FIREFIGHTERS have just attended a two-car road collision in Watergate Way, Gosberton.

Crews from Gosberton and Spalding attended the scene this afternoon and released one male casualty from one of the cars, using hydraulic rescue equipment.

Both vehicles have been made safe - but there are no further details at this stage.

Keep logging back in to www.bostonstandard.co.uk for the latest news.

CHART-topping X Factor winner Matt Cardle is to perform at a concert in Boston.

The singer, who attracted a legion of fans after winning the 2010 X Factor, will perform in May at the ground of Boston Town FC.

Club chairman Mick Vines is organising the concert and said he hoped to attract at least 4,000 people but has the capacity to hold up to 10,000.

“There hasn’t been a music act as big as this here since the glory days of the Gliderdrome,” said Mick. “Matt has a very broad appeal so this is going to be a fantastic family show – and I think Boston deserves it.”

Some of the other big names that topped the list of artists Mick considered for the gig included Peter Andre and Olly Murs – but both were unavailable.

Four local bands will also take to the stage on the day – and possibly another X Factor support act, yet to be confirmed.

Mick said: “If this concert is a success, we will try to make it an annual event and book another artist next year.”

This year’s date has been set for Saturday, May 26, with doors opening at 3.30pm and the concert kicking off at 5pm.

Matt Cardle will perform last and close the show by about 10pm, followed by fireworks.

After winning the seventh series of X Factor he scored a UK Christmas number one with a cover of Biffy Clyro’s Many of Horror.

He kicks off his first UK solo tour next month.

Mr Vines said any profit made from the concert will be invested into the football club.

Along with tickets for the main ground, there are 200 tickets for a VIP area, situated within 15ft of the stage.

l Tickets cost £31.50 each from www.ticketsable.com/mattcardle.

For VIP tickets (£115 each) call 07943 622959.

A BOSTON allotment holder has claimed that a steep increase in rents could force established people off their plots.

Paul Collingwood has been tending two plots at Willoughby Road for more than 10 years, but says that council rent hikes of more than 350 per cent over the next four years may mean he has to give up his plots – and he claims others on the site feel the same way. There will be a 20 per cent premium for people with more than one of the standard 300 square yard plots.

He said he and his fellow plot-keepers feel they are being pushed off the plots they have tended for many years to make way for new people.

Paul said: “They’re trying to force people off.

“I don’t mind paying £68 (the increase for one plot), but why should I pay a premium for having two plots. It’s people on the allotments that have kept them alive by having so many plots.

“A lot of the lads on here are pensioners. They won’t be able to afford this.”

The hike, which is set to come in next year, will mean Paul’s rent will increase from £46 to £160 annually.

He added that years ago plot holders at Willoughby Road were encouraged to take on extra plots as they were not wanted. Now, he claims, many will not be able to afford to keep them on.

However, the council considers that a 300 square yard is sufficient to provide for a family, and anything larger could be used for commercial gain, something Paul claims is not the case.

Jennifer Moore, the authority’s environment and sustainability officer, said: “The council also wanted to increase the number of starter plots and encourage take up from people who would benefit greatly but are not experienced in allotment gardening and finally we do have a duty to deter or reduce the risk of allotments being used as a commercial enterprise.”

She added the overall aim was to create more opportunities for people to take on plots, and reducing plot size was one way to do that.

THE EDINBURGH Woollen Mill Group has bought clothing chain Peacocks – but the future of Boston’s branch of the troubled retailer remains uncertain.

The deal will save 6,000 of the 9,100 Peacocks jobs but it is unclear which of the 611 stores, including the one in Pescod Square, will stay open.

Edinburgh Woollen Mill Group chairman and chief executive Philip Day said: “I am pleased to announce that with immediate effect 338 stores, 57 concessions, three distribution centres and the head office operations belonging to the Peacocks group will come into the EWM Group of companies, saving some 6,000 jobs, including 250 at the Cardiff headquarters.

