Alison Cooney

Sally Gunnell OBE Leads Line-up at East Cambs Business Boost 2018

Key note speaker and Olympic champion Sally Gunnell OBE was joined by over 250 local businesses at East Cambs Business Boost 2018 held at The Hive Leisure Centre in Ely on Friday 23rd November. Business Boost is the District’s largest business to business networking event and is organised by East Cambridgeshire District Council’s (ECDC) Enterprise …

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Mayor opens valuable new service for patients in Cambridge

People in Cambridge, Ely and surrounding villages are now able to attend GP and nurse appointments in the evening and at weekends thanks to a free, new NHS service. The service, which was officially launched by Cambridge City Council Mayor, Cllr Nigel Gawthrope last night (21 November), is run by Cambs GP Network (CGPN) – …

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Mia and George to represent King’s Ely at Houses of Parliament

Two King’s Ely Senior students will get to have their viewpoints heard by prominent Judge, Sir Brian Leveson. Secondary school students across South East Cambridgeshire have been competing in this year’s Inter Schools Parliamentary Debating Competition. The contest, pioneered and organised by local MP Lucy Frazer, is now in its fifth year. Year 10 students …

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King’s Ely crowned Isle of Ely District Cross Country Champions

King’s Ely was delighted to both host and win the Isle of Ely District Cross Country Championships. Students from Ely College, Witchford Village College, Littleport and East Cambs Academy, Cromwell Community College, Neale-Wade Academy and Wisbech Grammar School travelled to King’s Ely to compete in the event on November 15th. King’s Ely came first, Wisbech …

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Record number of visitors attend Ely Cathedral’s Christmas Gift & Food Fair

Ely Cathedral welcomed over 15,000 visitors to its annual Gift & food Fair last week making it record attendance for the seventh year the Fair has been taking place. Due to the event growing in size and popularity an extra day was added this year to accommodate the growth. Many stall holders sold out and …

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Highfield Ely Academy praised as a Good School in a ‘relentless cycle of improvement to achieve the very best’

In its first inspection since receiving a Good rating in 2014, Ofsted has praised Highfield Ely Academy for its clear vision, drive and unwavering determination in a strong and effective safeguarding environment.   The report states: ‘Aspirations for all pupils are high. Staff encourage pupils with their learning and provide well-targeted support. Leaders ensure that …

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Calling all Tree Lovers!

We are a newly opened campsite in Queen Adelaide set in 5 acres of beautiful fen countryside. Our campsite has been carefully laid out to protect the natural habitat of dragonflies, birds, and mammals and make it a haven for all nature lovers. Despite extensive planting in the summer, the hot weather has unfortunately killed …

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King’s Ely through to third round of England Hockey competition

King’s Ely has qualified for the third round of the England Hockey National Schools Tier 1 Competition. King’s Ely’s 1st XI girls played against Wellingborough School in the second round of the fiercely-contested competition on November 8th. The girls qualified for that round after beating Stamford High School 3-0 in the preliminary round last month, …

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Creative Industries Event at Witchford Village College

A group of over sixty Year 8 pupils had an inspiring day on Wednesday when representatives from Creating the Future project visited the College. The aim of the project is to build effective careers education, information, advice and guidance on pathways to the creative industries. This sector is a fast-growing part of the UK economy …

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Ely College students ‘on track’ to be Tomorrow’s Engineers as they design and race electric cars as part of dedicated STEM Day

On Tuesday over 120 Year 7 students at Ely College took part in an Energy Quest interactive STEM Day. The Tomorrow’s Engineers programme allows students to explore careers in engineering, eager to inspire the next generation of Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM) leaders. Organised in partnership with Learn by Design, this hands on energiser …

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Nationally Recognised Ely Country Park Gets New Play and Picnic Area

A nationally-accredited park in Ely has completed work on a new play and picnic area aimed at baby and toddler play. Ely Country Park, which received a Natural England accreditation earlier this year, decided to make the addition to provide an extra place for play as well as supplying further seat and shade provision in …

