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We have recently received two reports of Cats being shot with air guns in Ashmore Park and local residents are now concerned that there maybe someone nearby who is targeting cats.

Last week the Express & Star reported on Smokey, a two-year-old grey and white rescue cat, who was left with a bad infection and is now scared to go outside, after owner Sally Edwards of Gadsby Avenue, Ashmore Park discovered a small hole left by an air gun pellet in her cat’s chest.

She was told by vets at E C Straiton & Partners in Penkridge that the pellet from a .177 air gun could have been lodged in the animal’s chest for up to 10 days, before it fell out, causing the infection.

We have also received an email from a resident in Clanfield Avenue, Ashmore Park whose cat was shot and subsequently died on the 21st June.

RSPCA spokeswoman Judith Haw said: “We urge people to contact the police as soon as possible if they see an animal being hurt. “Unfortunately, there have been a lot of air gun attacks in Wolverhampton. It has been a problem for many years.”

We hope to raise this issue at tonight’s (Tues) PACT meeting which takes place at Ashmore Park Community Centre from 7pm and would like to hear from any other residents that have been affected by such incidents. Perhaps your pet has been injured or perhaps you’ve heard air guns being fired nearby? If so, please email us or call/text us on 07855 409 319.

Image: dan / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Oak Meadow’s rebuild plans have been approved by Wolverhampton’s planning committee.

The new eco- friendly building will be built using natural materials and include a “natural retaliation systems to allow internal temperature control and special insulation will be used to help eliminate heat wastage in the cold weather.”

A new multi-use games area and playground will be included in the redevelopment and the new school will accommodate 420 students.

While this is good news for Oak Meadow these plans come just 3 years since the council closed Danesmore Park Primary due to falling numbers.

The former Danesmore building now stands derelict and a target for anti social behaviour at the top end of the Ashmore Park estate much to the disappointment of former pupils, parents and local residents, despite assurances from Wolverhampton City Council during the consultation period that this would not be allowed to happen.

So do we really need to build a whole new school when a building stands empty and with presumably less funds than are being spent on an entire rebuilding of Oak Meadow, both it and the former Danesmore site could be bought back up to the standard  fit for the purpose of teaching?

Local Historian Ray Fellows is holding a history talk about Wednesfield and the Battle Of Wodensfield at The Vine Inn on Lichfield Rd this Friday.

Ray’s talk marks the 1,100th anniversary of the battle which was reported to have taken place on the 4th and 5th of August in the year 910. The Battle took place where Wednesfield (or Wodensfield as it was then called) now stands and was crucial in helping to forge the unification of England as one Kingdom.

Wednesfield born former Mayor of Wolverhampton, Phil Bateman recently said:

“The first written references to Wednesfield come in the Anglo Saxon chronicles where there is reference to a great battle at Wednesfield in which the Mercians and their allies inflicted a defeat on the Danes which lead to effective end of their power. It has always been an important part of Wednesfield’s traditional history that this great battle was fought here and a reference to it appeared on the Wednesfield Urban District Council’s coat of arms.” (as seen above).

Ray’s talk begins at 7:30pm on Friday 6th August at The Vine Inn on Lichfield Rd and all are welcome.

These links are either news stories we’ve spotted elsewhere or articles that we think our readers may find of interest.

• Metal thieves risk death using chainsaws « Express & Star – Thousands were left without power when wooden poles were sliced through in Bloxwich in “spectacularly dangerous” attacks by vandals trying to steal copper cables and other equipment. Customers in Wednesfield, Essington, and Bloxwich were without power after the 1pm attack. Most customers were back on line by 2pm.

As reported by WV11.co.uk on our Facebook page, early on Saturday morning a  fire took hold in a row of shops on Lichfield Road, Wednesfield.

The fire which began at Silver & Co accountancy, based on the first storey of the shopping complex soon burnt through the ceiling into the Penguin Cafe below.

Cafe Owner Diana Jones told the Express & Star:

“We were in early and could smell something burning but didn’t think anything of it because sometimes they burn things around the back,” said the 67-year-old, who has run the cafe for eight years.

“The ceiling is completely ruined and I am waiting for the insurance to come out to find out the exact amount of damage.

“We have lost three freezers filled with prawns, burgers and bacon though and that is thousands alone.”

Business affected by the fire include Elegant Frames, childrens’ shop Oh Baby and Portland Opticians, as well as several other firms in the block.

Jason Baso, who runs Elegant Frames told the Express & Star:

“We have had to throw away a few things like office chairs that have been smoke-damaged but I can assure all of the customers that all their precious pictures are safe,” he said.

“They were all locked away safely in cupboards and have not been touched at all. You can’t replace memories and a lot of people would be concerned about their pictures, but they are all safe.”

Firefighters from Fallings Park and Walsall were called  just after 7am on Saturday. There have been no reports of anyone being injured in the incident.

Police are now investigating and anyone with information should call Wednesfield Police Station on 0345 113 5000.

Read the full story at the Express & Star: Arson attack forces closure of precinct

This week marks 1 year since we made the first post on WV11.co.uk!

We’ve decided to celebrate by thanking everyone who has contributed to the website; either by sending us news, commenting on articles, supporting us on Facebook and Twitter, emailing us with messages of support or advertising on the site. THANK YOU!!!

Special thanks also go to: Simon Hamilton, Kate Hughes, Irene Dodd, Manjeet Singh, PCSO Matt Bailey, Bryan & Gemma Murphy, the members of WAAN and Sabcat Printing.

The site has come a long way in the past 12 months and whilst we’re only a team of two, we’re really pleased with the response we’ve had from the local community. It’s great when we bump into someone we don’t know and they’ve heard of the site and we hope that WV11.co.uk continues to be a valuable resource to the people of Wednesfield.

We’d love more people to get involved with the website, so if you’d like to contribute or you have any views on what we should be writing about, please email us on info@wv11.co.uk or call/text us on 07855 409 319.

For those of you who are into stats, here’s a run down of figures from our first year…

>> Continue Reading…

These links are either news stories we’ve spotted elsewhere or articles that we think our readers may find of interest.

• Black Country Bugle | News | John Williams — the Wednesfield trap maker of old – The small town of Wednesfield was once world famous for its manufacturer of traps, and this specific aspect of the Black Country’s industrial heritage is still held dear today.
• Black Country Bugle | News | War years in Wednesfield – FORMER Wednesfield wench Sheila Simpson, who nowadays lives a few miles up the road, at Slitting Mill, Rugeley, recalls her growing up years during a turbulent period in our history….