Penzance Chamber of Commerce

Help make this Christmas special for needy children

The Helpline Christmas Toy Appeal 2001 was this week launched by Cornish Weekly Newspapers and Pirate FM 102. The emphasis this year is on collecting new and nearly new toys so as to ensure that only the finest quality presents are given out to be unwrapped on Christmas Day by the many needy children in Cornwall.

Over the next few weeks volunteers will be hard at work collecting toys, games and cash donations for distribution to disadvantaged youngsters in the region. A network of collection points for toys and gifts has been set up, and donations will be distributed to needy families with the help of social workers and health visitors. Collection points for Penzance are to be found at Tesco, Safeway and HSBC Bank.

Helpline co-ordinator Eileen Lillicrap says: "The response to the appeal in previous years has been absolutely tremendous and the families who have been helped are all incredibly grateful." "The success of the appeal rests entirely on the generosity of individuals, companies and organisations whose kindness never fails to amaze us."

Christmas in Penzance is saved

A new solution to the long-term problem of funding and organising Christmas lights in Penzance was welcomed this month, as the lighting contract was given to Golowan, the group responsible for organising the annual Golowan Festival. The lights are to be installed in Alverton and Market Jew Street on the evening of 25th November, and volunteers are invited to assist.

The lights will be switched on at 4.30pm on Thursday 29th November, which is also the first day of late Christmas shopping, with many traders staying open until 8.30pm. Between 18th and 23rd December, shoppers will also benefit from free car parking across town.

A competition for the best decorated shop is also being held over the festive period, with prizes to be awarded by the Mayor at the Wharfside Shopping Centre at 6.30pm on Thursday 20th December. The categories to be judged are 'best dressed shop window', 'best decorated pub or restaurant', and 'best multinational company'.

The Force

Star Wars fans will be pleased to hear that 'Jedi Knight' is now listed on the 2001 census as an accepted religion. Shortly before the census last April, an email was circulated in the UK stating that if 10,000 people wrote 'Jedi Knight' on the census form, it would become a "fully recognised and legal religion".

The UK campaign inspired sufficient numbers of people to write 'Jedi' in answer to a question on their religious belief, that it had to be allocated its own code for the census processing team to use. 'Jedi Knight' is now listed alongside Church of England, Roman Catholic, Muslim, Buddhist and Hindu on the list of religions.

Neighbourhood Watch Award

Chamber members Jan and John Garrison have been presented with the Neighbourhood Watch Certificate of Commendation Award. Sir John Evans, Chief Constable of Devon and Cornwall Police, presented the award to them at County Hall on 25th October.

Jan has said that she is thrilled to bits, and John remarked that he is very proud to have received the award. "It is nice to feel that one's efforts are acknowledged," he said.

The hardworking couple are currently in the process of organising a Crime Prevention Day to be held on 22nd November. The event is to be held at Safeway's car park and will introduce a new police vehicle.

Garage extension

The Heliport Garage, based in Eastern Green, have now expanded their business from being just a mechanical garage, and have launched into car sales. They have taken over the premises previously owned by The Green Garage, and now have a large road-facing showroom for quality used vehicles.

Fishing around for a tasty meal?

Captain's Fish Bar in Daniel Place has for many years been delighting Penzance with everyone's favourite meal - traditional British fish and chips. With new owners since the summer, the fish bar continues to please hungry customers with a varied and extended choice of delicious fare. Tom and Lesley took over the Captain's in July, and extend a warm welcome to customers old and new.

Open all year round, Monday to Saturday, for lunch and evening meals, all food at the fish bar is specially cooked to order. You can choose from cod, haddock, plaice and scampi, through to pizza, pies, sausages and southern fried chicken. Vegetarians are also catered for with a menu including vegetable tikka nuggets and Quorn sausages. In addition to the friendly take-away service at the Captain's Fish Bar, you can also have a sit down supper in the restaurant and choose from a full and varied menu.

At the Captain's, the food is so tasty that their many regular customers include the original proprietor, now in his 90s, who established the fish bar in 1959.

Quality is assured at the Captain's, who are members and award winners of the Seafish Industry Authority. In conjunction with the SIA, the fish bar runs regular promotions. Most recently J. Mortimore of Liskeard won £40 of Dixons vouchers, having received a free entry to a competition while dining at the restaurant.

