Gemma Fullick-ColgraveStories about a chicken rescued from a bin, a veteran using falconry to help others, and a young woman tackling loneliness were just some of this week’s popular reads.
We have picked five from the past seven days across Hampshire, the Isle of Wight, Dorset, Berkshire and Oxfordshire to keep you up to date.
Army veteran with PTSD saved by falconry
A military veteran with PTSD who also spent time in prison has set up a falconry project for people with mental health struggles.
Darren Horvath from Reading said he wanted to share the “warmth” he gets from the birds with other people.
After serving in the first Gulf War, aged 17, he returned home with PTSD then, after attempting suicide, he was paralysed in his right arm.
He said “life got worse” when he was jailed for setting fire to two parked cars, but now he helps other vulnerable people through his Raptor Project.
Chicken rescued from bin after being left for dead
Gemma Fullick-ColgraveA chicken has been saved after it was found wrapped in a carrier bag and dumped in a public bin.
The bird was discovered by refuse collector Richard Colgrave while on his round in Winchester.
The bird is now starting a new life with a family friend who already keeps chickens.
Hospital shuttle bus returns after fundraising
Daisy Ring BusA free shuttle bus link transporting cancer patients from the Isle of Wight to hospital in Southampton has been restored after a fundraising effort.
Wessex Cancer Support’s Daisy Bus service was withdrawn earlier this year after funding ended.
A community interest company (CIC) on the Isle of Wight has been set up to run a new, rebranded Daisy Ring Bus, with volunteer drivers and support from ferry operator Red Funnel.
Woman sets up group to help tackle loneliness
Alanis Sibley-WareA woman has set up a community for women to make friends after sharing her story of post-university loneliness online.
Alanis Sibley-Ware, from Bournemouth, said The Girl Collective BCP’s first meet-up would be a yoga class, followed by a coffee.
The group for women in their 20s and 30s came about after 30,000 people viewed her TikTok post about the challenge of finding a “social space outside of work”.
She said she struggled with “not being surrounded by people all the time” after living with eight people at university.
Rail line to reopen after 60 years in £120m project
Network RailAn Oxford railway line closed to passengers since 1963 is being reopened.
The Cowley Branch Line is used by freight to and from the BMW Mini Plant, but new stations will be opened in Cowley and Littlemore in south-east Oxford.
The government has pledged £120m, part of a £500m investment in infrastructure to link up Oxford and Cambridge and turn the region into the “European Silicon Valley”.
