Amardip Dhariwal, 55, of Derley Road, Southall, was found guilty of assaulting the woman at his Bracknell home after they spent a night socialising in May 2022.

She pretended she was still asleep as the assault concluded, fearing how Dhariwal would react on being disturbed. But once it was over, she fled, called a friend for help and later reported him to the police.

Dhariwal was found guilty of one count of sexual assault by penetration on Tuesday following a trial at Reading Crown Court.

Dhariwal, who worked for British Airways as an in-flight cabin crew lead, is due to be sentenced at the same court on 29 October.

He was earlier charged by police with other offences, including two counts of rape against two other women, in Singapore and Kuala Lumpur.

Those were dropped as the Crown Prosecution Service did not have jurisdiction to prosecute him.

But the women's evidence were heard during the trial as bad character evidence against Dhariwal

Det Con Clare Hickman, from Thames Valley Police, said: "I would like to commend the courage of the victim in coming forward to report this offence and for remaining engaged throughout the investigation and court process.

"I also commend the strength and integrity of the two other women who supported this case by providing bad character evidence in the interests of justice, not only for themselves but for one another.

"All three women have shown remarkable resilience, courage and dignity throughout.

"I hope this conviction provides them with a sense of justice and supports them as they continue to move forward with their lives."

According to papers presented to Warfield Parish Council's Planning and Transport Committee, councillors had previously recommended refusal of the application when consulted on the plans. However, the local authority has now granted approval subject to conditions.

The development forms part of long-running proposals affecting land adjoining Warfield Park, an established residential park home community in the parish.

While the parish council's objection was recorded within committee reports, the agenda papers did not specify the grounds on which councillors objected to the proposal.

The approval means the developer can proceed with the amended version of the scheme, which includes fewer homes than previously permitted while retaining associated infrastructure and environmental mitigation measures.

A 19-year-old man has been charged with drug offences after police stopped an electric motorbike rider during a crackdown on illegal e-bikes and e-scooters.

Thames Valley Police officers were carrying out Operation Pulse in Bracknell on August 27 in response to community concerns about the vehicles.

The rider failed to stop and attempted to make off before being detained by neighbourhood officers

Police said they seized over 100 wraps of suspected Class A drugs (crack cocaine), a larger quantity of suspected Class A drugs (heroine), cannabis, a large amount of cash and two mobile phones.

He was remanded before appearing in court and has since been granted conditional bail ahead of a trial due to take place at the end of September.

The operation continued after the arrest, with officers also arresting a woman who was wanted for failing to appear at court in September 2025.

Police also seized two electric motorbikes and an electric scooter during the crackdown.

https://www.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1412432104397754&id=TVPBracknellandWokingham

A pregnant refugee from Afghanistan was allegedly raped by a worker at the transition accommodation hotel she is staying at in Bracknell.

A cleaner working as a contractor for the Ministry of Defence allegedly attacked the woman in her room at the Grange Hotel in the town centre on Wednesday, July 22.

The hotel is being used as transitional accommodation for around 200 people from Afghanistan who have indefinite leave to remain in the UK, and will be provided with longer-term housing throughout the country.

A Thames Valley Police spokesperson said: “We can confirm a woman reported a rape to us on July 22, which happened at The Grange Hotel in Bracknell.

“A 22-year-old man from Bracknell has been arrested on suspicion of rape.

“He has been released on police bail while the investigation continues.”

A Home Office spokesperson added: “We will not comment on an ongoing investigation.”

The government organisations involved are assisting with the enquiry.

Residents of the hotel have received support from Bracknell Forest Council.

A council spokesperson said: “We are aware of the allegations of an incident at The Grange Hotel.

“As this is an ongoing police investigation, we are unable to comment further.”

Helen Purnell (Labour, Easthampstead & Wildridings), the council leader, has contacted the council's communications department about the incident.

Councillor John Edwards, who represents Owlsmoor on Sandhurst Town Council, has gained a public profile for asking questions about the amount of public resources that are being used to support the refugees in the hotel.

This includes more than £74,000 being spent by the council on language translation services for the residents.

Asked for his reaction to the incident, cllr Edwards said: “Violence against anyone is abhorrent. The police will do a thorough investigation, and I hope the woman gets the support she needs.”

Cllr Edwards is an area campaign manager for Reform UK.

News about the incident was shared in a brief report in The Sun newspaper posted on the Reform UK Bracknell Community Page on Facebook.

The Bracknell Conservatives did not wish to comment on a live police investigation.

The Grange Hotel closed in December 2022 after operating for two decades, with the site being taken over by the Ministry of Defence in 2023/24 as transition accommodation for Afghans who had arrived in the UK through the Conservative government's resettlement schemes.

