We have tried to make as many memories as we possibly can, as we know we are living on borrowed time.”

Sarah Lindsell, CEO of The Brain Tumour Charity, said: “James and Joshua are just two incredible little boys who, through their strength, determination and family, continue to inspire everyone in our community.

“Their love and support for each other is boundless and their story drives us as a charity to accelerate change for everyone affected by a brain tumour diagnosis. We are truly grateful for everything the family do to help us achieve this.

“As so many stepped up to the weekend’s launch of the 2.6 Challenge, James and Joshua are taking on their own challenges to raise funds for everyone affected.

“We are leading the way in fighting brain tumours on all fronts through our work.

“We receive no government funding and rely 100% on voluntary donations, so it’s only through the efforts of people like James and Joshua that we can bring hope to the thousands of people and drive change for everyone diagnosed with a brain tumour every year.”

The Brain Tumour Charity is the UK’s largest dedicated brain tumour charity, committed to fighting brain tumours on all fronts.

They fund pioneering research to increase survival and improve treatment options as well as raising awareness of the symptoms and effects of brain tumours to bring about earlier diagnosis.

The Charity also provides support for everyone affected so that they can live as full a life as possible, with the best quality of life.

Find out more: https://www.thebraintumourcharity.org/

Police were called to Lincoln Road, Holdingham at 2.11 am on Friday morning following a report of loud music and a possible gathering.

A man was arrested and later charged with assault on emergency worker, obstructing / resisting an officer in the execution of duty and contravening coronavirus restrictions.

Two Officers received minor injuries.

Samuel Simpkins, 34, of Meadowfield, Sleaford, will appear at Lincoln Magistrates at a later date.

A 26 year old woman has pleaded guilty to charges of assault emergency workers and criminal damage.

In the early hours of Tuesday 21 April, paramedics and police were called to an address on Main Road, Wrangle.

Jade Ferguson, aged 26, of Main Road, Wrangle was subsequently arrested and charged with assaulting two police officers under the Assaults on Emergency Workers Act and two charges of criminal damage.  One of the criminal damage charges relates to damage caused to an ambulance, the other for damage to a police van.

Jade Ferguson appeared at Lincoln Magistrates Court via video link on Wednesday 22 April, she pleaded guilty to all four offences.  She was sentenced to 22 weeks suspended for a year, fined £120 and £85 court costs.

Chief Inspector James Trafford, Local Policing for Boston, said: “In cases such as these where Police officers and Paramedics, who were trying to help Jade Ferguson, are met with violence and aggression, we will take firm action in seeking charge and remand to the next available Court.  In the current times, more than ever before, behaviour of this nature will not be tolerated”

A family has said thank you to the NHS in Lincolnshire for saving the life of their little girl who is among the youngest in the country to recover from Coronavirus. Agata and Michael Peters from Coningsby are no stranger to hospitals. Their youngest daughter Leah was born prematurely at 32 weeks and five days. They knew before her birth that she has a congenital heart defect, but because of her early arrival she also has chronic lung disease. This has meant that one-year-old Leah has spent a lot of her young life in and out of hospitals, either having operations on her heart or treatment for her lungs. Agata said: “A few weeks ago we noticed that Leah had a bit of a cough, but living in a house with us and her two older sisters Natalie aged four and Emily aged five, we assumed it was a cold or another bug they had brought home and were not overly worried. “Because of Leah’s heart condition we have a nurse come to visit her at home every week. The nurse took her stats and as they were a bit low and combined with the cough she called an ambulance and we were taken to the emergency department at Pilgrim hospital where she was given oxygen and she picked up a bit. “If was only later when we were on the ward that we heard that she had tested positive for Coronavirus. We really were surprised. Because of Leah’s existing conditions we had talked about Coronavirus and feared if she caught it she would really struggle. But she is a little fighter and has surprised us all. She was sent home the day after we received the test results and is doing really well at the moment.” Agata and Michael say they cannot thank the NHS enough for all of the care and support Leah has received during her life and hope that the pandemic does not delay plans for her next heart operation which is due to take place in the summer. Agata added: “All of the NHS staff have been amazing. Even through all of the protective personal equipment (PPE) they have to wear, they have been so sweet and caring. We couldn’t have asked for any more from the team at Boston. Thank you just isn’t enough, it doesn’t describe how grateful we all are.” United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust Deputy Chief Executive, Mark Brassington, said: “Staff across the NHS and social care in Lincolnshire and across the country are going above and beyond, doing everything they can to care for patients like Leah. It really does lift all of our spirits to hear how well she is now doing. “Leah is among more than 130 patients diagnosed with Coronavirus who have already been able to leave our hospitals to continue with their recoveries. “Our message to everyone reading Leah’s story is thank you for supporting the NHS and doing your bit by staying home. It really is making a difference so please keep it up!”

Neighbouring North Kesteven District Council Members is embracing a new way of conducting council business next week, using new powers introduced by Government.  

A month on from the cancellation of all meetings scheduled for March and April at their Sleaford HQ, in order to comply with social distancing requirements and help reduce the spread of the coronavirus, meetings are able to resume – albeit in a very different format. 

