Broxtowe Enews 13th August 2011

Welcome to Broxtowe Enews, brought to you by the Liberal Democrats and edited by David Watts, the leader of the Lib-Dems on Broxtowe Borough Council.

First, many apologies that there hasn’t been a newsletter for the past couple of weeks. I’ve actually been away on holiday and didn’t want to broadcast that fact beforehand. Second can I apologise to Beeston Hockey Club. I meant to mention their great success this season a few weeks ago but forgot to do so. Sorry folks and well done.

1. Riots

The events of the past week or so have been truly shocking. I was horrified to hear that they spread to Nottingham and the police did receive intelligence that Beeston was to be targeted for an attack one night. Extensive police activity including targeting those known to be involved in the planning meant that the threat failed to materialise. I have tabled a motion to be debated at the next council expressing criticism of the rioters and support for the police. I know that some people say that there were complex reasons for the riots but frankly, crime is crime and the sort of behaviour that has been demonstrated over the past few days is inexcusable. That doesn’t mean however that I would support a knee jerk reaction with new laws or restrictions, but hopefully there will be a frank and dispassionate look at the situation afterwards.

2. Future Broxtowe Development

The consultation period on where new housing in Broxtowe will be built over the next 20 years is now underway and I would encourage as many people as possible to respond. The consultation information is all available on the councils website at http://www.broxtowe.gov.uk/index.aspx?articleid=9265. I have insisted that the council looks at the best ways to ensure that all local communities are consulted as well and we will be taking various options forward over the next few weeks.

I have been very disappointed by some blatant political gamesmanship from the Conservatives over this. A Conservative Secretary of State insists that every council must look to allow new building and yet the local Conservatives have refused to say where they would support this happening in Broxtowe. I’m afraid that they can’t have it both ways, the Tories either support building or they don’t.

3. Walking in Broxtowe

A walking festival is being held in the borough at the beginning of next month to explore some of its delights. More than 35 different walks have been organised to suit all ages in the “Broxtowe Footsteps Festival.” The first walk is on 3^rd September starting at 11.30 at Bramcote Hills Park and walking to Stapleford Carnival.

4. Stapleford Carnival

As mentioned above, the next Stapleford Carnival will be on 3^rd September. There will be a parade through the town before the rest of the festivities at the Washington Drive field. The Lib-Dems will have a stall so please do drop in and say hello.

5. Community Action Meetings

The borough council currently holds Community Action Team meetings acros the borough. However attendance varies tremendously between different areas. In Bramcotee we will regularly get close to 100 people attending but in some other areas they have single figure attendances. As a result the council has agreed to switch from a “one-size-fits-all” approach to giving each local councillor discretion as to what happens in their own areas. At the same time the council will be exploring other ways of keeping in touch with people.

6. Sainsburys in Wollaton

Although this is outside of the borough the plans by Sainsbury’s to open a new store in Wollaton will affect many of our residents, especially those in Bramcote. The plans were rejected a couple of years ago but now they are back. Any comments on these should be sent to the city council.

7. Creative writing for teachers

A creative writing course aimed at teachers is being held at Durban House in Eastwood on 22^nd April from 10.30pm. It is organised by the British Library and the National Association of Writers in Education. The course is free and places are allocated on a first come first served basis. Details are available on 0115 917 3824.

8. Worlds Longest Names

I like to draw attention to the achievements of local residents, but the latest entry into the Guinness Book of Records by local residents is simply bizarre. Two Beeston residents have changed their names by deed poll to reflect their love of comic book super heroes, and are now apparently known as ‘Emperor Spiderman Gandalf Wolverine Skywalker Optimus Prime Goku Sonic Xavier Ryu Cloud Superman HeMan Batman Thrash’ and ‘Baron Venom Bairog Sabretooth Vader Megatron Vegeta Robotnik Magneto Bison Sephiroth Lex Luthor Skeletor Joker Grind.’ It will be interesting canvassing them in the next elections!

