In this week's Newbury Weekly News...
Before construction began at the site, the council sold the public land to developer Standard Life for £1 to build the retail unit and car park on the basis that it would receive a slice of the parking revenue.
However, SLI this week said that it has not paid a penny for two years due to the council not transferring the land.
In other news, the head teacher of Robert Sandilands Primary School, Richard Blofeld, has warned that a child could be seriously injured or killed unless a car park adjacent to the school is reopened to parents.
For years, parents have used the car park of The Starting Gate pub as a drop off point. However, Punch Taverns, which owns the pub, has recently put up signs warning that non-pub customers will be fined £50 for parking there.
Also this week, Newbury went flipping mad on Tuesday as the annual Pancake Race graced the Market Place once again.
The NWN entered its own team, along with 13 other local businesses, to compete for three prizes in front of hundreds of spectators who lined the streets.
Don’t forget to pick up a copy of today’s paper to see all the pictures from the event.
Meanwhile, your junk mail is all the colours of the political rainbow and your local MP seems to be popping up everywhere from the pub to the supermarket.
It can only mean one thing – elections are drawing near, and in this week’s Newbury Weekly News we fill in all you need to know on your forthcoming chance to exercise that democratic muscle and put your voice to paper.
In this week’s Hungerford edition, major refurbishment work finally gets underway at John O’Gaunt School.
The cash injection for the modernisation will be a real morale booster, say parents.
In Thatcham this week, signs and fencing restricting access to the Lower Way field has been described as “inflammatory and antagonistic”.
The field, described as a vital asset to the people of Thatcham, has been identified as a preferred site for new housing by West Berkshire Council.
And on the Hampshire pages, a speedwatch scheme in Woolton Hill aims to increase safety for children walking to school and create a 20 MPH zone through the village.
In schools news, West Berkshire got quite the shock in 2013 after it was named the fourth worst area in England for the attainment gap in the district’s schools.
In this week’s education pages the Newbury Weekly News hears from local head teachers and council leaders to see what has been done since then to close the gap.
This story and all of the interviews, news and features in your local schools can be found in our regular education pages on 21-22.
We’re running with our second two-page feature marking one year passing since the district was worst hit by flooding.
This week, we’re focusing on Eastbury and Shaw, and the role that the army played in assisting local residents.
We have then and now photographs and interviews with affected residents telling how the extreme weather is still impacting on their lives now.
More tanks can be seen rumbling across West Berkshire this week as our series of 3d creations continue with the French Renault FT 17 light tank coming off the page.
Using our Newburyi3d app, available from Google Play and the App Store, you can drive and fire the tank wherever you have a copy of the paper.
Our commemorative coverage on the First World War continues with a look at one of the Smith families from Newbury, who lost three of their five sons in the conflict.
As always, there’s also a roundup of the week’s entertainment and sport, and of course this week’s £25 free fuel giveaway.
Plus, you'll find the March edition of our glossy monthly magazine Out&About inside today's paper.
All this, plus more, in the Newbury Weekly News, on sale every Thursday.