Latest news with #Hinckley
The Guardian
28-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
I did a road journey in England avoiding motorways – and discovered a whole new country
I learned a lot driving to Hinckley in Leicestershire. I had some work there. That's showbiz, folks. I didn't do the journey as I'd normally do it – eyeballs out, gripping the steering wheel, fixating on the satnav ETA, on some motorway or other. If I'd done it that way, it would have taken less than two hours. For a change, I decided to take my time. And this change was as good as a rest. You're unlikely to find London to Hinckley in any coffee table book about the World's Best Road Trips, but this little odyssey lifted my spirits no end. It helped that I was on my motorbike. Wherever I'm going, I find motorcycling the shortest route to serenity. I think it's partly an ADHD thing, with the relief that total absorption affords me. On a motorbike you have to be absorbed – hyper-focused, in fact – because your life is on the line. And while there's road noise in your ears, there's none of the other brain-wrecking cacophony of modern life. No phone, no internet, no news, no radio, no nothing. In its own way, it's as peaceful as lying in a meadow by a babbling brook miles from anywhere. There's another magical aspect to it, which I can only really explain by quoting a guy I once interviewed called Ara Gureghian, who, with his rescue dog Spirit alongside him in a sidecar, had covered around 300,000 miles riding around the US for nearly 10 years. I asked Ara, what with the dog and all, if it mightn't have been easier to do it in a car. 'The difference between riding a motorbike and driving a car,' he said, 'is like the difference between sailing and using a speedboat.' That's not a perfect analogy, but I've never come up with anything better. So there I was, sailing along the A41 bearing north-west towards Aylesbury, passing Berkhamsted, Cow Roast, Aston Clinton. Wasn't Berkhamsted something to do with Graham Greene? What on earth went on in Cow Roast? Surely Aston Clinton is a bloke, not a place? These questions asked themselves, but there was no Googling for me, and on I went. Aylesbury materialised, but the Through Traffic signage was so insistent I took the hint and swerved the middle of town. Where now then? I spied a sign to Buckingham. That would do nicely. Weedon, Hardwick and Oving showed themselves. I was thoroughly enjoying the A413. The mere place names provided some enchantment. It felt a mite shaming, even rather rude, not to have seen or heard of any of these places before. I took a break in Winslow, somewhere else I had never heard of, which looked to me like a pitch-perfect little English town. How many more of these places were there around the country that I'd never heard of and would probably never see? It panicked me a bit. I parked in the town square and asked the lad in the shop if there was a cafe anywhere. 'Oh yes,' he said. 'There's a great cafe a couple of minutes' walk away.' He was right. It was called Legends. Here, an extravagantly tattooed and exuberantly friendly bloke made me a cup of tea and a sandwich. I'd have been perfectly happy, if I'd been able to stop thinking about how many places like this I'd been missing out on. I looked at the map, and saw my route was working the space between the M40 and the M1. I dread to think how many hours I've spent on those roads in my time, so close to all this, yet missing it completely. That's the trouble with motorways – since the first one, the Preston Bypass in 1958, they've been doing what they were invented to do. They've been allowing us to bypass everything. Which is great, and necessary, and how it must be. But the more bypassing we do, the more our world passes us by. I don't think trains are much better in this regard: they too take you past everything. Last weekend a friend was initially dismayed to find she had to take a rail replacement bus from Rugby to Rugeley Trent Valley, but was soon loving seeing the middle of towns and cities she'd hitherto only barely glimpsed out of train windows We all have an idea of what our country and our compatriots are like, but what are we basing this on when even those of us who travel a lot are seeing so little of it? Here's a sense in which I think we might well be an island of strangers. On to Buckingham and then Towcester. En route, Maids Moreton, Akeley, Lillingstone Lovell, Whittlebury: to you, I say sorry to have left it this long to make your – albeit fleeting – acquaintance. I decided I'd call this thing I was doing mindful motoring. And I busied my mind formulating some guidance as to how it should be done. Bike is best, but car is fine too. Just give yourself time. It won't work at all if you're on a clock. Optimally, don't have the car radio on, and, most importantly, don't use satnav. This makes a world of difference. If I have my satnav on, my attention's drawn to the data on it rather than what's all around me. It helps to plan ahead a little, pick a road number or two and just stick to them. The more route anxiety you spare yourself, the more headspace you free up. Here, for example, I knew I could get on the A5 at Towcester, which, deliciously, took me all the way to Hinckley. Towcester, by the way, looks a smashing town. And what a magnificent entrance it is to the racecourse. I'll be back. But not before I've chalked off some other mindful, alternative routes. I'm thinking Birmingham to Manchester on the A515 via Ashbourne and Buxton. And all the way from Oxford to Aberystwyth on the A44 via too many new places to mention. Adrian Chiles is a broadcaster, writer and Guardian columnist
BBC News
27-05-2025
- BBC News
Four new bus routes to launch in Leicestershire this summer
Four new bus routes will start operating in Leicestershire this Arriva has said four routes will begin in June and July on behalf of Leicestershire County 2 June, the LC14 from Hinckley to Fosse Park and LC16 from Ashby-de-la-Zouch to Loughborough, via Shepshed, will run from Monday to from 14 July, the LC12 weekday service from Witherley to Measham, via Market Bosworth, and the Monday to Saturday LC15 route from Coalville to Leicester, via Markfield and Anstey, will launch.