As ever thank you for your support for this newsletter and any feedback will be gratefully received.

David

Broxtowe Enews 16th July 2011

Welcome to Broxtowe Enews, brought to you by the Liberal Democrats and edited by David Watts, the leader of the Liberal Democrats on Broxtowe Borough Council.

There hasn’t been a huge degree of news this week, partly because things are winding down for the summer break, but three of the stories are particularly important.

1. Housing in Broxtowe

The council’s cabinet on Tuesday looked at proposals for where new homes might be built over the next 20 years. Four separate models have been prepared which all show that Greater Nottingham will need about 50,000 new houses over that period, and obviously some of them will need to be in Broxtowe. However the exact numbers are still up for debate. The Joint Planning Advisory Board, a working party from all the councils in the area, suggested that up to 5,700 houses might need to be in Broxtowe, but I think that this figure is too high. I’m pleased that the cabinet agreed with me that we should challenge that figure, and will work out how many houses we have space for and our infrastructure can support. The council also agreed with me that the way to go forward was by working with each parish and town, with every local community, to discuss how many new houses should be built in each place and where they should go.

One thing that the Government have made clear to all councils is that not building is not an option, given the need for new houses. I have therefore been very disappointed at the total failure of the local Conservatives to engage in the process. I have invited all councillors to make comments about the proposals but not a single Tory councillor has sent me anything! (It’s my portfolio on the council so it is me that they should be talking to.)

Part of the requirement of the Government is that each council must identify sites where new development can take place. We have identified two possible sites, one to the North of Toton and the other between Stapleford and Trowell, on Field Farm. With the Toton site I stressed that it should not be allowed to be developed right up to the roads, either Stapleford lane or the A52, and with the Field Farm site I stressed that the gap between Stapleford and Trowell must be maintained and the cabinet therefore agreed with my suggestion that the site should be limited to the Stapleford side of the brook, so there will be no proposals for the site to be developed on the Toton side. This is particular is a great victory for my colleague Ken Rigby, the councillor for Trowell, who has campaigned very hard for this gap to be preserved.

The plans will now go out to public consultation. The final point I stressed at the cabinet was that the proposed consultation, which was during the summer holiday period, was unacceptable and as a result the consultations have been extended until the end of September. People should receive information from the council but if you want to know anything in advance please don’t hesitate to contact me. (By the way, the reference in the local paper to us consulting on other sites on Coventry Lane and Bilborough Road is misleading. The council has made it clear that we would not support development on those sites.)

2. Stapleford Walk In Centre

I was deeply disappointed to learn earlier this week that the Secret ary of State for Health has refused to intervene in the decision to close Stapleford’s Walk in Centre. This provides an excellent place for people to have minor injuries and ailments treated, and the result of it’s closure will be to send more patients to the QMC, even though the managers at casualty there say that they struggle with the numbers already attending. Local residents have fought an excellent campaign to keep the centre open and it is a real shame that the decision of the unelected quango who decided to close it, despite the universal local opposition to their proposals, has not been overturned.

3. Trees in Toton

There’s better news for residents in Toton. The landowner who illegally felled all the trees on the sidings has lost his appeal against the order that the trees need to be replanted. However the appeal panel have varied the timetable to see if natural growth will replenish them. As a result the site does not need to be restocked for five years, which I feel is a very long time for local residents to wait. Steve Blackwell and all those involved in the Toton Environmental Protection Society deserve immense credit for winning this, although I know that they are equally concerned about this five year period that has been allowed.

4. Greener Beeston

Greening Beeston, the council supported group aiming to improve the environment in Beeston, has challenged all residents in the town to cut their carbon emissions. Volunteers are being sought to publicise the initiative and they want people to cut their energy use and install things like photo-voltaic cells to cut electricity consumption. For further details ring 0115 925 6368.

5. Bramcote Church Tower

Anyone driving through Bramcote or down the A52 in recent weeks will have noticed that the church tower is surrounded by scaffolding after loose brickwork was discovered during an inspection. The church need to raise £95,000 to get the work done and they have raised half of this during the first month. If anyone else wishes to help the contact number is 0115 922 1443.

