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Mothering, in all its forms

THIS TIME OF year brings the possibility of seeing birds build nests, lay eggs, or lead young ones around, particularly as Spring progresses. Most of us walking through local areas will be familiar with the sight of mother (and father) birds guarding families, and hiding young ones under wings.
It seems fitting, then, that Mother’s Day is celebrated in March, falling on 15 March this year, although many other countries celebrate in May. But the day is not always an easy one, especially for those who have lost a mother or children, cannot have children, or who have difficult family relationships…Read More

Spring Bound

YOUR CAVERSHAM Bridge for March leads with a reflection inspired by Mother’s Day on 15 March this year (above). Several of our articles illustrate the diversity of our community, including a Polish Easter tradition and a cross cultural meeting in a local church (p4), along with some background about the establishment of a Polish community here after World War II (p10).
Making the most of the improving weather, and the chance for some fresh air, link our latest gardening slot from Les Cooper (p10) and an introduction to local rambling group, the Pang Valley Ramblers (p11). The subject of this month’s The Local Scene is the brightly coloured premises of Dancia International in Prospect Street (p9), and Happy Wanderer introduces us to some fascinating local dialect (p7)…Read More

Our Kind Community – Stephen Dellow

STEPHEN IS A highways, drainage and infrastructure engineer by trade, but his work has helped shape Reading in ways many of us experience every day. He has been involved in significant local infrastructure projects, including work linked to the north entrance of Reading Station and the Christchurch Cycle Bridge, as well as wider transport developments across the area. He now works as a civil engineering consultant through his own business, alongside SEGRO (Slough Estates Group) and other clients, bringing deep local knowledge to everything he does…Read More

Join us in shaping Caversham Hall’s future!

CAVERSHAM HALL in St John’s Road has been at the heart of our local community for many years — a place for groups to meet, events to flourish, and friendships to grow. We’re proud to keep it thriving as a charitable community venue, run entirely by volunteers. We’re now looking for new people to join our team of trustees and helpers. Whether you have experience in management, finance, fundraising, maintenance, community engagement — or just enthusiasm for making a difference — we’d love to hear from you.
Being a trustee isn’t a paid role, but it’s a deeply rewarding one. You’ll help shape how the Hall serves our community, support local events and activities, and work alongside a friendly, dedicated team…Read More

Noah’s Pudding

CAVERSHAM METHODIST Church in Gosbrook Road is holding a series of Thursday Night Live services each month in varied styles. In January, this gave the opportunity to share some time with a local group from the Dialogue Society. This is a community organisation working to bring people together across different faiths, cultures, and backgrounds — not to debate or persuade, but to meet, to listen, and to build relationships based on trust and mutual respect. The Dialogue Society is a registered charity, established in 1999, with the aim of advancing social cohesion by connecting communities, empowering people to engage, and contributing to the development of ideas on dialogue and community building…Read More

Blessing the baskets

EASTER IS THE most important event in the Christian calendar with the Rising of our Lord. By dying on the Cross, Christ gave us a new life and hope. We celebrate this around the world with different traditions. One Easter tradition which has made its way from Poland is the Blessing of the Easter Baskets (Swiecenie). The baskets are decorated and filled with painted hard-boiled eggs, ham, Polish smoked sausage, bread, butter, salt and horseradish, and a cake in the shape of a lamb. Although it might sound like a lovely breakfast combination, each ingredient has a special meaning. The ham and sausage represent that we are human and are flesh and blood, as God created us. The Lamb is Christ. Horseradish and salt represent the bitter suffering Christ underwent before his death on the Cross…Read More

For Your Bookshelf

I AM A huge fan of Janice Hallet. I think her books are a great gateway for people who have fallen out of love with reading or are daunted by books with large amounts of unbroken text. Janice always adopts a multi-media approach, so uses text messages, emails, WhatsApp and diary entries to tell her story. The Examiner is no different. We start off as an external examiner sends a message to a message group because he thinks something strange happened on an art course. He is worried someone has died and it has been covered up.
Our children’s book is from bestselling author illustrator, Tom Percival. The Wonder is a poignant picture book that encourages us to take notice of all the wondrous little things which happen to us each day. Daniel is having a terrible day. From the rain tumbling down from the dark, grey skies to the puddles that soak his shoes, Daniel’s convinced nothing will lift his mood. But everything changes when he hears the sweet, delicate sound of music, barely audible beneath the rain…Read More

The end in sight

WE REPORTED IN April last year about the sinkhole which caused the closure of Kidmore Road in January. Now, over a year later, it is still closed. The site investigation work confirmed it was a deep sinkhole, probably tens of thousands of years old, which had filled with loose soil before the area was developed. A burst water main triggered the settlement of the loose material and collapse of the road surface.
The remedy was a technique called compaction grouting, where holes are drilled into the loose material and a special cement mix is injected at various depths to fill the voids and stabilise the loose soil. Before the work could start a lot of site investigation and planning was required, so it was June before the work started in earnest. By the end of September, 87 boreholes were drilled and over 410 tonnes of grout injected…Read more

Happy Wanderer unearths The Reading Dialect

REGULAR READERS will know of my interest in words, pronunciation and dialect. When I moved from the north of England to Reading in 1969 to take up employment, I soon noticed that in the ‘balmy south’ people ‘talked different’. Recently the subject has been buzzing around in my brain because I’ve been busy editing the reminiscences of someone who lived in Reading in the first half of the 20th century, with a view to getting them published. The author includes a long list of ‘Slang, Sayings and Dialect, heard in Reading Town’…Read More

