THERE was growing concern that more people in Bromsgrove, especially housewives and the elderly, were becoming increasingly dependent on anti-depressants, tranquillisers and similar drugs for non-medical purposes. The disturbing news was contained in a report which revealed that last year the NHS drugs bill for Bromsgrove was an astonishing £100,000.

AN action group had been set up to try to stop the proposed rock festival planned for Wychbold later this month. The National Farmers' Union was to urge its members not to let their land be used for the gig. And a village vigilante team was to be established to keep a look out for trespassers.

ATRACTIVE Veronica Hunt, aged 21, who worked in the medical records department at Bromsgrove General Hospital was the new Miss Hospital 1977. She had been chosen from a group of finalists who had entered from hospitals in the district, at a function held at the Engine House in Tardebigge.

"THE rape of Crown Close" was how some Bromsgrovians viewed the work to remove thousands of tons of soil from the quiet backwater in Bromsgrove in preparation for the construction of the inner relief road which would cut through its heart.

A SUMMER holiday playscheme to help stop youngsters becoming bored and their mums stressed opened at Charford in Bromsgrove with 120 youngsters on the register. It was run by a team of parents and helpers who organised a whole host of popular activities, games and trips to local places of interest.