6. Police and Councillors Meeting

A series of meetings have been arranged for local people to discuss issues with the police and local councillors. These are at Attenborough village hall on 3^rd August, Awsworth parish hall on August 24^th, Queens Road Methodist Church in Beeston on 27^th July, Beeston Rylands Community Centre on 19^th July, Beeston Town Hall on August 23^rd (for Beeston west residents),and Inham Nook Methodist Church on July 28^th. All meetings start at 7pm apart from the Beeston rylands one which is a 7.30 start.

7. Road Resurfacing

I was pleased to announce to the council last week that a series of repairs are scheduled to tackle the worst of the pot holes in Broxtowe. Eastwood in particular has benefited from the work that my colleague Keith Longdon has done, and elsewhere in the borough many people responded to a request I sent out on this newsletter early on this year asking for their views ofn the worst roads. All of this has fed into the discussions to ensure that the money is being spent where the need is greatest.

8. Get Fit in the Summer

The council are offering discount rates to local residents who sign up to get fit at the various leisure centres in the borough. Joining fees have been dropped and free induction sessions are being offered. The number of people using the leisure centres has increased dramatically over the last few years so why not take this opportunity to join a growing trend?

9. Nottingham Credit Union

Further to my mention of the credit union last week they have asked me to mention that NCU has Money Surgeries in the area - 1-3pm on Mondays at the Council Offices in Foster Avenue, Beeston, and 10-12 noon on Thursdays in the Carnegie Centre, Stapleford, as well as a Collection Point at the Methodist Church, Inham Nook, 10-12 noon on Tuesdays.

There is also a Money Surgery at the Council's Office in Eastwood, 1.30 to3.30 on Mondays, and we are desperate to find new volunteers to help staff that (training provided).

Enquiries are welcome at all the Money Surgeries and Collection Point, where people may apply for NCU membership or loans. Anyone interested may like to go to the NCU website www.nottinghamcu.co.uk.

I’m very happy to pass this on.

10. Police Stations

I have heard a rumour this week that Stapleford Police Station is to close altogether in the near future. The public counter is already shut and I understand that the officers will be working out of an office at the Co-Op rather than having their own building. I’m quite comfortable with this provided that the level of policing is maintained, I’m not really that worries where their offices are. However if the levels of policing drop I will be at the front of any campaign to get them restored.

11. High Speed Rail

Following the decision of the council last week to call for HS2 to be developed with a station in or close to Broxtowe I’ve been pleased to see that the call has been supported this week by local businesses and by the local economic partnership, the collaboration of businesses and local councils.

12. Fake Air Ambulance Leaflets

I received a leaflet this week asking for donations to an organisation calling itself Air Ambulance Services. This leaflet is wholly misleading and is, frankly, a fake. Please don’t be taken in by it and if you have already given anything to them please let trading standards know.

13. Crime Levels

Crime in Nottinghamshire dropped 14% last year, the second year running that Nottinghamshire has had the largest fall of any county in the country. There are lots of reasons for this but well done to everyone who has helped to make this happen.

As ever thank you for your support for this newsletter. Any feedback is, as ever, very gratefully received.

David

Broxtowe Enews 10th July 2011

Welcome to Broxtowe Enews, brought to you by the Liberal Democrats and edited by David Watts, the leader of the Liberal Democrats on Broxtowe Borough Council. A special welcome to the new readers that we have this week.

1. Typo’s

There were a couple of typing errors in last weeks newsletter, for which I apologise. First there was an error with the reference to wellington s, embarrassingly recreating a typing error which has occurred previously. I can’t even blame a rogue spell checker as they were typed on different PC’s. I think I will follow the advice off one reader who suggested that I stick to writing “boots” in the future.

