THIS WEEK IN 1988:

A large scale public participation exercise is about to be mounted alongside the biggest archaeological dig in Worcester’s history – the £750,000 operation at Bull Entry and Powick Lane.

The Deansway Archaeological Project is expected to last for 12 months ahead of the massive shopping redevelopment of the land. Members of the public will be widely encouraged to visit the excavations which will also act as a temporary tourist attraction. A large cabin building on the Bull Entry site will open next month as a visitor centre with displays on local history and of finds made during the current excavations. There will be free information sheets on the dig and also a small shop offering posters, badges and postcards.

* The new £512,000 St Paul’s Refuge for the Homeless opened its doors to its first clients at Hillborough this week. It contains a dining room, two lounges, kitchens, and rooms to accommodate up to about 50 homeless people.

THIS WEEK IN 1978:

WORCESTER’S new pedestrianised zone in High Street is meeting with a lot of public criticism. People are complaining in particular about the kind of paving being used and about buses and some cars still being allowed to pass through the side of the £20,000 pedestrianised stretch from Bank Street to the front of Littlewoods.

Some councillors fear that pedestrians are more likely to be knocked down by buses or cars because they falsely believe they are safe inside the pedestrianised zone. They want a five mph speed limit introduced to overcome the problem.

* The Cathedral multi-storey car park at Worcester is to become a no-go area for skateboarders.

In line with a nationwide campaign, National Car Parks Ltd is putting up signs saying: “Skate-boarding prohibited to erase the possibility of a tragic accident.”

THIS WEEK IN 1968:

POWICK Hospital will eventually have to be abandoned or replaced, but in the meantime every effort is being made to improve it, says Health Minister Kenneth Robinson. He emphasises this in a ministerial statement to Sir Gerald Nabarro, MP for South Worcestershire, who asked the Minister to investigate fully what was reported about Powick Hospital in the recent Granada TV programme, World in Action.

The documentary showed shock scenes in Ward F13 where 78 elderly people are crammed into an annexe without any privacy. Mr Robinson said: “Neither I nor the hospital authority regard the conditions in the ward as satisfactory but improvements are now almost complete.”

* The round shouldered appearance of current teenage idols may be one of the reasons for the poor posture of many youngsters in Worcestershire, suggests county medical officer, Dr JW Pickup in his annual school health report.

THIS WEEK IN 1958:

A CONGREGATION of more than 2,000 attended Sunday’s service at Worcester Cathedral to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Territorial Army. Afterwards the salute was taken by the Lord Lieutenant of Worcestershire, Admiral Sir William Tennant from a dais outside the Cathedral. The lengthy march past included the Band of the Worcestershire Regiment and contingents of the county’s Territorial Army units – the 7th Battalion of the Worcestershire Regiment (TA), the 267th Heavy Regiment RA (TA) and the 442 Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment RA (TA).

* A pre-Roman ancient British silver coin, thought to date from 75BC, has been unearthed locally by Henry Sandon, lay clerk of Worcester Cathedral and a keen archaeologist.

* The Royal Worcester Porcelain Group reports a loss of £58,803 for the past financial year compared with a profit of £65,025 for the previous 12 months. A slump in sales at home and abroad is partley blamed.