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May 2021 May 2021
We settled on a bench by the Pilchard Inn to survey the scene. The tide was system, to bring offenders to justice. We will continue to work with those people
already beginning to rise and I soon realized that other swimmers were on the affected to better understand the impact on them and how we can improve our
island, preparing for the race. The barbecue was already being set out and there response. As always, we encourage anyone who has been the victim of rape,
was a general flurry of activity. sexual assault, abuse or harassment to have the confidence to report it to us. We
The time had come for registration as we lined up to be ticked off and have our are here for you.
hand numbered with a marker pen. I was number one so that was easy to
remember! Sally and her fellow organisers were greeting the swimmers in a South Walks House Dorchester
friendly welcoming way. It all seemed so informal.
Dorset Council is considering that
We were soon joined by Scott and his family from Lewes who were holidaying on its headquarters in South Walks
Dartmoor and were down for the day hoping to get a last minute place in the H o u s e , D o r c h e s t e r , b e
race. He was told to come back at 5.30 when he may be allocated a place in
the swim. pe r man e n tl y c los e d an d
transformed for other use, possibly
Time moved on and more and more swimmers joined us. The seawater was now residential. The Dorchester offices
flowing over the sandbar and the last of the competitors were wading out from have been closed since the start
the mainland. of lockdown last year and even
with an easing of restrictions Dorset
I was in the experts’ race which was a little surprising as I have never considered Council has said it will continue to
myself an expert at anything. There were fifty of us experts on the day and there have many of its staff working from
was also an amateur race with a similar number of swimmers. home, at least part-time. The
Most of the swimmers wore wetsuits council has proposed the library
and I felt obliged to join them as I and learning centre, attached to the west end of the building, will remain open,
am much quicker swimming in one. with a new customer access point within it.
The value of a wetsuit is not just that There is little demand in Dorchester for anything like the amount of office
it keeps you relatively warm and accommodation available in South Walks House, either for permanent or shared
your body more efficient, but it also use. In the next few months as business returns to normal we anticipate we will find
adds buoyancy and keeps more and more office space becoming available as it is left by businesses failing
everything including legs to the or deciding to work more remotely.
surface. A decent kick is not
required to maintain a good We are proposing that employees be moved to County Hall, Coalition Park, and
streamlined body position and the plan to invest £2.1m into a range of energy saving measures there. Clearly there
arm stroke is king. The downside is remain considerable savings to be made as a result of the abolition of five District
that for a true open water swimmer, Councils and a full study of all the office accommodation in the whole of Dorset is
you do feel a little like a trussed up now underway
chicken encased in rubber.
The 6 pm start was soon approaching and Scott had his participation in the race Project Gigabit - next steps in
confirmed and it turned out that he was an expert also! connecting the nation to fast,
We were then called to the safety briefing which consisted of a few dos and reliable broadband
don’ts. Apart from obeying the safety crew at all times, there were a few other
instructions like no fins. Now I wonder where that came from. The other no-go We are very pleased to be one of only
territory was not to cut one of the corners of the island by swimming through a six areas in the UK to benefit from the first
rocky inlet. What some people will do to win is beyond me! tranche of the government’s £5bn
Project Gigabit . This will bring ultra-
fast broadband to some of the most

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