More important was an error in the reference to the Broxtowe wardens. I wrote that they ran the shopmobiliity scheme, which is incorrect. I had meant to say that they helped the scheme, which would have been right. I’d like to apologise for any upset that this caused the shopmobility volunteers, and I certainly didn’t wish to dismiss the excellent service that they offer.

2. More on Wardens

Readers may recall that last week in the Nottingham Post (I’ve been gently told off in another blog this week for calling it the Evening Post. Guilty as charged.) the Conservatives were criticising the amount spent on wardens and saying that it does not cover the cost of the service. I was therefore very surprised at the council meeting on Wednesday when they called for more wardens to be recruited. This was a fairly quick U-turn.

3. High Speed Rail

Also at the council meeting on Wednesday was delighted to second a motion calling for support for the proposed high speed 2 rail line and for a station to be established in or around Broxtowe. This was supported unanimously by the council. S I said at the meeting the benefits that the line can bring to the East Midlands and to the north are massive, and we must ensure that we don’t allow the self-interest of a few council’s in the south of England to stop such a major development and opportunity for us.

4. Your Say on the NHS

A public meeting will be held in Stapleford on Tuesday 19^th July from 6.30pm to 8.30pm at St Helen’s Church all where residents can meet members of the local patient participation group and have their say about how the NHS operates. You can register on ppi@nottspct.nhs.uk or by ringing 01623 673333.

5. Future Building in the Borough

On Tuesday evening the cabinet at Broxtowe will take the next steps in deciding how and where future building in Broxtowe will take place. The council will have to decide on the policies it wants to take forward, something that we are seeking to do jointly with the other councils in Greater Nottingham. If the council agree to take things further then the next stage is for there to be a full public consultation. The proposed timetable for this in the council papers is over the summer holidays, and I will be proposing that this is extended into the autumn so that everyone gets a proper chance to have their say. If people want to read the report that is going to the council it is available at http://www.broxtowe.gov.uk/CHttpHandler.ashx?id=21949&p=0

6. County Council Children’s Centres

Notts County Council have announced that they will be retaining all 59 of their children centre’s across the county and that they will be seeking to expand the range of services that are available. I’m delighted to welcome this news. In an age of austerity it is good to see investment being made in our future.

7. Caretaker Vacancy

Trowell Parish Council are looking for a temporary relief caretaker for the parish hall, on a six month contract. Application forms can be obtained by ringing 0115 973 0713.

8. Independents Day

The Beeston Improvement District (which exists to improve trade in Beeston) has launched Independents day, a campaign to promote independent traders in the town centre. The aim is to stress the benefits that independent traders can bring. Further details are available from the BID team.

9. Nottingham Credit Union

Nottingham Credit Union, which has a base in the council offices in Broxtowe, have announced that they are now opening about 100 new accounts a month. The credit union provides a vital service and helps to provide options for people who might otherwise be unable to obtain credit or other services.

10. Newthorpe Road Works

Dawson Close in Newthorpe will be disrupted due to gas main works between Monday 11^th July and 25^th July.

11. Unemployment in Broxtowe

New figures have been released which show that there are currently 8.6 people in the borough claiming Jobseekers Allowance for every vacancy that there currently are at the Jobcentre plus. This is an increase from 6.6 people 12 months ago. These figures are obviously disappointing, but they do show why the council is right to deploy a significant amount of resources into job creation and business development.

12. Car Park Charges

The borough council is now starting the process of reviewing car park charges. The key questions are whether car park charges should be retained, and if so whether they should be applied universally or whether there should be different rates for different car parks. Whilst it would be very easy to say that we should just get rid of them if we do this we need to determine where we find the £300,000 that they generate for the council. We have always said that we would review the charges after they have been in operation for 12 months, and we are now doing this.

13. Lowes Estate Family Fun Day

The Lowes estate in Beeston will celebrate it’s family fun day next Saturday, 16^th July, from midday to 4pm. There will be go-karting, bouncy castles and a barbecue.