The Captain's Fish Bar is situated 100 yards from the Promenade up Queen Street, just around the corner from The Lugger. Just follow your nose for a satisfying and tasty meal. Tom and Lesley may be contacted on 01736-330333.

PolyClean - West Cornwall's first computerised launderette

The Chamber this month welcomes Penzance's longest serving laundry to our list of members. PolyClean have provided a centre for the care and cleansing of textiles at their current location opposite the train station since the late 1970's. Offering the best self-service launderette facilities in Penzance, PolyClean has ten washing machines, including a 35lb Electrolux which is large enough for duvets, and seven gas-powered dryers.

With trained staff on hand every day to answer questions and to ensure you get the very best from the facilities available, PolyClean offers a quality service. Everything you need is available in the laundry, including vending machines for powder, soap and conditioner, tumble dryer conditioning sheets, strong laundry bags, duvet bags and zip laundry bags. In addition, a wide selection of Dylon products are available such as dyes, stain removal products, sprays and so on.

PolyClean offer a full dry cleaning service, utilising the latest technology to provide a first class clean. They also offer a repairs and alterations service. PolyClean recently introduced a contract laundry facility for the treatment of hotel and guesthouse laundry, including guest laundry. They also offer the ironing of laundered garments, both for contract and public laundry. This cleaning service is tailored to exactly match their customers' requirements, utilising a high technology solution in their newly constructed laundry.

PolyClean is soon to become West Cornwall's first computerised launderette, with a Cyber Cafe being opened on the premises in just a few weeks. Serving tea and coffee, the Cyber Cafe will feature state-of-the-art equipment and software, with an ISDN connection for fast internet access. Customers will be able to surf the web, play games, burn CDs or take advantage of the latest office software while their washing is in the spin - doing the laundry will never be dull again!

PolyClean is conveniently situated on the main entrance road to Penzance, between Flanagan's pub and the Longboat Hotel, and directly opposite Penzance train station. There are three car parking spaces at the front of the shop, and a larger car park nearby. The laundry is just a minute's walk from Penzance bus station.

For further information about PolyClean, visit them online at www.polyclean.co.uk or call Claudio on 01736 364815.

New members this month

The Chamber welcomes three new members this month:

• Vanessa Hersey Silverware of Chapel Street
• Captain's Fish Bar of Queen Street
• PolyClean of East Terrace

Join the Chamber

The Chamber of Commerce represents the interests of local business with the County, District and Town Councils, Government agencies and public bodies. It actively campaigns on issues affecting the business community as well as issues affecting the community as a whole. This requires finances and direct involvement by committed people, and deserves the support of every business in the region.

Our Chairman is coordinator of the West Cornwall Group of Chambers and the Cornwall Business Partnership. He is a member of the Priority Management Group 3, which approves Objective One funding in the area of Learning and Skills development, and also a member of the Penzance Regeneration Steering Group that has been working for the last 18 months on the submission of an Objective One bid to greatly enhance the prosperity of the town and its inhabitants. Other members represent the Chamber on such bodies as the Police Consultative Committee and Tourism Committee.

All businesses have problems from time to time, and it has been proved that representation from a Chamber Officer on behalf of the member concerned can greatly enhance the prospect of a satisfactory conclusion. With major issues, such as the Penzance Regeneration Project, West Cornwall Hospital, Objective One and so on needing input from the business community there has never been a better reason for all businesses to become Chamber members - The greater our membership, the bigger our voice. JOIN NOW!

We invite membership applications from individuals and businesses large or small. For further information, visit the Membership Enquiry or Membership Application pages on this site or our membership site at www.penzancechamber.co.uk.

Contributions to Focus pages

These pages exist to promote the work of our members, and we invite participation from all involved with the Chamber. We are also happy to publish material from anyone else with an interest in the development of Penzance. Please send your articles no later than the first Thursday of the month to feature in the forthcoming issue, or contact the Press Officer, Penzance Chamber of Commerce, 16 Fore Street, Goldsithney, Cornwall TR20 9HD to arrange an interview or Email Press Officer.

Forthcoming Meetings

The next monthly Chamber Meeting will be held on Tuesday, December 4th 2001 at the Queens Hotel, The Promenade, Penzance at 7.30pm.

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PENZANCE - THE PLACE TO BE

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