The Government has given councils new powers to hold public meetings ‘virtually’, using technology including electronic, digital, virtual locations and telephone conferencing.  

With the technology and understanding now developed to enable this, the first of these will take place for North Kesteven on Thursday, April 23, with a 2pm meeting of Council. 

Council Leader, Cllr Richard Wright said: “As a Council, we are keen to resume council business as quickly as possible.  By embracing this new way of holding meetings we will be able to, as Members still honour our duties and speak on behalf of our constituents.” 

“In this ‘new world’, Members and officers will learn together how to hold virtual meetings, whilst also ensuring residents and the local media can listen-in, and be a part of the process.  

“Participating in remote meetings is very different to holding a physical meeting in person. The team are prepared to face some challenges, and officers will need to further develop some practical solutions to support virtual meetings going forward,” said Cllr Wright. 

To ensure safe and sound decisions are conducted from the outset, the Leader of the Council, Leader of the Opposition and unaligned Councillors (not part of a political group) have all agreed to reduce the number of Members present on these virtual council committees, to aid the management and connectivity of meetings.   

Membership changes are in accordance with political balance requirements and will continue to ensure constituents are represented appropriately.  

In order to accommodate these changes, whilst still remaining inclusive, some meetings, and items of business may need to be moved.  

The first virtual meeting, a Council meeting will take place on Thursday 23 April at 2pm. This can be heard LIVE via our website: www.n-kesteven.gov.uk/Council23April  

The Council plans to run further virtual meetings over the coming weeks, including planning and licensing sub-committees.  Further information on these will be published in due course online at www.n-kesteven.gov.uk  

“A tragic day on the roads of Lincolnshire” – three people have died in three separate collisions.

We are sad to report that three men have died in three separate collisions which we reported yesterday, Thursday 16 April.

A 33-year-old man died at the scene of the collision on the A15 at Dunsby Hollow, near Crawnwell. He was driving a black BMW 3 series car which was in a collision with a white Volvo HGV.

A man, aged 81, died at the scene following a collision at East Heckington. He was driving a grey Ford Kuga which was in collision with a blue HGV.

A man, aged 68, died at the scene of the collision at Deeping Common. The pedal cycle he was riding was in a collision with a drop sided lorry.

The three collisions are not connected in any way. We are investigating the circumstances and the cause of each, all of which will form part of separate investigations.

Superintendent Paul Timmins, Head of Specialist Operations, Lincolnshire Police, said: “This is an extremely sad day and a tragic day on the roads of Lincolnshire. My thoughts are with the family and friends of the three men who have died.

“Our investigations will look into the circumstances of how each collision occurred and until our inquiries are complete I am unable to comment on cause or contributing factors.

“Our roads are quieter at present and I’m sure people will ask if any of these drivers were on essential journeys, watching their speed or other reasons. What is really important at this time is we think of the people who have been personally affected by these tragic collisions today and not make what are unnecessary assumptions.

“Our officers and staff in the Serious Collisions Investigation Unit, will investigate all of the circumstances, they will speak to witnesses and will use evidence from the scene of each collision to establish what has happened in each case.

“I would like to send my personal condolences to the family of those who have died.”

The details of the collisions have been reported separately.

Police would like to hear from anyone who has any information that could assist the inquiry. There are a number of ways you can report:

• By clicking on the email link force.control@lincs.pnn.police.uk – please remember to put the incident number in the subject box. Inc 46 16/4 – Cranwell, Inc 95 16/4 – East Heckington. Inc 125 16/4 Market Deeping
• Via our non-emergency number 101, quoting the incident number. Inc 46 16/4 – Cranwell, Inc 95 16/4 – East Heckington, Inc 125 16/4 Market Deeping
• Through the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or online at crimestoppers-uk.org.

Two serious collisions have been reported within 20 miles of Grantham today

Emergency services were in attendance at a serious RTC on the A17 East Heckington, near to the Jet Garage, reported just before 1015 this morning, Thursday 16 April.

Two vehicles are involved a grey Ford Kuga and a blue HGV which has pigs on board.  Arrangements are in hand to transfer the animals to another vehicle.

The road will remain closed for several hours for investigations to take place. 

Police appeal for anyone who witnessed the collision to contact us on 101, quoting incident 95 of today. 

Earlier, police were called just after 4.45am this morning, to a two vehicle collision on the A15 at Dunsby Hollow, near to Cranwell. 

The vehicles involved are a white Volvo HGV and a black BMW 3 series.  The HGV was travelling towards the Sleaford direction from Lincoln and the BMW was travelling from Sleaford towards Lincoln. 

Policee are appealing for anyone who was travelling on the A15 between Lincoln and Sleaford between 3 am and 4.50 am this morning and has seen either vehicle or has dash cam footage of the A15 between those times to contact us.

They would like to hear from you if you have any information that could assist the inquiry. There are a number of ways you can report:
• By clicking on the email link force.control@lincs.pnn.police.uk – please remember to put the reference Inc 46 16/4 in the subject box.
• Via our non-emergency number 101, quoting reference Inc 46 16/4
• Through the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or online at crimestoppers-uk.org.