14. New Homes in Eastwood

40 new houses have been built on the site of the old Moon and Stars pub in Eastwood, which has been derelict for many years. The houses are all being provided by a housing association and will significantly increase the amount of rented property available in the town.

15. Nottingham University Hotel

Nottingham University have confirmed that they are about to start work on building a hotel in University Park. I mention this solely because when the University built new student accommodation in Beeston a few years ago we did ask them why they weren’t looking to build in University Park and we were told that covenants on the land prevented them doing this. Clearly this wasn’t correct.

16. News of the World Controversy

I can’t lament the passing of the News of the World, and I hope that it will lead to Rupert Murdoch’s attempts to buy the rest of Sky TV being rejected. Broxtowe MP Anna Soubry has also called for a change in the law to introduce better standards in the media. This is something I support, as I think that the standards of reporting in the national media have been appallingly low for many years. Quite how this can be accomplished though may be a difficult question to answer.

17. Pakistan Floods

A badminton tournament will be held at Chilwell Olympia on 17^th July to raise money for the victims of the floods in Pakistan. The event runs from 11am to 6pm and costs £25 for teams of two. Bookings can be made by ringing 07814 104310.

As ever thank you for your support for this newsletter and any feedback is gratefully received.

David

Broxtowe Enews 3rd July 2011

Welcome to Broxtowe Enews, brought to you by the Liberal Democrats and edited by David Watts, the leader of the Lib-Dems on Broxtowe Borough Council.

It’s been a really busy week this week, and the high spot was visiting Buckingham Palace on Wednesday for a Royal Garden Party. I would never describe myself as a rampant royalist, but the building and the occasion really did take my breath away. We went with a couple of very long serving members of staff from the council, and I think that it is important that we do take the opportunity to recognise the role and effort of the people who make the council operate as effectively as it does.

1. A52 Roadworks

The Highways Agency are about to start work again on the A52. Work between the Bramcote and QMC islands starts on 17^th July and will run through until the middle of November, so be prepared for disruption. The approaches to the Priory and QMC roundabouts is to be widened, and the A52 will be subject to a 30mph speed limit during the period of the works.

2. Beeston Carnival

Beeston Carnival takes place next Saturday, with entertainment in the Square from 10am and the parade starting at 1pm. The entertainment at Broadgate Park starts at 12.00. everyone is welcome to attend, and hopefully the weather will be better than it was for Long Eaton carnival last week, when my daughters dance troupe had to perform wearing their willies.

3. Easy Giving

A new website has been established to enable people to give to charities on line. The Community Foundation in Notts manages the Nottinghamshire arm of localgiving.com, which lists local charities so that people can donate to them. There are currently 17 Notts charities on the site, and if others want to be added please ring 01623 636365.

4. Car Parking

I was very disappointed to read some really inaccurate reporting by the Evening Post about the costs of wardens who we employ. These wardens police the car parks, but they also help in the town centres and operate the shop mobility schemes. They are a visible face of the council to assist local residents. The Post criticised the council because we didn’t take enough money in parking fines to cover the costs of the wardens. It was never expected that we would do, and to be honest if we were having to give out so much in fines for people overstaying in car parks I would be very disappointed. (I did say I was disappointed that we had taken £85,000 in fines as this meant there were a lot of people not parking properly, but the paper suggested that I was disappointed at how low they were. Not true, and I’ve sent a fairly strongly worded letter to the paper to say so.)

5. Kimberley Police Station

The town council in Kimberley have said that they are unhappy about plans to shut the front counter at Kimberley Police Station. Despite the low number of people who use the service the council believe that it is important that the service is maintained, and are calling on the police to rethink their decision.

6. Cutting Grass Verges

The County Council have announced plans to reduce the number of times that the grass verges on the roads will be cut. (At the moment the borough council do this for them, to the levels that they set, although from next April the County Council will do this themselves.) At the moment verges are cut six times per year, and this will now drop to five times per year. This is actually better than they had been suggesting, which was a reduction to four times per year.

