< Previous2525TH ANNIVERSARY25 years young! We’d like to thank all our readers andadvertisers who have helped us reach this landmark. 25years is not an anniversary many publishing companieslive long enough to celebrate, and it’s our team’sdedication to high standards that has kept the companyat the top of its game for so long.As well as Lincolnshire Today, our company alsopublishes a host of other market-leading titles. Yorkshire& Lincolnshire Business Link provides incisive andinformative comment for companies of all shapes andsizes and Food & Drink International is established as thevoice of this fast-moving industry and is a must read inmany blue-chip companies. That’s in addition to manyour other publications, such as Deliciously Lincolnshire,Flavours of Yorkshire, our International Conference andExhibition guide and, of course, our Wedding Guideswhich you’ll see at many of the county’s wedding fairsand retailers.So, why has the company been so successful? Thephilosophy has always been a simple one – employ onlythe highest quality individuals to enable us to producethe highest quality products, combining the best incontent, design, circulation and customer service.This makes us a great partner to work with as ourpeople want only the best result for clients and weconstantly go the extra mile to ensure advertisersbusinesses prosper to the full. We understand audienceneeds, and have a proven track record of helping todefine a strategy that works for our advertisers. Of course, we celebrate our silver anniversary at atime when the publishing industry is facing newchallenges – but we’re meeting them. The way in whichpeople get their news and information may bechanging, but what won’t change is the importance of atrusted name. That’s why you can now find LincolnshireToday on Twitter at @lincstoday and on Facebook, plusonline at www.lincolnshiretoday.net, where you canaccess our digital editions, even on the move via yourtablet devices or smartphones.We know, though, that many of you still enjoy thepleasures of a printed magazine and we’re continuing toinvest in this via new high quality paper stock and afresh new look to our pages, as you can see from thisissue.But, we’ve never been happy to sit back and getcomplacent, so keep letting us know what you think,and we’ll make sure we publish the magazines you wantto read. SILVERsuccessSteve Fisher, Editor of Lincolnshire Today,marks 25 years at the top10 LINCOLNSHIRETODAY010-011:Layout 1 7/12/12 14:44 Page 125 years young and stillgrowing strongerThings you didn’t knowFirst full colour county magazine in Lincolnshire First in the county to launch an online magazine First to make their online edition available via tablet devices and smartphones First to provide a full event photography service to venues across the county First magazine in the county to provide an online news service to its readers010-011:Layout 1 7/12/12 14:44 Page 212 LINCOLNSHIRETODAYSOCIAL SCENELinda Hawbrook’s annual ballin aid of the HCPT is one ofLincoln’s most popular socialevents, and this was illustratedagain this year as over a hundredguests visited the Bentley Hotel toenjoy fine food, good company, aspectacular auction and livemusic from the Steve Love Band.The HCPT is a national charitythat for over fifty years has takenchildren with disabilities andspecial needs on a holiday toLourdes in the French Pyrenees.The Lincolnshire group aims toensure a dozen children are ableto make the trip every year, andthe money raised from thishugely popular event helps thishappen.Having a ballFORHCPTPHOTOS BY RICHARD PICKSLEYEmma andAdam ByersRichard andJudith ClaireEdward andRachel BusbyThe Clelland family012-013:Layout 1 7/12/12 13:03 Page 1LINCOLNSHIRETODAY13SOCIAL SCENEDavid and JudithHampsonJim and Julie MooringSarah, Sue and Hannah MillerOrganisers Linda andPeter HawbrookCharlotte Vickers andCharlotte StrongLiam Andrews, Dan Hawbrook and Chris FareThis is just a selection of photographs fromthis event…Visit www.lincolnshiretoday.netto viewand purchase copies of the photographsFrom only£5.95deliveredLincolnshireTodayTHE REGION’S FAVOURITE COUNTY MAGAZINE012-013:Layout 1 7/12/12 13:03 Page 2ACTIVE LINCOLNSHIREYou know how it is – after two weeks of making the mostof the festivities and indulging in all that Christmas has tooffer, the first time you step on the scales in January is thetime you once again pledge to finally get more active. Andfor most of us, this pledge lasts as long as the kids’ Christmastoys and is forgotten long before the clocks go forward.Of course partaking in a few crackers and a glass of waterwhile all your dining companions are enjoying fine food