Daily Mail
25-05-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
Mother-of-two took a risk and poured her £100,000 divorce settlement into a new adventure... now she runs a £3MILLION business
In 2019, Alexandra Fidoe divorced her husband and was left with no home, two children under the age of 10 and a £100,000 settlement. Instead of returning to her corporate marketing job and buying a house - the 'safe' option - Ms Fidoe made the bold decision to invest her money into flipping a property. Her interest in developing homes began the previous year after leaving her corporate marketing job to spend more time with her children. She spotted a property in Hinckley, Leicestershir,e and thought it would be a good investment opportunity for her parents, so she helped them buy the house off-market with cash. 'One reason we bought that first house was because of the house next door. That was a two-up, two-down which was owned by the council, and the lady who lived there had been sectioned,' she explained to The Telegraph. The three-bedroom 1930s semi-detached house, had previously belonged to a hoarder and came with some complications - the work was delayed by six months while they were waiting for building work to start. But thanks to Ms Fidoe's eye for properties the house was sold for over-the-asking price, making her parents £40,000 profit. Unfortunately, while she was working on the house her relationship with her husband ended. At the time she was offered a job with Weetabix, which provided a stable income, pension and company car. However, she decided to take a risk using money from the sale of the house she bought with her ex-husband to enter the world of project development. 'This was a turning point,' Ms Fidoe said. 'If I took this job, I'd have to get a nanny – and I liked the flexibility and freedom the project management work gave me. I could do the school run and balance being a mum without the guilt.' She started off by renting a Grade II-listed farmhouse, agreeing to pay £1,000 a month to live there while also helping to manage the property's renovations. Despite the landlord previously saying he would up the rent once the work was done, he never did and allowed her to live there for as long as she wanted. Ms Fidoe then decided to invest in a house in Hinckley - the area she grew up in - looking for the worst house on the best street. She bought a bungalow, which she worked on for three months, before selling it for a profit of £60,000. From the flip she was able to pay herself a salary and invest in her next project. Nowadays, she has diversified, using a combination of cash and buy-to-let mortgages to buy and do up two flats, which she's renting out. But she estimates the turnover from her property flips comes to around £3million and after she completes her latest projects will have a portfolio worth £550,000. She said: 'It was a gamble, and I wasn't always confident it was the right decision… There are times when I feel like "Oh my god, I can't believe I'm doing this?"' She now believes her divorce helped her revaluate her life and enter the mindset of property development. Ms Fidoe also documents her progress on Instagram via @alex_fidoe_property.
BBC News
19-05-2025
- Health
- BBC News
NHS urged to retain Victorian frontage at new centre in Hinckley
NHS health bosses have been urged to preserve the historic frontage of a Hinckley hospital in its proposal for a new £10.5m medical NHS Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland Integrated Care Board plans to build the day case unit on the existing Hinckley and District Hospital, in Mount leader of Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council has now written a letter to the board expressing his "deep disappointment" the Victorian frontage will be demolished as part of the board said it was unable to retain the frontage due to clinical requirements of the development but planned to include some materials from the current building. The new facility is designed to deliver services including gynaecology, urology and plastic surgery and will be linked to the new community diagnostic centre at the site. A planning application to demolish the entire hospital was submitted to the borough council earlier this his letter, council leader Stuart Bray said he "warmly" welcomed improved NHS facilities in the town following decades of campaigning but urged the board to "look at the plans again" and offered to hold wrote: "Having now seen the plans for the new day care centre, I want to express my deep disappointment that they include the demolition of the Victorian cottage hospital which has stood on Mount Road for centuries and is part of my hometown's heritage."I cannot believe it is not possible to retain the older parts of the frontage of the hospital and develop the new modern facilities that residents deserve, behind the Victorian facade."Many people have contacted me to express concerns over your plan. I know these concerns will not be new to you as I believe such concerns were raised as part of the public consultation." 'Benefits outweigh concerns' In a statement the board said: "The option of retaining the Victorian frontage of the hospital unfortunately would have meant that the business care objectives and clinical requirements for the development of the new facilities would not be met."The proposed materials do include reclaimed bricks from the current building and we consider that the heritage impact of the scheme will be outweighed by the benefits to the public. "We are also working with a local historian on plans to display images inside and outside of the new building, charting its long history."A public consultation period is under way on the council's website and will run until 13 June.
Yahoo
16-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Plans submitted to create £10.5m medical unit
Plans have been submitted to create a new medical facility in Hinckley. The £10.5m day case unit would be built on the existing Hinckley and District Hospital site and deliver services including gynaecology, urology and plastic surgery. The facility is proposed to be linked to the new community diagnostic centre on the Mount Road site. "This is another major step forward in the development of a day case unit for Hinckley and great news for local people," said Jo Clinton, head of strategy and planning at the Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland Integrated Care Board. "We hosted a successful engagement event in Hinckley earlier this year, from which it was apparent that a strong majority of people really welcomed our proposals, recognising the need for a modern, fit-for-purpose day case unit which would allow care to be delivered closer to home," she added. A formal consultation period is now under way on Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council's website and will run until 13 June. This will allow members of the public and other interested parties the opportunity to comment on the application. "I'd like to encourage people to provide their feedback so that they have an opportunity to comment on the planning application and help the council make an informed decision on the application," said Ms Clinton. Follow BBC Leicester on Facebook, on X, or on Instagram. Send your story ideas to eastmidsnews@ or via WhatsApp on 0808 100 2210. Preparation work to begin for new hospital unit Go-ahead for multi-million pound diagnostic centre