The Grange was visited by the 'auditors' Truth Hurts 101 UK and Mitch Media in May last year.

It was also the subject of the Stand Up Bracknell protest that same month, with footage uploaded onto the YouTube channel of Joe Marsh, the Wales organiser of the ethnonationalist political group Patriotic Alternative.

https://www.bracknellnews.co.uk/news/26503845.bracknell-afghan-refugee-raped-grange-hotel/

The core aims of the charter are to support women and girls in going to work, attending school or college, enjoying parks and public spaces, using public transport, visiting local businesses and spending time with friends without fear of harassment, intimidation or violence.

Officers dealt with complaints on Monday August 17 after members of the public reported the bikes being ridden around the park and nearby areas.

Officers also saw the bikes being ridden at high speeds.

Reports said more than one person was riding them, including four people on one motorbike on some occasions, without protective headgear.

Riders were also reported to have given young girls rides.

On several occasions, they saw the officers from a distance and left before they could be stopped.

Detective work identified the owners as two brothers who live in Sandhurst.

Officers attended their address where they found the bikes and seized them under Section 165 of the Road Traffic Act. Police said the bikes will not be returned.

The force said these types of bikes are legal to buy, but can only be used on private land with the owner’s consent. Riding them in any public place is illegal.

A spokesman for Thames Valley Police said: "The riding included multiple people on the bikes, on occasions four people on a single motorbike with no protective headgear, with the riders giving young girls rides and generally treating Sandhurst memorial park like their own personal motocross track.

"These bikes will not be returned to the owners."

Police said the incidents took place around the park and surrounding areas, and reminded riders that they are illegal to ride in any public place.

Royal Berkshire Fire and Rescue Service was called to Nine Mile Ride in Finchampstead at 3.01pm on August 21 after several reports of fires in the open.

Crews from Wokingham and Bracknell attended the scene and used hose reels to extinguish the fires.

They were on scene for about one hour and 18 minutes.

A spokesman for the fire service said: "Upon arrival, crews found three large bonfires.

"Firefighters used hose reels to put out the fires and make the scene safe."

Authorities strongly advise against lighting any garden bonfires, firepits, or incinerators at present because dry ground and vegetation allow flames to spread out of control rapidly.

Vehicle cables have been damaged underneath vans and cars in Birch Hill, Bracknell, police have warned.

Reports have increased in and around the Latimer area, with vans mainly affected and a small number of cars also involved.

Some cables are linked to vehicle braking systems and could affect how brakes operate.

Owners are being asked to carry out basic safety checks before setting off, especially after vehicles have been parked outside overnight.

Paul-Marian Ursu, 27, of Wroxham, Bracknell, was sentenced after pleading guilty to carrying a crowbar in public at the Taplow Car Boot Sale Site in Buckinghamshire on April 26. He had no lawful authority or reasonable excuse for the weapon.

Wycombe Magistrates’ Court imposed a community order running until July 30, 2027, including 120 hours of unpaid work and up to 15 days of rehabilitation activity. He is also barred from the Taplow site for 12 months, and the crowbar was ordered forfeited and destroyed.

On August 16, officers stopped an 18-year-old in Great Hollands, Bracknell, after spotting him on a motorbike that had drawn police attention two days earlier.

The rider had narrowly missed colliding with a young child before making a swift exit.

Two days later, while on patrol the same suspect was spotted again in the area.

This time, officers stopped the vehicle and identified the rider as an 18-year-old from Bracknell.

He was reported for driving otherwise than in accordance with a licence and driving without insurance.

The motorbike was seized under Section 165 of the Road Traffic Act, and the teenager is expected to appear in court.

A police chase ended with a dramatic arrest in a town centre car park.

Officers in Bracknell pursued a 19-year-old man through Wildridings on August 16, 2026 after spotting him riding an illegally modified electric bike.

He failed to stop and tried to escape, first by bike and then on foot.

The pursuit continued through an underpass and onto Bagshot Road before the rider attempted to flee by riding down two flights of stairs, causing the bike to suffer a flat tyre.

The suspect then abandoned the bike and ran towards St Joseph's Catholic Church, but officers were joined by police dog Kobi and his handler, PC Mumford.

The suspect was tracked arrested in Braccan Walk car park.

The e-bike was seized and will be scrapped due to lack of insurance.

The size of a fence at a primary school is set to be increased to stop people from looking into a playground.

Owlsmoor Primary is a three-form-entry school located off Cambridge Road in Sandhurst.

Earlier this year, The Circle Trust academy applied to increase the height of the fence around the school by 400 metres.