anddrink, and opting for a long run instead of relaxing in frontof the TV. But it doesn’t have to be like this, so throughoutthis issue we take a look at the numerous ways in which youcan get active while enjoying yourselves at the same time.Handy tips on how to subtly alter what you eat isaccompanied by a closer look at how educationalestablishments andbusinesses are helping toencourage increasedparticipation in sport.The Olympic andParalympic Games doubtlessinspired plenty of people acrossthe county to get active – localtriumphs like Paralympic rider SophieWells and the women’s hockey team that contained a numberof members from Lincolnshire illustrate that the potential isthere. This can be illustrated in the fact that Lincolnshire SportsPartnership have received over ninety applications for 2013’sLincolnshire Elite Athlete Programme. Only fifty places areavailable on the scheme which distributes £20,000 to supportpotential sporting stars of the future.Rachel Belcher, LEAP Project Officer, says, “We are delightedto have so many athletes apply to be on the programme. Withthe success of the London 2012 Games we hope to help manymore athletes achieve their sporting goals for the future.”Organisations such as the Lincoln Sportsmans’ Club also helpto support new talent. Money raised from their dinners – thelatest of which you can see pictures from on page 49 – goestowards training and support for sporting prodigies. Many ofthose they have supported have gone on to make a splash atnational and international level.Away from the Olympic Games, Lincolnshire can also boaststars in a host of other disciplines. Wikenby pilot Gerald Cooperhas become the first ever Brit to receive a gold medal inKeeping active in Lincolnshiredoesn’t have to be a challengeThe Lincoln JumpCrossEventer’s Challenge isone of many events thatemphasise the county’ssporting heritage, withFiona Hobby and RoyalColours winning the2012 event. PHOTO COURTESY WWW.EMMELLEFF.CO.UKMake asplash in 2013Only fifty places are availableon the scheme whichdistributes £20,000to support potentialsporting stars of thefuture014-015:Layout 1 7/12/12 13:07 Page 1LINCOLNSHIRETODAY15WINTER’S FARM FISHING LAKEOld established 21 acre mixed coarse waterOpen 8am - 8pmDay permits £5 (limited availability)Weekly permits £10 Monthly permits £30Terms & Conditions Apply. Call to book on:01469 540238or 07876 076882Fancy growing your own?Allotments now available in workable 5m x 5m plots for £10 per annumDisabled facilities on siteWinterʼs Farm, Marsh Lane, (off Skitter Road), East Halton, Immingham, North Lincs, DN40 3PXLooking for a hobby?..unlimited aerobatics in the history of aerobatic sport flying.He beat 21 of the best European aerobatic pilots at theEuropean Freestyle Aerobatic Championship in Slovakia andis currently ranked as seventh in the world for competitionaerobatics. Those who saw him at the Wickenby Wings andWheels event last summer will be aware of his spectaculartalents. Meanwhile elsewhere in this issue you can see howBassingham rider Jack Harvey made it as British Formula 3Champion in 2012 – a competition that has a bigreputation for uncovering new talent in the world ofmotorsport.If you’re not so committed to taking up a new sport butstill want to get a bit more active in 2012 there are plentyof options. Meeting up for Zumba or dancing sessions isn’tjust a great way to get fit but also a fabulous socialoccasion. The Lincolnshire Active Community Network aimto bring together local communities with events such as thisand they have recently welcomed three new partners todevelop activities – Blyton Memorial Hall nearGainsborough, The Priory Centre in Lincoln and Budoyafacilities in Lincoln are now all part of the network andwelcoming all those who want to make use of their rooms.The aim of the Network is to ensure that almost everyone inLincolnshire can walk or cycle to a sports facility by the endof the decade.The wide open spaces and community spirit acrossLincolnshire make it a great place to get out and about andget active in 2013. Watch out in the rest of this issue formore inspiring ideas.Lincolnshire’s Olympianslike Georgie Twigg haveinspired people across thecounty to get active in 2013PHOTO COURTESY GB HOCKEY/ADY KERRY014-015:Layout 1 7/12/12 13:07 Page 216 LINCOLNSHIRETODAYCYCLINGTom Dean, his father Nigel and their good friend Andrew‘Shakes’ Stevens are the main core of STaMiNa Cycling,their name being the current members initials in capitals.Other members can’t make it the morning we meet, butthen it is dull, dark and cold. Thankfully the team’s routinemeans you aren’t cold for long, with training in place for aSleaford