⏩ The Gloucester Start: Wednesday July 2nd
Cannabis factory raid | MP's welfare letter | Summer police crackdown
Good morning, welcome to Wednesday’s Start. We’ll get straight into today’s bulletin - here it is.
⛅ Today’s weather: Noticeably cooler with cloud cover until late afternoon.
🚆 Trespassers on the rail lines at Gloucester have forced the cancellation or delay to several services this morning. It’s expected to back to normal by lunchtime. - Gloucestershire Live
🪴 A cannabis factory with 170 plants spread across seven rooms of a Painswick Road property has been raided by police. - Gloucester Neighbourhood Policing Team
🗳️ MPs voted through controversial changes to the welfare system yesterday after a series of concessions were made by the government to avoid the bill being defeated by rebels. Gloucester’s Alex McIntyre (Labour) voted for the changes and explained his reasoning in a letter to constituents. - Alex McIntyre for Gloucester
↪️ In one area of Gloucester - Matson and Robinswood - 15% of working-age people are in receipt of PIP and could be affected in some way. Find out your neighbourhood’s figures with Gloucestershire Live’s interactive tool.
🚨 The summer heat ‘brings out the worst in people’, said Gloucestershire’s Police and Crime Commissioner at the launch of a summer safety initiative to crack down on antisocial behaviour in Gloucester. - BBC Gloucestershire
🏹 Identical twin girls from Gloucester labelled ‘global child prodigies’ for their archery skills have their sights on 2032 Olympic glory. Ava and Amber Snell, 14, have broken more than a dozen national records. - BBC Gloucestershire
🎹 Gloucester Cathedral’s organ is currently playing a ‘sort of hybrid virtual sound’ that’s actually from Hereford Cathedral’s instrument. It’s undergoing a £3million replacement and its 3,600 pipes have been removed. - BBC Gloucestershire
🚔 Police have posted video of the moment they pulled over a disqualified drink driver who had ‘no regard for the law’ to highlight summer road safety. Kennedy Kipchirchir was banned from driving for four years and has to wear an alcohol monitoring tag for 120 days. - Gloucestershire Constabulary
🚌 Kids under 15 can travel free on National Express services to and from Gloucester for the duration of summer. The offer launched yesterday and runs until September 30th. - SoGlos
📌 Community Noticeboard
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📌 Gloucester City AFC is hosting a Big Football Day on Saturday, offering free girls football taster sessions followed by a Women’s Euros Watch Party for England vs France. It’s free throughout from 5.30pm but spots need booking. Details here. - Thanks to subscriber Matt for this submission
📌 The Toffs and Totties Charity Motorbike Ride will be riding around the Gloucestershire country side for 120 miles on Saturday July 5th, starting off at Southgate Street Gloucester at 9am for a 9.45am departure. ‘Please come in your Sunday best and help raise as much money for Scoo-B-Doo as we can.’ More details here and donations can be made here.
📌 Nominations for Gloucestershire Care Providers Association’s Care Awards 2025 are now OPEN and will close at 11.59pm on Sunday August 31st. The GCPA Care Awards are a series of awards recognising excellence in the social care sector in Gloucestershire. They are hosted by GCPA and celebrate individuals and teams who go above and beyond in their roles. There are 17 categories to nominate in. You may nominate as many individuals/teams as you like, but please ensure you give an account of the nominee (up to 500 words) for consideration by judges alongside the informal interview on judging day. Details here. - Thanks to reader Riki for this submission
📅 Things to do
Got an event coming up you want to shout about? Send listings through at least a couple of days in advance if possible, via this form. It’s completely free.
🎨 Creative Welcome Space at City Works | Wednesday, 10am | Free | Details
🖼️ Grange Community Art Group Summer Exhibition at Grange Baptist Church | Wednesday, 10am-4pm | Free | Details
🪴 Gardening for Wellbeing at Gloucester Cathedral | Wednesday, 11.30am | Free | Details
🖍️ Colouring Club at Matson Library | Thursday, 3.30pm-5pm | Free | Details
🖊️ Creative Writing Club at Jolt, King’s Square | Thursday, 6pm-8pm | Donations | Details 👇
🪻 Open Gardens around Kingsholm and Wotton | Saturday, 11am-3pm | Free | Details 👇
Top posts from Tuesday’s Start:
🔥 Flats fire sees people evacuated, injuries, and arson arrests made
🏡 Gloucester ‘urban village’ plans move forward
🏗️ Warm welcome for 30 much-needed homes