Isle of Wight Observer

4 days ago | iwobserver.co.uk | Mal Butler

Retiring Mountbatten CEO, Nigel Hartley, has hit out at mainland NHS bosses’ decision to withdraw around £1.4million funding for the Island’s only hospice, claiming: “The NHS has always ignored the dying.”The Hampshire & Isle of Wight Integrated Care Board (ICB) has just announced a ‘reallocation of system funding for hospices’. Their devastating decision means Mountbatten will lose £1.4m-a-year in critical funding, with around £600,000 being cut this autumn, without prior warning.

6 days ago | iwobserver.co.uk | Mal Butler

Flags were waved and hundreds of people joined in with some raucous singing of Land of Hope and Glory and Rule Britannia, as the Yarmouth Seasongs and Festival weekend drew to a successful conclusion on Monday. Acts from across the Island, along with mainland performers, joined in over the four days as they entertained the crowds with songs of the sea, sailing ships, fishing and barges.

1 week ago | iwobserver.co.uk | Rufus Pickles

The long-running saga of the troubled floating bridge returned to County Hall this week, with an Isle of Wight councillor demanding action on its replacement. Cllr Karl Love, who represents East Cowes, expressed his frustration during an extraordinary full council meeting on Wednesday, pointing out that it has been 14 months since the council agreed to begin replacing the chain ferry – yet no physical progress has been made.

1 week ago | iwobserver.co.uk | Carole Dennett

A full replacement of the deck on Cement Mills Viaduct is planned for this September, as part of a significant upgrade to the Cowes to Newport cycle track. The work, which will take around seven weeks, involves removing and replacing nearly 100 panels on the bridge, which have reached the end of their life. A spokesman for Island Roads said the new decking will be more durable and widely recyclable, offering a smoother and longer lasting surface for users.

1 week ago | iwobserver.co.uk | Carole Dennett

Cowes Corinthian Yacht Club will now dedicate the final racing weekend of each season to much-loved Paralympic sailor, Andy Cassell, who died in March aged 82. The ‘Andy Cassell Memorial Regatta’ will honour the life and legacy of the Cowes-based sailor, who overcame his disabilities to compete at the highest level of the sport. Andy was born without legs and with deformed hips, but went on to win gold at the Atlanta Paralympics in 1996, and was a survivor of the infamous 1979 Fastnet storm.