to Paris trip planned for May.Tom explains, “STaMiNa is simply all about having fun,getting as many people together as possible to go out andhave a ride and keep as fit as we can. Personally I’ve beenriding on and off all my life as have the other guys.However I took it up seriously about a year ago and weformed the clubaround four to fivemonths ago so it’sbecome really intense. Iwas also re-inspired bymy brother’s JohnO’Groats to Land’s Endchallenge earlier in the year.”The club rides road bikes, never goingoff road but cutting across country lanes to avoid traffic,Tom recommends getting a road bike for new riders,“otherwise it might be hard for them to keep up!” The club’s mantra is that anyone can join, regardless ofability or standard and will be welcomed on any trainingsession. They have even just set up a sister group calledStaMiNa for Ladies, for those who don’t want to competewith men, which is a great incentive. Routes are usuallyaround the fifty mile mark, which Tom says usually avoidsriding on main roads for the main part, but involves as manyhills as possible to ensure levels of fitness are improved. The morning we meet them, a twenty mile circuit takingin the village of Heckington is on the cards, with all threeriders pedalling hard against headwinds and cold rain.“All our rides have coffee and cake stops halfway round,but we do ride around three to four times in the week toofor around twenty to thirty miles, although not alwaystogether.”So how is riding on the county’s roads? Tom explains,“Lincolnshire is great for road cycling, with lots of greatquiet roads for us to ride on, getting little to no hassle fromOn theroad againSTaMiNa Cycling is a small but growing club based inSleaford, with a penchant for long distances. We caughtup with them on a cold Saturday morning to witnesstheir intense training for their biggest ride yet“We’re increasingour training everyweekend and we’re alsotrying to raise as muchmoney for charity as wecan, the target is to reach£3,000 by the middle ofFebruary.”Tom DeanTom, Andrew and Nigelgear up for their 20-milesession around the fens.The riders make their waythrough Heckington016-017:Layout 1 7/12/12 13:15 Page 1traffic. Having said that, it is very flat, so there’s no ‘epic’hill climbs and there’s a lack of those great swoopingdescents. However, if you have a bike rack for the car, thePeak District is only an hour and a half away and we alwayslook forward to weekends away. We’ll be over there a lotnext year with the bikes in tow!”Talking of their main challenge, which will take them toParis in early May, Tom says it will be a challenge but thathe and Andrew are looking forward to it, “Two of us areembarking on the tour, leaving on 6th May. Taking ninedays, we’ll travel from Sleaford to Paris and back viaLondon and the Eurostar. We’re increasing our trainingevery weekend and we’re also trying to raise as muchmoney for charity as we can. The target is to reach £3000by the middle of February.”Tom is raising for the children’s charity Variety, a causeclose to his heart as he has previously done a sponsoredhead shave and has even been over to Swaziland in recentyears to install water treatment and pumping facilities.Andrew is raising money for the Breast Cancer Campaign,having had personal experience of family members beingdiagnosed and surviving breast cancer. He wanted to raisemoney to help this cause as they support cancer sufferersas well as treating them. To find out more about STaMiNa Cycling, log on towww.facebook.com/STaMiNaCycling where you can find acontact number for the team. To help out with donations,seek out Tom and Andrew’s charity fundraising pages atwww.doitforcharity.com/astevens andwww.doitforcharity.com/tomdeanTHE MANOF STEELDouble Olympic cycling medallist Bryan Steel was recently inWoodhall Spa to introduce the Sport Makers initiative - a nationalSport England programme, part of the ‘People Places Play’ legacystrategy for the London 2012 Games. The programme hopes tomake it easy for people to make sport happen in the local area, andwe asked Bryan about his role.What does the programme entail?One of the reasons we got the Olympic Games for London wasnot just the Games themselves but also for the legacy and SportMakers is a major part of that. The aim is to recruit 40,000 people inthe UK to go into their communities and develop sport – creatingnew clubs or encouraging activities. In the workshop at WoodhallSpa the aim was to look at the skills people have that they couldmake best use of, share ideas and illustrate the opportunities thatwere available.The Games Makers made a huge impact at the Olympics. Doyou think that’s