Barrister Paul loses brave
battle with lung cancer
by David Skentelbery
BARRISTER Paul Marshall, 52, of Appleton, near Warrington has lost a brave 19-month battle with lung cancer.
Irrepressible Paul, head of chambers with a specialist Manchester law firm and a motor racing enthusiast, will make his last journey next Tuesday (Aug 8) when he travels by horse drawn hearse to Warrington’s Walton Lea Crematorium.
Wife Janet – who he married in January last year, only three weeks after learning he was almost certainly dying – said: “Paul would have wanted to go out in style.
“He fought the disease all the way to the end. At times I thought he was invincible.
“He was a one-off – but even he couldn’t beat the cancer in the end.” Paul and Janet, of Appleton, near Warrington, had been engaged for 10 years when he discovered he had lung cancer and could have only 3-6 months to live.
They had originally planned to marry in 1996 but, in Paul’s words, “never got around to it.”
But their registry office wedding last year was certainly different. Paul was resplendent in racing gear and drove his new bride to the reception in his 1970 endurance racing “Gulf” Porsche, attended by a fully liveried service vehicle.
Paul’s children by a previous marriage, Lucy and Piers, and Janet’s daughter Steph and son Ric, were all present at the moving ceremony and followed the couple in Paul’s treasured Bentley convertible.
In the months that followed, Paul underwent a vigorous course of chemotherapy.
He said: “I’ve fought for everything in my life. I fight every day in my work and I’ll fight this.
“The marriage was a romantic way of putting things in order as we both want them.”
A talented pianist and guitarist, he spent much time composing music during his final months.
Janet said: “Paul’s wish was that the funeral should be a Humanist service. Over the last few months, St Rocco’s Hospice in Warrington were wonderful to him and we are asking that friends make donations to the hospice in his memory.”
New head of council
children’s services
by staff reporter
NORMA Cadwallader has been named as the new strategic director for Children’s Services at Warrington Borough Council.
She takes over from Malcolm Roxburgh, who retired last month through ill health.
Mrs Cadwallader was previously acting strategic director, having joined the council when it became a unitary authority in 1998.
Before joining Warrington Mrs Cadwallader was senior advisor and head of children’s Services with Shropshire County Council.
Her responsibilities cover education, child social care and other aspects of council services for young people.
Friends celebrate after
first class honours
by staff reporter
TWO former students at Warrington?s Priestley College are celebrating after hearing they have both landed First Class Honours Degrees.
Friends Erica Callery and Claire Stanley both left Priestley in 2002 with fine sets of qualifications and went onto study at University College London and Durham University respectively.
During her time at Priestley Erica landed A grade A-Levels in German, History and English Literature and a B grade in French. Meanwhile Claire landed three As at A-Level in German, Chemistry, Maths and a B grade in Biology.
Erica (BA Hons German 1st class) is now off to Japan where she will teach English while Claire (MChem Hons 1st class) has opted to continue her studies to PhD level in Chemistry at Imperial College, London.
Both students are originally from Birchwood and attended the local high school and recently returned to their sixth-form College to meet with their former tutors and share the good news.
Erica said: “Studying at Priestley really helped broaden my horizons and inspired me to continue my study of languages.”
Claire added: “My stay at Priestley was rewarding and allowed me to combine my love of both Science and Language related courses.”
Man, 25, attacked
by gang of three
by John Hendon
POLICE at Warrington are hunting three men who attacked a 25-year-old man, leaving him with serious head and leg injuries.
The victim was attacked around 5.30pm near the entrance to Ashfield Gardens, a block of flats at Latchford.
He was knocked to the ground and suffered a fractured leg and cuts to the side of his head which required stitching at hospital.
Police have appealed for witnesses of the attack or anyone who saw the three offenders running away from the scene.
Anyone who can help is asked to call DC Daniels on 01244 613833.
Shopping centre is
“safe, clean and friendly”
by Lesley Wilkinson
CUSTOMERS using a Warrington shopping centre find it safe, clean and the staff friendly, according to an independent survey.
Visitors to the Birchwood Shopping Centre gave it top marks for customer satisfaction.
Researchers from Fripp Sanderman and Partners interviewed 650 customers in May during a trading week.
The centre scored highly in all set criteria, including clean toilets, friendly staff, and safety in the centre. Shoppers also praised the welcoming atmosphere, the centre layout and a lack of litter.
Centre manager Gary Jones said: “We are delighted with the results. Customer satisfaction is extremely important to us and it’s great that our shoppers are pleased with the service we provide.”
Police seek witnesses
of M56 death crash
by staff reporter
POLICE are still seeking witnesses of a crash on the M56 near Warrington last January in which a Lancashire police officer was killed.
Detective Sgt John Thornber, 48, died when the silver MG ZR car he was driving was involved in a collision with a Blue Renault Megane.
Police are particularly anxious to speak to the occupants of a red saloon car seen in the vicinity at the time.
Anyone who can help police is asked to call PC Simon Digg on 0845 458 0000.
Helicopter will target
crime on the railway
by staff reporter
OFFICERS from British Transport Police will be patrolling the skies over Warrington today (Thursday) in a bid to tackle crime on the railway.
BTP officers known as ?air observers? will accompany pilots in a Network Rail helicopter on flights over the town to act as ‘spotters’ specifically to target line of route offences such as stone-throwing, trespassing and vandalism.
The helicopter willalso be patrolling over Liverpool, Wigan, Crewe and North Wales in a bid to spot anyone misusing the railway.
During the operation air observer PC Tony Banks will be in communication with colleagues on the ground directing officers to where incidents are occurring on the railway. The helicopter will be deployed in areas where route crime offences are common and hot spot areas for railway crime in and around these areas.
Superintendent Peter Holden, head of operations for BTP in the North West said: “We are delighted to have this opportunity to work alongside Network Rail and take advantage of all the benefits the helicopter gives us. It is fantastic resource which will assist officers on the ground in targeting areas where historically there have been a number of incidents.
“Intelligence shows that at this time of year there tends to be an increase in offences such as vandalism, trespassing and stone-throwing. The message is clear, the railway is not a place to mess around as all too often officers from British Transport Police are called to incidents where youngsters have been seriously injured or even killed as a result of trespassing on the railway.”
Route crime costs over ?150 million a year. It causes over 775,000 delay minutes, which equals 486 days. There are around 10 fatalities and 200 major injuries a year on the railways.