Victim feared for her life as ex launched brutal attack in her home

This time of outbreak of COVID-19 can be especially worrying for children. Resources are available to support those who are concerned, such as ‘Kiki the Worry Monster’, a book written by ten-year-old schoolgirl Erin Smith to help children to manage their worries.

Kiki the Worry Monster was written last year in an effort to help children and young people to deal with and openly talk about their feelings and concerns, after Erin was referred to emotional wellbeing service Healthy Minds Lincolnshire.

Erin was referred by her mum, who was concerned over her daughter’s increasing worry over everyday things. The book features tips and advice Erin learned throughout her sessions.

Healthy Minds Lincolnshire is delivered by Lincolnshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust. The service helps children and young people to work through worries and low moods. It offers early help and support to address young people’s emotional wellbeing concerns before serious problems develop.

All Healthy Minds practitioners have a nursing, social work, counselling, teaching or mental health background, working both with children and young people directly, and with their teachers to assess how best to provide support.

While working through her concerns, Erin’s Healthy Minds practitioner Lucy Harte encouraged her to put her creative flare into practice by writing a book.

The storyline includes advice and techniques, as the reader is taken on an illustrated journey with Kiki the Worry Monster, who works through the different types of worries, offering advice on their management.

Lucy said: “Erin is very creative and has written books of her own in the past, so her face lit up when the idea of creating a book during our sessions was suggested to her.

“Watching Erin’s learning process bloom on paper through this book has been immensely rewarding, and I think it’s helped her even further to know that the efforts during her sessions were making a wider impact.

“Erin has since shared her book with her friends at school, offering tips and advice learned during her sessions to help them. It’s a very relevant conversation but one that can be undervalued in people of Erin’s age, so it’s encouraging to see her help her peers become more open about their worries. 

Erin’s mum also commented: “This has massively boosted Erin’s confidence and she even stood up in front of the whole school in assembly to talk about the book and the Lincolnshire Healthy Minds process.

A copy of ‘Kiki the Worry Monster’ is now available to read on the LPFT website by clicking here.

A 29-year-old man has been jailed for assaulting an emergency worker after a Covid-19-related incident, yesterday morning (3 April).

Officers attended an address in Fosdyke following a call at 2.01am and arrested the man on suspicion of breaching the peace.

After being taken to custody, the man is alleged to have told an officer that he had Covid-19 before deliberately breathing in the officer’s face.

Luke Courtney, of Snaith Avenue, Fosdyke, was charged with assaulting an emergency worker, and resisting a constable in execution of their duty.

He appeared at the Virtual Remand Court on Saturday morning where he was given a 3 month prison sentence and £122 court costs.

Police are urging the public to protect the vulnerable and support the NHS this weekend as the predicted hot weather may tempt people out.

Please follow the Government instructions on what you need to do.

Thank you to everyone who is supporting the national effort. We all have a part to play. If you play your part in staying home, you will help us play our part in coming to work and policing the County. 

The coast is closed

Our coastal resorts are closed say Council and Police.

Those considering travelling to the Lincolnshire Coast this Easter, against Government advice, have been told to stay at home instead.

That’s the message from East Lindsey District Council, which has also announced the closure of its main tourism car parks as they ramp up measures to combat the spread of Coronavirus.

The message is echoed by Lincolnshire Police. East Area Commander Chief Supt Chris Davison said, “The Council are asking people to follow the Government instructions and not travel to the coast. We are supporting the message wholeheartedly. We will be friendly, but firm to ensure people only travel when necessary. A frivolous visit to the coast could literally cost lives. It would be a selfish and dangerous thing to do and would fly in the face of the vast majority of people who are taking every step they can to stop the spread of the virus and help protect our NHS. We have a beautiful County and a lovely coast. Save your visit for a better time, when the restrictions are lifted and you can enjoy it properly.”

The East Lincolnshire coast has seen a huge reduction in visitors over recent weeks as the message to stay at home begins to take effect, but with Easter fast approaching the Council has brought in the measures in a further effort to deter visitors. The Council confirmed that the closure of the car parks would remain in place for a number of months.

Councillor Steve Kirk, Portfolio Holder for Coastal Economy at the Council, said: “It seems strange to be asking visitors to stay away and to be introducing measures to deter them from coming, but this is a wholly necessary step. We want to keep those would-be visitors and our residents safe and the best way we can do that is by encouraging people to stay at home. The threat posed by Coronavirus is incredibly high and, and as much as we love people visiting our district, it’s not worth the risk of getting ill and spreading this virus further. So please, follow Government instructions and stay at home and when this situation is resolved, we’ll gladly welcome you back to the Lincolnshire coast.”

The District Council are also calling on local businesses, including accommodation providers and visitor attractions to continue to play their part too, by ensuring they remain closed in-line with the Government closure orders.

Councillor Kirk added: “I’d like to thank businesses for following the guidance so far – we know this is a tough time.”

New health body created as Lincolnshire CCGs merge

CLICK ON PICTURE ABOVE FOR DETAILS

Man punched doctor and tried to choke him in Boston hospital rampage

CLICK ON PICTURE ABOVE FOR DETAILS