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You Can Bin It Your Way

East Cambridgeshire District Council and East Cambs Street Scene are supporting an initiative aimed at cleaning and keeping the streets of the district clean. Working alongside the Chewing Gum Action Group, East Cambridgeshire District Council will be delivering the ‘Bin It Your Way’ campaign with the East Cambs Street Scene team clearing chewing gum from …

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Exam Breakfasts from Waitrose at Witchford Village College

Year 11 students at Witchford Village College were given breakfast by Waitrose, Ely prior to their first GCSE mock exam today. Debbie Walker, Head of Community Liaison at Waitrose arrived laden with boxes of food donated by the store. Waitrose have generously backed the College’s initiative and will be supplying healthy breakfasts for the two-week …

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Ely College remembers with hundreds of handmade poppies as the Last Post is sounded

On Friday, Ely College students and staff marked the Armistice Centenary and remembrance weekend with a moving Last Post Ceremony. All 1100 students from Ely College and Bishop Laney Sixth Form gathered together as a community to show their respects for the fallen. They were joined by Mayor Rouse and representatives from the Royal British …

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Ely Cathedral’s Christmas Gift & Food Fair adds an additional day due to demand.

New for 2018: Extra day added, exciting new traders and demonstrations Now in its seventh year this popular event is widely acknowledged as one of East Anglia’s exceptional Christmas experiences. Over 120 bespoke stalls fill the Cathedral’s magnificent Nave, its famous Lady Chapel and a heated marquee in the grounds. In addition to shopping, visitors …

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Author visits inspire budding writers at King’s Ely

Pupils at King’s Ely Acremont and King’s Ely Junior were in their element when two highly regarded authors paid them a visit. King’s Ely Acremont welcomed children’s author and illustrator Chloë Inkpen into school, where she led enthralling workshops and storytelling sessions with the children, and signed copies of her books. Chloë and her father, …

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Bookbuzz free books for Ely College students encourages a passion for reading

This week, as students at Ely College were welcomed back after the half term break, a special assembly hosted by Ms Shaw and the English department saw every Year 7 student get a FREE book. Thanks to the Bookbuzz reading programme run by the UK’s largest reading charity, Book Trust, each student was given the …

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Rainbow Preschool calls out for votes to bag a share of Tesco’s bag fund

Rainbow Preschool in Ely is bidding to bag a massive cash boost from the Tesco Bags of Help initiative. Tesco teamed up with Groundwork to launch its community funding scheme, which sees grants of £4,000, £2,000 and £1,000 raised from carrier bag sales in Tesco stores awarded to local community projects. Three groups in every …

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1094 (City of Ely) Air Cadets install “There but not there” Tommy Silhouettes in St Andrews Church Soham

This morning as part of the 100th anniversary of the Great War armistice, 1094 (City of Ely) Air Cadets installed five of their “There but not there” Tommy Silhouettes in St Andrews Church Soham. Soham’s community groups including all four the town’s schools and the town’s church got together with the Soham branch of the …

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Witchford Village College Students Enjoy Science-based Geneva Trip

A group of Witchford Village College students recently enjoyed a trip to Geneva. They visited the Palais des Nations and learnt about the current activities and history of the United Nations whilst seeing the spectacular assembly rooms. A stop at the History of Science Museum gave students an insight into the evolution of astronomy and …

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Little Thetford Pre-School Flying High After ‘Good’ Ofsted Inspection

Little Thetford Acorns Pre-School is celebrating after being awarded a ‘top level Good’ in its recent Ofsted inspection carried out in September. The pre-school, which is open to all local 2 to 5 year olds and based in the heart of Little Thetford village, was highly praised by Ofsted inspector, Tracey Dawson, for offering families …

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King’s Ely students on top form at British Rowing Senior Championships