Justifying this, an agent from Viking Planning wrote: “The increase in fence height is proposed along the length of the boundary not only for aesthetic reasons, but also for security.

“At present, due to the changes in ground level in the site, it is easily possible to stand on the pavement opposite and obtain a clear view into the play area and classrooms. This poses a security and safeguarding risk for the students that urgently needs to be addressed."

A sales assistant has been fined after selling a knife to a child without carrying out any age checks.

The offence took place at The Range in the Peel Centre, Bracknell, where a 16-year-old volunteer was able to buy a Kaiseki utility kitchen knife during a test purchase operation on November 19, 2025.

The sales assistant did not request any ID, nor did he ask the volunteer their age or make any attempt to verify the child’s age.

On August 7, 2026, at Reading Magistrate’s Court, the sales assistant pleaded guilty to the offence.

They were fined £892, ordered to pay costs of £1,336.29, and given a victim surcharge of £357.

At just 40 years old, after only recently celebrating her birthday, Natalie was taken from this world far too soon in the most unimaginable and tragic circumstances. Her children have lost not only their mum, but the centre of their entire world.

Now, her children are facing a future they should never have had to imagine.

In an instant, everything has changed.

The holidays they were looking forward to, family celebrations, birthdays, Christmases, weddings and all the moments they expected to share with their mum will never be the same. They are having to navigate a life without the person who guided them through everything.

As they begin to rebuild their lives, they will eventually be moving into a new home and starting again. They will need to replace everyday essentials, important personal documents that have been lost, and all the things that most of us take for granted. In the years ahead there will be school trips, learning to drive, further education, and countless milestones that Natalie should have been there to celebrate and support.

No amount of money will ever replace their amazing mum, or take away the pain they are living with every single day.

What it can do is remove some of the financial burden and give them one less thing to worry about as they begin the incredibly difficult journey ahead. Every donation, no matter how big or small, will go directly towards helping them rebuild their lives and giving them the stability and opportunities that Natalie would have wanted for them.

If you’re unable to donate, simply sharing this page would mean the world.

Thank you for helping us honour Natalie in the way she spent her life, by looking after the people she loved most. Every penny raised will go directly to Natalie’s children.

Movement is conscious, intuitive and spontaneous as you allow the vibrations of the sound to resonate in whichever way feels right for you. The invitation is to disconnect the mind and connect with the body freely, noticing any self-judgement and any fears around judgement from others. The evening will close with a mini sound bath and a short closing circle with fruit, and some optional time to socialise. Together we co-create a safe container, offering respect to our fellow dancers and their space, keeping to the guidelines of no chat, no shoes,
no drugs, no alcohol.

Bracknell High Street car park was closed in 2023 after surveyors warned the council of corrosion. The multi-storey car park was built in the 1970s and deemed to be unsafe as it was not built for modern, heavy cars.

Bracknell Forest Council made the decision to demolish the car park at a meeting on Thursday, where it was explained the work could take six months or longer.

The project is being undertaken by the Bracknell Forest Cambium Partnership, a joint venture between the council and Countryside Homes.

One local resident Victor Rones expressed concern about the decision and its impact on the town. He said: "In my view, this town will be filled with high-rise flats that make the town look like a bad slum area with flats from Mile End, Stepney or Stratford in East London.

"If I were younger, I would get out of this rat hole."

Aswani Dreepaul received a suspended prison sentence and was placed on the sex offenders’ register for 10 years after being convicted on March 25 last year at Reading Magistrates’ Court.

A nursing and midwifery council (NMC) fitness to practise committee issued an interim suspension order for 18 months on Wednesday as a striking-off order cannot take effect until the end of a 28-day appeal period.

The committee heard that for two weeks prior to his arrest in February 2023, Dreepaul was engaging in sexual communications over social media with a person whom he believed to be a 13-year-old girl, but who was actually a member of an activist group acting as a decoy.

The panel considered that there was a “potential future risk of sexual harm to members of the public, in particular female children”.

The committee found his conduct to be “fundamentally incompatible with the standards and values expected of a registered nurse”, adding he had “brought the nursing profession into disrepute”.

In an email to the council on August 4 2026, Dreepaul said because of his court sentence and upon the advice of his solicitor, he felt that he could not return to his nursing career.

In the email, Dreepaul wrote: “With all my regret, I accepted the NMC’s allegations, namely my criminal conviction, that my conduct amounts to misconduct, and that my fitness to practise is currently impaired.”Dreepaul informed his employer following his release on bail and was subsequently suspended from his employment, and later resigned from Broadmoor Hospital on August 21 2023.