7. Eastwood Award Winner

Congratulations to Amy Smith from Eastwood, who won the Gold Medal at the UK Beauty Therapy and Nail Technology contest in Cambridge. It is always good to see young people from Broxtowe being successful.

8. Adults with Learning Disabilities

The County Council have announced plans to privatise those parts of adult social care services that they currently provide internally. The council say that these will save them £1million per year. These are services such as tenancy support and practical help. My concern is that these are the services most used by particularly vulnerable people and privatisation often means service reduction. I hope that these plans will be examined very carefully to ensure that vulnerable people are not going to miss out.

9. Toton Exists

The Royal Mail has announced that they will now include Toton as a separate address on their database, officially recognising that it exists as a separate community. This is something that we managed with Bramcote a few years ago, but it does take a long time to be effective. There are still organisations who use Beeston as the address for Bramcote. Well done to all concerned for putting Toton on the map but settle in for a long slog to get it effective.

10. Carbon Footprint at the Leisure Centre

Efforts by the staff at Bramcote Leisure Centre have resulted in a reduction in the CO2 output by 300 tonnes. Congratulations to everyone involved for their efforts in this regard.

11. Heritage Days

The programme has now been published for the heritage Open Days which will take place in September. There are a load of good things in it and two require advance booking if you wish to attend. These are if you want to visit the Boots archive (phone 0115 939 3472 to book) or if you want to visit Chilwell Depot and see the memorial to the people who died in the 1918 explosion (call 0115 967 7260 to book).

12. Newsletters

As ever can I thank you for your support for this newsletter. We are read by many hundreds of people each week but I would like to really have a push on getting new subscribers as well. Our advertising so far has been primarily by word of mouth and so my request to everyone is that if you know other local residents who would enjoy the newsletter please pass the details on to them.

Best wishes

David

Broxtowe Enews 26th June 2011

Welcome to Broxtowe Enews, brought to you by the Liberal Democrats and edited by David Watts, the leader of the Lib-Dems on Broxtowe Borough Council.

1. Responses

Thank you to the various comments that I received about last week’s newsletter. I’ve been really busy at work this week so I apologise that I haven’t replied to everyone yet, I will do so this week. I have been celebrating getting Olympic tickets this week, and whilst I know that not everyone was happy with the system I was delighted with the events that we managed to get tickets for.

2. Broxtowe Youth Homelessness

The Broxtowe Youth Homelessness charity has announced that it is to be supported by John Lewis in Nottingham for the next two years. The charity fulfils a vital role in helping young people facing homelessness and so this commitment to funding is very good news. When I was visiting another project for homeless young people last week one of the things that came out from the discussions was how little the young people knew about the services that were there for them, and so the more that can be done to help promote these organisations the better.

3. Free Swimming

I’m delighted that the borough council have decided to provide free swimming for children under the age of 16 and adults over the age of 60 during August. This was something that we introduced last year after national funding for free swimming was withdrawn by the Government, and the decision has been taken this week to provide the same again this year. We will explore whether it is possible to extend this up to the whole of the summer holidays next year.

4. New School Crossing

The County Council have announced that they have recruited a new crossing patrolperson for Toton Law in Stapleford outside Fairfield Primary School. Local parents have been campaigning for this for a number of months.

5. School Fair

Staying with Fairfield School, their school fair is on Friday 1^st July from 3pm and all are welcome to attend.

6. Middle Street Resource Centre

The County Council have announced their plans for care services in Nottinghamshire, and I’m delighted that the threat to close the Middle Street Resource Centre in Beeston has been lifted. There has been a strong campaign by users and local residents to keep it open and this has succeeded. Everyone connected with the campaign should be delighted.

7. Bramwell Care Home

Less good is that at the same time the county have announced that they are closing the day centre at Bramwell Nursing Home in Bramcote. This is despite an equally active campaign which attracted all party support locally. I think that a very strong argument had been made to keep Bramwell open and I am very disappointed at this announcement. The closure plans are to be debated at a council meeting on 30^th June so there is still a chance that this may be changed, but I am not optimistic.