King’s Ely rowers enjoyed success at the prestigious British Rowing Senior Championships. Sixth Form students Holly Lancaster and Rebecca Garrett won the Girls’ Under 19 Doubles race at the competition on October 20th. Alex Millard and Will White, also students at King’s Ely Sixth Form, came second in the Boys’ Under 19 Doubles race on …

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King’s Ely raises whopping £23,583 for charities in Uganda

The King’s Ely community has raised more than £23,000 for two charities which support poverty-stricken families in East Africa. Over the last 12 months, students, staff, families and friends of King’s Ely have been taking on a whole host of fundraising initiatives in aid of the Uganda Marathon charity and the Friends of Mengo Hospital …

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Arthur Rank Hospice’s popular Ely Festive 5K has less than 100 places left!

Ely Festive 5k is once again selling out in record time with less than 100 places remaining for festive loving fun runners. The fun run sponsored by Ward Gethin Archer and Price Bailey and organised by Arthur Rank Hospice will take place at an earlier start time of 9am, on Sunday 25 November 2018. The …

Arthur Rank Hospice’s popular Ely Festive 5K has less than 100 places left! Read More »

King’s Ely riders make school history at National Championships

The King’s Ely Equestrian Team made school history at the National Schools Equestrian Association’s (NSEA) National Championships. The three-day event took place at the College Equestrian Centre in Keysoe, Bedfordshire, from October 19th to 22nd and saw riders from some of the UK’s top equestrian schools battling it out in competitive classes. King’s Ely riders …

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Will you dare visit the ‘haunted’ Soham Library on Halloween?

Soham Library will be thrown into almost complete darkness to reveal the secret side of the library for this first ever Haunted House event on Wednesday 31 October from 5.30pm. Young people and everyone looking for a good fright is welcome to this creative, fun and creepy experience. As a way of engaging young volunteers …

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Battle’s Over – Ely Cathedral to lead a day of commemoration

Ely Cathedral is playing its part in an international commemoration marking 100 years since the guns fell silent at the end of World War I. Battle’s Over takes place on November 11th 2018, with events throughout the United Kingdom and several other locations overseas, including New Zealand, Ireland, Australia, Bermuda, France, Belgium, Canada, the United …

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Local Woman Holds Fundraiser to Fund Genetics Test

On Saturday, 17th November, local woman Tia Colcomb will be hosting a fundraising evening full of magic, music, and fun activities. Tia’s Bright Stars evening, taking place at Littleport Village Hall, will raise money for a potentially life-changing genetics test which Tia has been told by doctors will be a crucial part of her ongoing …

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King’s Ely Acremont Nursery staff put their best feet forward for Alzheimer’s Society

Staff at King’s Ely Acremont Nursery have raised almost £1,500 for the Alzheimer’s Society by completing the charity’s Memory Walk in Cambridge. Thousands of people put their best foot forward by taking part in the 7km event on October 14th, including nine members of the team at King’s Ely Acremont Nursery. Despite treacherous rain on …

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1094 Ely Squadron visited the old United States Air Force Base RAF Bentwaters

Here is a report from one of our Cadet Sergeants Luca Chadwick “On Saturday -20th October- a group of cadets from 1094 (Ely) Squadron visited the old United States Air Force Base RAF Bentwaters which is now known as Bentwaters Parks. The base used to be home to the 81st Tactical Fighter Wing, most famous …

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alt-J star and Old Elean Gus returns to King’s Ely to speak at annual lecture

Gus Unger-Hamilton – Old Elean and member of hit band alt-J – returned to King’s Ely to speak at this year’s James Bowman Lecture. Gus is keyboardist in the critically-acclaimed British indie rock band, alt-J. The band was formed in 2007 whilst Gus was reading English at the University of Leeds. Gus started his singing …

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Olympic Athelete Talks Business at East Cambs Event

An Olympic gold medalist is set to headline an event aimed at small and medium East Cambridgeshire businesses this November.  Annual business event, East Cambs Business Boost, which debuted last year, has been created by East Cambridgeshire District Council and Cambridgeshire Chambers of Commerce. The event is set to bring together over 200 local SMEs …

