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Do you live in Framlingham or nearby and are you interested in helping to create a local radio station?
Radio Castle are looking for volunteers with IT or radio skills to support their broadband station which is based at Framlingham Technology Centre.
Please feel free to visit Radio Castle to discuss any technological ideas or contact Christopher Hudson with any help you may be able to offer the radio station.
The Woodbridge Badminton Club (affiliated to AtLAS) is offering FREE badminton for ladies who want to get “back to badminton”. The free sessions will be held at Farlingaye High School Sports Centre, Woodbridge from 7pm to 10pm on Mondays 12, 19 & 26 March and on Tuesdays 3, 10, 17 & 24 April. For more information contact Glenn Tooke on 07951 443933 or email ladiesb2b@btinternet.com. “Back to Badminton” is supported by Badminton England, Sport England and the National Lottery.
Working over Christmas and reception opening times
If you need to work at the Park 25-27 December or 1-2 January please obtain written permission from your managing director to do so and submit an out-of-hours working form to Reception. The only buildings that will be open over these periods are the flexidesk area in B17 (behind Reception) and Adhara.
Please note Adastral Park emergency number is 643333
Reception openening times over the Christmas period:
Friday 23 December: 07.30 – 14.00
Monday 26 December: Closed
Tuesday 27 December: Closed
Wednesday 28 December: 07.30 – 15.00
Thursday 29 December: 07.30 – 15.00
Friday 30 December: 07.30 – 14.00
Monday 2 January: Closed
Railway shuttle bus
Service for will run up to and including Friday 23 December then resume on Tuesday 3 January.
Restaurant:
21 December: 11:30 – 13:30
22 December: 11:30 – 13:45
23 December: 11:30 – 13:30
Closed 27 December
28 – 30 December: 11:45 – 13:30 (limited menu and no breakfast service)
Normal hours resume on 3 January 2012
Coffee shop:
21 December: 08:15 – 13:30
22 December: 08:15 – 16:00
23 December: 08:15 – 13:30
Closed until 3 January 2012
W H Smith:
Closes 12.00 on Friday 23 December – re-opens Tuesday 3 January 2012
Amigo’s:
21 December: 07:30 – 13:30
22 December: 07:30 – 16:30
23 December: 07:30 – 13:30
Closed 27 December:
28 – 30 December: 08:30-13:30
Normal hours resume on 3 January 2012
Gym:
Closed 24-27 December
28-30 December: 08:00 – 16:00
Closed 31 December – 2 January 2012
For the second year running our Beachwatch event was the largest in Suffolk, if not the whole of the UK. 170 people helped to collect 1,100 Kg (1.1 tonnes) of rubbish when they took part in this national event run by the Marine Conservation Society to clear up local beaches and prevent harm to wildlife.
Some of the local Scouts at Trimley Marsh - 2011
Organised by Andrew Cassy, BT sustainability champion at Adastral Park in Suffolk, and supported by the Ipswich and Felixstowe district scout groups, the event attracted many children, local people & BT volunteers. Over the course of 6 hours they cleared a remote stretch of beach at the Suffolk Wildlife Trust Trimley Nature Reserve.
As the area is so remote, the rubbish is not left by walkers – but is washed ashore. It is just along the coast from Felixstowe, one of the country’s biggest ports. A chartered fishing boat sailor said after the event that “…he was gobsmacked to what [a] difference we had made on the fore shore, it really stood out and was noticeable from the river so well done to all involved we really made a difference “
The beach was adopted by Adastral Park in 2009 and is a 2.5 mile stretch along the estuary, from Fagbury Point (along the Orwell shoreline, adjacent to the Suffolk Wildlife Trust Trimley Marsh nature reserve) to Loompit Lake. The coast is a major feature for Suffolk, attracting many visitors and locals. It is also very sensitive to climate change, erosion and other environmental factors, especially pollution.
Andrew said: “This annual Beachwatch event now forms a key part of Adastral Park’s ongoing social responsibility and community engagement activities – to raise awareness and take action on local environmental issues. It is only through co-ordinated action and engagement with all the organisations who make this possible that we can achieve such a great result.”
Unusual items collected this time included an old necklace box, football cap, plastic skeleton and drain cover.