Dancia International Prospect Street

DANCIA INTERNATIONAL, with its distinctive pink façade, opened in Prospect Street fifteen years ago. The owner, Jude Chapman, was having
trouble finding a good supplier of dance wear for her son and daughter (Ellie), who were both keen dancers.
Realizing there was a gap in the market, she decided to set up her own shop. Since then, the business has flourished, with another branch in Crowthorne, and their reputation as expert specialists has ensured a loyal and extensive customer base. They supply hundreds of dance schools, colleges and dance classes for all ages, from professional dancers to young and older amateur enthusiasts…Read More

Some veggie options

RECENTLY I HAVE been typing up my father’s garden diaries written during the Second World War and they make interesting reading. One thing which amazes me is that we are still growing varieties my Dad was growing in 1942. He was planting potatoes such as Epicure, Majestic and Foremost which we can still obtain today. I must admit I am also somewhat loath to give up on favourite things I have been growing for quite a while, for example, the named delphinium plants which have been around for decades…Read More

Reading’s Polish Community

THE POLISH COMMUNITY in Britain was made up of displaced people, not refugees. After the Nazi occupation of Poland in 1939, many Polish men and women were used in the German army or as forced labour. They were taken from their homeland and spread though Nazi-occupied Europe or to the Gulag camps in Siberia by the Russians, who were allied with Germany at the start of the Second World War.
When Germany turned against Russia in 1941, the Poles fought alongside the Red Army. Many thousands were sent out of Russia to go via Iran, Iraq and Palestine to North Africa. There they joined the allies and were taken under the wing of the British government and forces. Most became part of the British 8th Army and some made their way up through Italy, and played a pivotal role in the battle of Monte Cassino…Read More

Walking in Berkshire and Oxfordshire

THE RAMBLERS is a national charity which aims to protect the ability of people to enjoy the sense of freedom and benefits that come from being outdoors on foot. It is an association of people and groups which come together both to enjoy walking and other outdoor pursuits, and to protect and expand the infrastructure and places people can walk.
Pang Valley Ramblers is an inclusive group, mainly walking in West Berkshire, South Oxfordshire, the mid-Thames and Pang valleys, and the Reading area. However, recently the group did venture both to Central London and Winchester for interest walks!
It is a friendly group, open to all who enjoy walking…Read More

Eco Tip – Spring Clear Outs

IT’S THE TIME for spring cleaning and chucking out the broken, obsolete or unwanted stuff, and there are loads of local options for some of it before filling up the bin or making a trip to Smallmead Recycling Centre.

First comes repair. There’s a range of repair cafés in Reading these days, where you can sharpen tools, repair clothes and sort out the mysteries of electronics. Opening times are given on therestartproject.org/groups/reading-repair-cafe. Bicycle repairs take place Saturday-Wednesday at the Bike Hub in King Street (readingbikehub.org.uk), and on Saturdays at the Bicycle Kitchen at Weldale Street (www.readingbicyclekitchen.org). You can buy refurbished second-hand bikes at each venue, and both are happy to receive donations…Read More

Property to Let?

THE FORTHCOMING Renters’ Rights Act has prompted understandable concern among landlords, particularly those operating on a let-only basis. In areas such as Caversham and Reading, where demand for rental homes remains strong, some landlords are asking if increased regulation makes continued investment worthwhile.
In reality, the new legislation does not signal the decline of private renting. Instead, it represents a move towards a more professional, transparent sector — one that supports responsible landlords while offering greater security for tenants. For well-located, well-maintained properties in this area, the fundamentals remain positive…Read More

Rabble Hits The Road

LOCAL PROFESSIONAL theatre company RABBLE is now part way through its 17-venue tour throughout England (with a brief foray into Wales) with Glitch, the play developed with the University of Reading about the Post Office scandal, featuring the story of Berkshire subpostmistress, Pam Stubbs.
Having opened in Scarborough on 6 February – receiving a standing ovation and excellent reviews – during March the company travels to Newcastle before heading back south, stopping at Henley’s Kenton Theatre on March 24. Then on to Plymouth and London prior to the triumphant return to Reading on 7 April, when performances of Glitch can be seen at the Minghella Theatre at the University of Reading up until April 17…Read More

Your interests could be the detail that gets you hired

MOST PEOPLE bury their interests at the bottom of their CV as an afterthought. That’s a missed opportunity to show who you really are. Your interests reveal genuine qualities which employers value. The key is presenting them thoughtfully and honestly. Consider what your interests demonstrate about you. Training for marathons? That’s dedication and mental resilience. Photography or creative writing? You’ve got an eye for detail and a creative mindset. Even gaming can showcase strategic thinking and collaboration skills when you frame it properly.
Be selective about which interests you include on your CV – and where you place them. If an interest directly relates to the role(coding projects for a tech position, for instance), incorporate it into your profile or skills section. If it’s less central but still valuable, a brief ‘Interests’ section at the bottom works well. Choose activities that align with the role or company culture…Read More

The Rest Deficit

FEELING EXHAUSTED despite getting enough sleep? You may be neglecting other, equally important forms of rest. While sleep is an important component of well-being, a multi-faceted approach to rest is key to restoring energy levels and improving our ability to function. We’ve incorrectly combined the concepts of sleep and rest and, in doing so, we may become frustrated to the point it appears ineffective.
While rest sometimes means taking a break from draining activities, it can also be active. Spending time with supportive people, taking a favourite class, or going on a nature walk can all be restful. The key is to identify where we use the most energy, and focus on finding what restores and settles us in those areas…Read More