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Be the first to drive over the New Southern Bypass as date is announced

Cambridgeshire County Council has confirmed that Ely’s Southern Bypass will now be open to traffic on October 31st 2018. The long-awaited opening of the £50 million project can’t come soon enough for many drivers who are constantly stuck in traffic trying to get into Ely via the crossings near to the station. While you can …

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‘There But Not There’ Elys ATC Granted Ten Tommy Silhouettes

We just received the most exciting e-mail at 1094 City of Ely Squadron “Remembered and Youth United are pleased to announce that you have been successful in your application for 10 There But Not There Silhouettes, fully funded by The Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust. We look forward to seeing the installations and Remembrance events …

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The East Cambridgeshire Gold Torc has now been on display at Ely Museum for a full year

The East Cambridgeshire Gold Torc has now been on display at Ely Museum for a full year as of the 8th October! In the spring of 2017 we began the task of raising the £220’000 we needed to purchase the torc, and public fundraising beginning that summer. It would not have been possible to acquire this amazing …

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King’s Ely Acremont Nursery taking part in Alzheimer’s Society, Memory Walk.

On Sunday, October 14th members of staff from King’s Ely Acremont Nursery will be taking part in the Alzheimer’s Society, Memory Walk. Together we will be completing a 7k course around the picturesque city of Cambridge. Around 225,000 people develop dementia every year – that’s the equivalent to one person every three minutes. To sponsor …

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Witchford Village College puts students’ Future First

Former students from a Witchford state college are being asked to go back to the classroom to inspire current students to career confidence and academic success. The students past and present from Witchford Village College in Manor Road, Witchford, have joined a programme run by the national education charity Future First which helps state schools and colleges develop ‘old …

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A tough and physical encounter with Wisbech saw the Tigers end up on top.

The opposition started off the stronger side. Consistent possession led to Ely conceding two penalties early on with Wisbech converting both. Ely came back with a penalty of their own and just before the end of the half Charlie Coupland ran a storming line and slipped straight through the opposition defence, danced round three would …

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Higher Youth Tour Cambs launches with fun-filled workshops at King’s Ely

Manchester based indie pop band BrightLine visited King’s Ely to launch the eagerly-anticipated Higher Youth Tour Cambs. The event on October 1st saw the band delivering workshops to students in Years 7 to 13 based on self-esteem from a Christian perspective. The Higher Tour, which is supporting the work of the Message Trust, aims to …

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King’s Ely Junior pupil Syrah completes Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride

A KING’S Ely Junior pupil has raised funds and awareness for good causes by completing the Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride. Syrah Simcock-Stow, 11, and her father, Edward, were among hundreds of people who took part in the quirky, annual fundraising event in Cambridge on September 30th. The Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride is a global motorcycle fundraiser to …

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Lighthouse lights up the Macmillan pot

A huge thank you to everyone who attended our Macmillan coffee morning – those who baked cakes, ate cakes, and supported our two “Brave the Shave” volunteers! Including gift aid we will be sending a whopping £825.65 to Macmillan Cancer Support to help in their valuable work. ☕️🍰☕️🍰☕️🍰☕️🍰☕️🍰☕️🍰☕️🍰☕️

Ely College students showcase their design and technology learning at a key national conference.

Year 8 students from Ely College were invited to showcase their exceptional work at the Design and Technology Association conference in Birmingham on Monday 1st October. The conference aimed to influence government policy on how we train the next generation of British designers and engineers. Enjoying keynote speeches and panel discussions at the event hosted …

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Storm Thorgerson Exhibition at the Babylon Gallery

Arts charity planning a treat for fans of Pink Floyd, Ian Drury, Audio Slave, Biffy Clyro, 10cc, Cranberries, Steve Miller and Muse Ely-based charity Babylon ARTS is planning to stage an impressive exhibition of album art at its riverside gallery in Cambridgeshire later this year. The exhibition will be officially launched on Saturday 17th November …