8. Parkinson’s Disease

A drop in information session on Parkinson’s Disease will be given at the Pearson Centre in Beeston on 5^th July from 1.30pm to 3.30pm. If you are suffering from this, know someone who is, or want to learn more about it you will be welcome to attend.

9. Fostering Open Day

An event outside of Broxtowe, but open to local residents, is a fostering open day at Worksop Crossing Gate Centre on June 29^th between 9.30am and 12.30pm.If you are interested in fostering then you will be welcome to attend. It is being put on by Team Fostering, who organise fostering for Children in Notts, Derbyshire and Yorkshire.

10. Health Hub Bid

Boots have announced plans to create a health hub at their sight in Beeston. This is where the new enterprise zone is being established and Boots believe that this could be a base for new and developing health care businesses.

11. Art Market

George Spencer School in Nottingham are holding their first art market and are inviting local artists to submit paintings. The event is on Saturday 9^th July and further details are available from artexhibition@mail.com

12. Greasley Wind Turbine

The Borough Councils development control committee voted on Wednesday night to give planning permission for a new 132 metre high wind turbine in Newthorpe. The turbine will generate the equivalent power used by 1,300 houses each year, as well as saving over 2,000 tonnes of CO2.

13. Eastwood Exhibition

An exhibition on textiles has opened at Durban House in Eastwood and will run until 10^th July. It is in the Rainbow Gallery and is put on by the Second Textile Turning Group. I did see that a Labour MP had a photo shoot at Durban House last week to claim credit for saving the building despite the fact that, whilst I was looking at this as leader of the council, she didn’t contact me once about a decision which fell to me to make.

14. Fire Brigade Consultation

Plans to reorganise the fire brigade in Notts will be going out to public consultation next month. Following action by the Liberal Democrats plans to close a number of stations, including at least one in Broxtowe, have been dropped although it is still proposed to cut 100 fire fighter posts.

15. Japanese Event

Ganbare Japan are organising a thank you event at Oban House, the home of the Voluntary Action Broxtowe, for all the support for Japan given by local people. It is on 16^th July from 6.30pm and includes Japanese drumming and a meal and costs £25 for adults and £5 for children.

As ever thank you for your support for this newsletter and any feedback is gratefully received.

David

Broxtowe Enews 19th June 2011

Welcome to Broxtowe Enews, brought to you by the Liberal Democrats and edited by David Watts, the leader of the Lib-Dem Group on Broxtowe Borough Council. A special welcome to the new readers that we have this week, on what has undoubtedly been a good week for the Lib-Dems. We have had big wins this week on NHS reforms, delivering what we as grass roots members of the party had demanded, and we also managed to fend off a proposed backward step on recycling which Eric Pickles had been trying to force on local councils. Over the last few years in Broxtowe we have made huge steps forward on recycling and I’m delighted that these will be protected.

I hope that you all had a great Fathers day. Mine got off to a great start when we discovered that the worlds greatest mouser had left a fathers day present for us in the en-suite!

1. Awsworth Party on the Park

The Awsworth Party on the Park will take place on Saturday 2^nd July from 11am to 11pm. All local residents will be welcome.

2. Charity Garden Party

Wollaton Road Methodist Church in Beeston will be holding a charity garden party next Saturday from 10am to noon, in aid of the Nottinghamshire Hospice. As well as refreshments there will be cake stalls, bring and buy and home made greeting cards. Everyone is welcome.

3. Pro-tram walk

The Kentag campaign group, who are seeking to bring the tram to Kimberley and Eastwood, are holding a walk along their suggested route next Saturday, starting from Phoenix Park at 11am. Everyone is welcome.

4. Attenborough Nature Walk

The next of the monthly nature walks at Attenborough Nature Reserve will take place on Sunday 3^rd July at 10.30am. It departs from the visitor centre at the nature reserve, and walkers are asked Not to bring dogs with them. The day before, 2^nd July, there will be a talk about insects at the centre at 1.30pm. That one costs £5 per person. Details are available on 0115 972 1777. Finally at Attenborough they also have a wildlife training course next Saturday, 25^th June, from 10am to 4pm. This costs £25 and can be booked on the same phone number.