“We look forward to working with our new colleagues to rebuild the business in what is a very tough economic environment for High Street retailers in the UK.”

Edinburgh Woollen Mill has a store in Market Place, Boston.

Mr Day added: “We do hope that there will be scope to save more jobs and stores from those being forced to close now due to performance issues and overhead pressures.

“As you can imagine, there will be a considerable amount of work to undertake over the next few months to stabilise the situation, turn this business around, get the supply chain moving again and excite the customers with great products.”

The cost of the purchase is undisclosed.

BOSTON MP Mark Simmonds has apologised to the House of Commons for failing to register an interest during debates on the Government’s health reforms.

Mr Simmonds earns £50,000 a year in a 10-hour-a-month role with private healthcare provider Circle Healthcare – a fact shown on MPs’ register of interests.

However Mr Simmonds did not mention the fact – as rules state – when speaking in debates on the Health and Social Care Bill in January and March last year.

He told the Commons on Monday: “It has been brought to my attention that on January 31 and March 16 2011, I inadvertently omitted to draw the House’s attention to my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests relating to strategic advice that I provide to a social enterprise health care provider.

“I would like to take this opportunity both to correct the record and to apologise.”

Mr Simmonds was a shadow health minister but did not get a role in the coalition government.

He recently told The Standard: “The evidence is overwhelming that competition within health services drives up quality of care for patients.”

A FOURTH man accused of the murder of a 28-year-old whose body was found in a Boston waterway was today remanded in custody when he appeared before Lincoln Crown Court.

Oktawiusz Siemieniuk, 31, of The Featherworks, Boston, is charged with the murder of Jan Pawel Stochnialek, whose body was discovered lat month in the South Forty Foot Drain.

No plea was taken at today’s hearing and Siemieniuk was remanded in custody to appear back in court on May 25.

Mr Stochnialek, a father of one who formerly lived in Albert Street, Boston, was found dead in a stretch of the South Forty Foot Drain off Wyberton West Road on Wednesday, January 25.

He had been living in Boston for a number of months and was last seen alive at around 5pm on Christmas Eve.

Three other men charged with the murder were remanded in custody at a hearing earlier this month.

NEW police cells and office space could be built in Sutterton as part of a groundbreaking contract between the force and private firm G4S, The Standard understands.

It has emerged that the development is part of a landmark £200 million contract to outsource much of the county’s back office police work, which was announced at the end of last year.

Lincolnshire Police Authority is tight-lipped about possible sites for a new two-storey police office and 30-cell custody suite, but The Standard understands that the location could be in Sutterton, or another venue between Boston and Spalding.

The force recently trialled closing the cells at Spalding Police Station as a cost-cutting measure, with detainees brought to Boston.

It is thought the location of new police cells could be chosen to help cut travel times for a shared custody arrangement.

A source, who asked not to be named, said: “G4S will do this where it makes commercial sense to them. Part of the contract is that they will do the fetching of detainees.”

Police authority chairman Coun Barry Young said: “Because of commercial sensitivity, we cannot comment until the formal contract with G4S – of which this is only one aspect – has been signed.

“Once a potential site has been identified, a planning application will be made to the relevant district authority. It will be for local planning officers to assess the application to ensure that it complies with national, county and local planning requirements and policies.

“They will also take into account representations made by technical consultees, such as the highways authority and the Environment Agency, and by the general public.”

The outsourcing deal will see G4S take on responsibility for custody, firearms licensing, town enquiry offices, the force control room, central ticket office, IT, human resources, asset management and finance.

More than half of the force’s 980 civilian staff are expected to transfer over to G4S.

LINCOLNSHIRE Police Authority has this morning officially signed a contract with G4S which will see the private security firm take over some of the force’s services for the next ten years.

The contract is estimated to be worth £200 million and is the largest of its kind ever offered by a police authority in this country.

The deal comes as the force looks to address Government cuts of £19.7 million in the next four years.

