Weekly round-up: Five stories you may have missed

The changes at California Cross have divided opinion

A story about a pedestrian crossing some say "looks like a playground" was among our most read stories this week in the south.

We have picked five stories from the past seven days in Hampshire, the Isle of Wight, Dorset, Berkshire and Oxfordshire to keep you up to date.

Fly-tipping fine over take-for-free cabinet

Isabelle Pepin was surprised to receive the fine

A woman has been handed a £500 fine for fly-tipping after leaving a cabinet for free collection outside her home.

Isabelle Pepin, from Southbourne in Bournemouth, said she left the piece of furniture out as it "still had some life left in it".

An enforcement officer issued the fine to Ms Pepin on her doorstep after warning her to move the cabinet off the street three weeks earlier.

Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council (BCP) said: "Action on fly-tipping is taken to ensure communities can fully enjoy where they live and have pride in their neighbourhood."

First baby beavers born in Hampshire for 400 years

The kits were born to two beavers who were released in Ewhurst Park in 2023

Beavers have been born in Hampshire for the first time in 400 years.

Two kits were spotted in early July in an enclosure on the Ewhurst Park estate near Basingstoke - making them the first born in the county since they went extinct in Britain in the 16th Century.

Beavers play a key role in ecosystem management and mitigating flood risk.

The park's head of ecology management, Fiona Kenny, said it was "an incredible moment" when she first spotted the baby beavers.

Police officer stole £2.50 to pay off tuck shop debt

The former officer took the money to pay off a £2 tuck shop debt

A former police officer who stole £2.50 to pay off a debt at a station tuck shop would have been sacked had he not quit.

Former PC James Tillcock took loose change from a car he had searched after its owner was arrested in Kidlington, Oxfordshire, on 21 June.

He reported that no items were taken from the car but body worn video that Mr Tillcock recorded while searching it showed him taking the coins.

On being served with misconduct papers on 2 July, he admitted being "very silly" and said he took £2 to pay off the tuck shop debt.

Couple faces separation by sea over dementia care

Mr Sexton could be moved across the Solent to receive care for his dementia

A woman has been told she could soon be separated from her husband by miles of sea so he can receive care for his dementia.

David Sexton, 86, was moved into a care home in Ryde on the Isle of Wight in January.

When his condition worsened, the local authority told his wife, Jenny, he needed a higher level of care - but that there were "no places suitable" on the island.

Mrs Sexton said she was "very upset" and that moving her husband to the mainland would mean she could not visit him.

Pedestrian crossing 'looks like a playground'

Some residents support the new designs, which the council said would make the area safer

The design of a pedestrian crossing painted using a leaf pattern instead of traditional white stripes has been described as "looking like a playground" by some villagers.

Critics of the markings at California Cross junction in Finchampstead, Berkshire, said they could prove confusing and dangerous.

But Wokingham Borough Council said the contrasting design in crossing areas encouraged drivers to slow down and give way.

“Where there were once mini roundabouts and a lot of confusing and unsightly clutter, the junction now features a vibrant display of brightly coloured leaves," the council said.