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World-famous, award-winning family rave phenomenon Big Fish Little Fish returns to the Maltings

For the last 5 years Big Fish Little Fish have put on amazing events at Alexandra Palace, The National Gallery, The V+A, Glastonbury, Bestival, Edinburgh Festival and dozens more venues across the UK and Australia. We will be celebrating 5 amazing years with a sold out event at Fabric. World-famous, award-winning family rave phenomenon Big …

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King’s Ely Acremont pupils have a blast at Ely Fire Station

There were smiles all round when children from King’s Ely Acremont visited Ely Fire Station. Reception pupils took the short walk along Egremont Street to the station, where they were able to get up very close to one of the fire engines. Members of Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue Service were on hand to educate their …

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Another Successful Soham Pumpkin Fair 2018

After a frosty start, the sun soon burned through the mist for a bright Saturday in Soham. Competition entries flooded in throughout the morning as gigantic pumpkins, enormous sunflowers and other various shapes of vegetable arrived at the Recreation Ground. Decorated cakes, floral arrangements, art and poetry were also entered into the indoor competitions showing …

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The Full Monty Supports Prostate Cancer UK this October

The Full Monty will be coming to the Maltings, Ely very shortly.  In support of Prostate Cancer UK, Becky Green, Director stated “we are so excited for this upcoming musical…… it’s funny, upbeat and hosts a catalogue of amazing characters, both male and female.  Being able to support Prostate Cancer UK through this show too, …

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Talented King’s Ely riders qualify for NSEA Championships

King’s Ely’s Equestrian Team was on top form at the National Schools Equestrian Association’s (NSEA) Arena Eventing Qualifiers. Two of King’s Ely’s teams and three of the school’s individual riders qualified for the National Championships at the qualifiers, which were held at Forest Edge Arena in Swaffham, Norfolk. The 90cms team of Adele Shaw, Ellie …

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Pupils sing to their heart’s content at King’s Ely Choral Day

More than 200 children had their voices well and truly heard at King’s Ely’s annual Choral Day. The event, now in its 11th year, saw pupils from eight different local preparatory and primary schools coming together to sing at King’s Ely and Ely Cathedral on September 18th. Activities for the day were led by renowned …

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King’s Ely’s Rebecca selected for Under 18’s National Hockey squad

King’s Ely student Rebecca Daniel has another string to add to her bow of sporting successes. The talented Sixth Form student, 17, represented the Under 18’s National Hockey squad earlier this month and participated in a two-day training camp at the Lilleshall National Sports and Conferencing Centre. Rebecca, who lives near Newmarket, was selected following …

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Ely Netball Club – Cambridge & District Netball League Weekend Results

Ely1 faced opposition MI72 in a Division 2 fixture on Saturday.   Building on a steady start, Ely1 continued to press their opposition in all four quarters, with neither side giving anything away in a tightly contested game, ending in a draw 33-33 and being Ely1’s third consecutive draw.  Ely1 currently sit in fifth place of …

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Ely displayed a solid performance at home against Crusaders.

The Tigers were a different team in the first half compared to last week. The flowing rugby meant they would cross the white wash early on. Ever-present Luke Turner scored a characteristic try after the ball was shipped wide. Joel Scott Paul added another converted try of a similar vein moments later. The opposition kicked …

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Make some noise: Brand new Ely Area Music Centre will help take young musicians to the next level

A new venture for young musicians who want to take their music to greater heights by playing in a proper ensemble is being launched in Ely at the end of September. The Ely Area Music Centre starts on September 29 and will run on Saturday mornings during term time. It is open to school-age students …

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Holst’s The Planets Suite: 100 Years To The Day

Ely Cathedral to host centenary celebration of one of the UK’s best-loved musical works exactly 100 years to the day after the first performance. One hundred years to the day after its first performance, Gustav Holst’s magnificent Planets Suite will ring out in Ely Cathedral, on Saturday 29th September 2018, when Ely Sinfonia takes to …

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