inspired people?As an Olympic athlete myself, I think the legacy has beenoverlooked at every Games until now. But I think the Games reallyput the Great into Great Britain, along with the other events thissummer like the Jubilee, and we just need more people to carry thatfeeling on. This is a great opportunity to say how proud we are andshow what we can do for our communities – and so we need ourSports Makers to be out there doing that.You enjoyed great success as a cyclist. Who inspired you?I never classed myself as a sporty person but at the Sports Makersevents I talk about the person who got me into cycling – and inmany ways it was a typical Sport Makers approach. He was theowner of the local bike shop and he didn’t care about racing orwinning medals, but every Sunday morning we all met as his shopand went for a ride. That’s the kind of thing Sport Makers aims toencourage.To find out more about the Sport Makers programme, visitwww.sportmakers.co.uk or contact Lizzie Borrill at the LincolnshireSports Partnership on 01522 585580.016-017:Layout 1 7/12/12 13:15 Page 218 LINCOLNSHIRETODAYPROPERTYThe advantages of buying new thesedays are twofold. Not only do you get ablank canvas to work with and make ahome truly your own, but you also havemany options available to you in terms offinance.There exist plenty of Government-backed schemes available for use with anyhome depending on if you meet thecriteria, but the sheer amount of offersthat new homes are harbouring at themoment means this is a more temptingoption for many.Government schemes includeFirst Buy equity loans - where you buyyour home with at least 80% of the costmet by a mortgage and a deposit. Therest is paid for by the government and thehouse builder through an equity loan.Shared ownership schemes - Providedthrough housing associations, you buy ashare of your home (between 25% and75% of the home’s value) and pay rent onthe remaining share.NewBuy - Which lets you buy a newly-built home with a deposit of only 5% ofthe purchase price. To qualify for NewBuy,your new home must be anew build,being sold for the first time or for the firsttime in its current form (eg a new flat thatused to be part of a house) and priced£500,000 or less.It also has to be your main home (youcan’t use NewBuy to buy a second homeor a buy-to-let property), owned fully byyou (you can’t use NewBuy for sharedownership or shared equity purchases)and built by a builder taking part in thescheme.To qualify you must also either be a UKcitizen or someone with the right toNew home sweet homeThese days it’s increasingly hard for young people to make their way onto theproperty ladder, but there are benefits for those willing to buy new.remain indefinitely in the UKYou don’t have to be a first-time buyerand there’s no limit on your level of income.But you can’t use NewBuy with any otherpublicly funded mortgage scheme.There are also bespoke options availablefrom individual home builders too. Onescheme which always goes down wellwith young people in particular is the rentbefore you buy idea. This involves payingjust over the going rate for rent for a newproperty, with around 75% going towardsbuilding up a deposit. These schemes normally run for arounda year before the money is used for adeposit, with no money given back if thepayees choose to move away. This notonly gives you a chance to save a depositwith no additional dip in living expenses,but also offers an easy-out option for thosenot fully sure if they want to commit. 018:Layout 1 7/12/12 12:46 Page 1LincolnSaxilbyBranstonA15A607A15B1188A158A46A46A57To HumberTo Sheffield(M1)To Nottingham (A1)Bridge and HullTo HorncastleBURTONWATERSA57A57A57A46A46A46SATNAVLN1 2GGVisit the Quays Marketing Suite at Burton Waters Marina, LincolnOpen Thursday - Monday 10am - 5pmCall 01522 704705www.beal-homes.co.uk* Standard Beal Homes terms and conditions apply. Standard Part Exchange terms and conditions apply. Part Exchange available on selected plots only. Offer shown cannot be used in conjuction with any other Beal Homes offer or purchase incentive. Prices correct at time of going to print - ask for details. AT BURTON WATERS MARINA, LINCOLN2 bedroom homes from £170,0003 and 4 bedroom waterside homes from £225,000 to £375,000> UNRIVALLED HIGH SPECIFICATION> OPTIONS TO ADD YOUR OWN PERSONAL TOUCHHOME TO SELL? PART EXCHANGE AVAILABLE ON SELECTED PLOTSDISTINCTIVE CONTEMPORARY HOMES IN AN EXCEPTIONAL MARINA SETTINGWe’re open during the Christmas holidaysFriday 28th, Saturday 29th and Sunday 30th December 12 - 4pm5% DISCOUNT*WITH EVERYRESERVATION MADE IN JANUARYOFFER ENDS 31.01.13BRING THIS ADVERT019:Layout 1 7/12/12 12:31 Page 1Next >