The police authority had announced G4S as its preferred bidder in December last year and officially signed the deal this morning.

The police authority says ten other authorities are looking at their plans which could open up a £2 billion outsourcing market.

Police Authority Chairman Barry Young said: “We are delighted that G4S will be joining us as a strategic partner.

“G4S shares our values and our ambition to maintain and improve services. It has the skills and the experience to help make a real difference to the way in which Lincolnshire is policed.

“By taking over a range of support functions, G4S will contribute to the Force’s aim of being able to put 97 per cent of its warranted officers in frontline roles by April.

“Crucially, the new strategic partnership will also deliver significant infrastructure investment that will offset the budget reductions called for by the Government.

“I believe we are leading the way. We have demonstrated that it is possible to negotiate a complex agreement in a relatively short period of time that will provide benefits well into the future.”

From April 1 G4S will take on ICT, Support Services, Finance, Assets and Facilities Management, human resources, the ticketing and collisions unit, firearms licensing, crime management bureau, custody, criminal justice unit, force control room, town inquiry offices and the resource management unit.

The contract signed today contains an option for an extension to 15 years.

Kim Challis, Group Managing Director, G4S Government and Outsourcing Services, said: “G4S is excited to be partnering with Lincolnshire Police in delivering this landmark programme, which is the first of its kind in the UK.

“Lincolnshire is leading the way in responding to the challenges of today’s economic environment and this transformation project will mean many of the services provided by the Police will now be delivered externally by specialists who can deliver greater savings and improve efficiency.

“We are particularly delighted to have the opportunity to implement many new innovations, such as our purpose-built ‘Bridewell’ custody suites.

“This new police station will be the first, tangible demonstration of the benefits this partnership will bring to Lincolnshire.

“But others, such as the planned Shared Services Centre, will place Lincolnshire at the heart of Britain’s policing future, generating vital additional income as well as creating new jobs.

“This is an exciting time for Lincolnshire and we are proud to be part of it.”

HIGHWAYS bosses have announced plans to repair a ‘winter damaged’ road next week.

The B1192 Langrick Road will be fully closed between Ash Tree Farm near Coningsby and New York Crossroads from Monday (February 27) to Tuesday, March 6.

Lincolnshire County Council says traffic will officially be diverted via B1192, B1184, B1183, A155, A153 to B1192 and vice versa.

The work is part of a series of repairs, including others to be carried out in Skegness and Horncastle.

Tim Mawson, project manager, said: “It is important that we repair these roads – no road can last forever. Keeping the county’s roads in good condition and safe for motorists to use is of paramount importance.”

Mr Mawson said businesses and residents have been informed of the plans by letter.

BOSTON’S Market Place taxi rank has been moved to a new position.

On Monday, taxi drivers began operating at the new rank, which is opposite the old one, near Serenity hair salon.

Lincolnshire County Council highways said the new rank will be a permanent position, but its new markings will not be in place until the Market Place refurbishment is nearly finished.

The new rank will operate by taxis forming two lines with a single space at the front.

Taxis will enter the front space from alternate lines.

The council seeks co-operation from taxi drivers to ensure this new rank operates efficiently.

l For more information about the new taxi rank contact taxi licensing on 01205 314214.

]]> 1.3544993 Tue, 21 Feb 2012 16:47:32 +0000 http://www.bostonstandard.co.uk/roof_destroyed_in_house_blaze_1_3542771

THE ROOF of a home in Gosberton Risegate has been destroyed in a house fire.

Much of the rest of the house in Siltside was also damaged by smoke and water following the blaze yesterday (Monday). The garage was also badly damaged by smoke during the incident, which was caused by hot metal filings from angle grinding igniting wood shavings.

Fire crews spent about four hours tackling the fire, after they were called out at 3.25pm, with firefighters heading there from Donington, Spalding, Kirton, Billingborough and Holbeach.

Nobody was injured as a result of the fire and there was nobody in the property when fire crews arrived.

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