Andrew concluded: “The scouts really helped to make a huge difference yet again thanks to their support and logistical co-ordination in running the event. Not only does the environment and wildlife benefit, but the individual girls and boys can also earn community and environment badges through taking part. ”
In Suffolk, Beachwatch (and the year-round Adopt-a-Beach scheme) is promoted and co-ordinated by the Suffolk Coast and Heaths Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty team. In conjunction with Suffolk Coastal District Council, they provide volunteers with equipment to make the task easier and help keep them safe in the process. Suffolk Wildlife Trust kindly hosted our event and opened up their visitor centre, with Trimley Estate providing much needed overflow car parking. BT lead the event and provided a minibus and drivers. Adnams brewery provided a drinks voucher for all participants – cheers!
Spanish lessons are starting again at BT Adastral Park on 13 September 2011.
The following lessons will take place:
- BT GCSE Class – Thursday – 11.30 – 12.30
- BT Beginners – Tuesday – 11.30 – 12.30
- Complete Beginners – Tuesday – 12.45 – 13.45
Please contact 01394 383824.
The Adastral Park fire team are taking on a monumental challenge: pulling their fire engine with human strength alone around the Park 25 kilometres in aid of Childline.
The team are proud to announce their first corporate sponsor, TM Services.
If your company would like to sponsor the team get in touch with Andy. You can also sponsor the team through their MyDonate page.
In an interview with CIO magazine, BT Innovate & Design CEO, Clive Selley, talks about BT’s open innovation strategy and the importance of Adastral Park. Read the full interview here.
Since launching the shuttle bus service between Ipswich train station and Adastral Park, BT has helped save 173 tonnes of CO2 and countless taxi journeys – saving the company over £170,000 since launch.
The shuttle bus, operated by Ipswich Buses, has been running for two years and has moved from a small 30-capacity bus to a 70-seater double decker with tables and wifi due to its popularity.
The bus was started by Andrew Cassy, sustainability champion at Adastral Park, so that business travellers could get quickly from the station to BT’s global development and innovation centre – not only saving money but also carbon by reducing the number of cars on the local roads.
Andrew said: “From day one it has proven to be financially viable and shortly after that it was also carbon negative.”
This success has led to the scheme being nominated for the Greenest County awards two years in a row.
The bus is now used by more than 200 people a day. Business travellers can use it for free by showing their train tickets, anyone travelling to Adastral Park can pay just a £1 each way and it’s also available to the general public along Wherstead Road for the normal Ipswich Buses fares.
To celebrate there are two offers available for bus users:
1) a free one week mobile-phone ticket for shuttle use only (valid until Easter, just one per person). Further details and terms and conditions are on the Grassroutes offers page. Andrew Cassy will also be handing out details on the bus this (Monday) morning and in the Hub at lunchtime.
2) a chance to win an iPhone if you register for the mobile ticket service available on all data enabled phones including android and iPhone. Further details and terms and conditions are on the Grassroutes offers page.
For more information on the service, visit the website.
If you have any queries about the Adastral Park travel plan, please email Andrew Cassy, travel plan manager.
For all information on Grass Routes, the Adastral Park travel plan, visit the Grass Routes website.
For more information on the service, visit the website.
If you have any queries about the Adastral Park travel plan, please email Andrew Cassy, travel plan manager.
For all information on Grass Routes, the Adastral Park travel plan, visit the Grass Routes website.
Kesgrave High School has an ambitious plan: to send a balloon into space. The school’s space club want to send a helium balloon up 25 miles to capture images and video from the edge of space.
On their last attempt when they eventually found the balloon the camera was smashed and they couldn’t retrieve the pictures. They need help so people from Adastral Park stepped in to help get the project – called Stratos – off the ground.
John Bayle, from BT, is a IT ambassador and got involved in Project Stratos when he saw a presentation from the space club: “In my role in BT I am a platform director for the engineering workforce management systems, and part of that includes tracking the whereabouts of 20,000 engineers.” So John approached the teacher and offered his help to find the balloon quicker next time. John, along with Phil Lennard, Mike Ashwell and Clare Lawrence (all from BT), linked up with two external companies, Trackaphone and Automated Designs, to put together a hothouse at Adastral Park to help the club find a solution and ideas on how to publicise their efforts in the community.
One of the students commented on the hothouse: “The day was great! The fast paced, high intensity movement of the day gave us an insight into producing something in a professional environment. I’ve found some of the things – such as presenting and developing ideas from set aims – already helping my work at school.”
John concluded: “It was fantastic to run a hothouse where we used BT’s problem solving techniques to help solve a science project. For me the real value was learning that it isn’t just about technology but about involving everyone – teachers, parents, community and other students – who will all benefit from the science project. It was so much more than taking pictures from the edge of space, but the whole journey of how we got there.”
The next stage is for the students – who ranged from ages 11 to 18 – to put together a project plan and a prototype with the aim of launching in July.