5. Eastwood Election Mix Up

The hearing in the High Court which is required to correct an administrative error which led to Hazel Charlesworth, rather than her husband Bob, being declared winning new councillor for Eastwood North, will take place on 22^nd July. Unfortunately on the final results sheet the votes for Hazel and Bob were transposed, and so the wrong person was declared as the winner.

6. Eastwood Arts Festival

The Eastwood Arts Festival takes place throughout July. Information is available from the borough council on arts@broxtowe.gov.uk or by ringing 0115 917 3695. It will kick off with a band of marauding Vikings giving out leaflets with all the details on next week, and includes a family fun day on 16^th July.

7. Broxtowe CAB

A long running campaign to protected the Citizens Advice Bureaux in Broxtowe has been overwhelmingly successful. Unfortunately the Tory run County Council slashed the grant they provide to the CAB, which really threatened it’s future. The Government have now announced that they will be providing a grant of £85,000 to enable it to keep going. Congratulations to everyone who has been involved with this campaign.

8. Stapleford Air Cadets

Stapleford Air Cadets have a new Commanding Officer. He is Flying Officer Gareth Fowler, who has until now been the training officer at the Beeston branch.

9. Greasley Breast Screening Unit

A group of local residents have collected a petition containing more than 200 signatures calling for the return of a breast screening unit which closed in March following complaints about the noise from it’s generator. The residents have asked Nottingham University Hospitals Trust to reverse their decision.

10. Foxwood School Sweet Shop

Foxwood School, which educates children with learning difficulties, has opened a sweet shop in Beeston which will be staffed by pupils from the school, to help them gain work experience. The shop is called Sweet Treats and is in Beeston Square. It was opened last Friday by Anna Soubry MP.

11. Cedar House

Cedar House is a home for homeless young women in Beeston. It was my pleasure to visit there on Friday along with Anna Soubry and Milan Radulovic, the leader of the Labour Group in Broxtowe. We were able to meet with a number of the residents and listen to some of their experiences. (They had very diplomatically provided red, blue and yellow buns to eat.) In particular it looks like we have been able to identify a way to significantly increase some of their funding, and Anna has agreed to take forward some issues that they had as well.

12. Village Ventures

On Sunday 3rd July at 2pm Village Ventures are putting on Cowboy Baby, a western yarn for children aged 4 to 8, by Sue Heap. This will be at Chilwell Arts Theatre, Chilwell School, Queens Road West, NG9 5AL. Tickets cost £2 (child), £5 (adult), in advance from the school on 0115 925 2698 or 0758 426 3893 or on the door. The show lasts 50 minutes, and will be followed by a free fun workshop for parents and children (30mins). Further details are at www.chilwellartstheatre.co.uk

13. Paradiso Cinema

On Friday 8^th July at 7.30pm Paradiso Cinema present Get Low, starring Robert Duval and Sissy Spacek. This is on at Chilwell Arts Theatre, Chilwell School, Queens Road West, NG9 5AL. Tickets on the door cost £5, £4 (conc). Refreshments are available from 7pm. Further details are available at www.chilwellartstheatre.co.uk

14. Car Boot Sale

On Sunday 10th July the Chilwell School Partnership will be holding an Outdoor car boot sale from 9am to 1pm, at Chilwell School, Queens Road west, Chilwell. Sellers can arrive to set up from 7.30am and the cost is £5 per car or £7.50 per van.

Thank you for your continued support for this newsletter, and any feedback is gratefully received.

David

Broxtowe Enews 11th June 2011

Welcome to Broxtowe Enews, brought to you by the Liberal Democrats and edited by David Watts, the leader of the Lib-Dem group on Broxtowe Borough Council. A special welcome to the new readers that we have this week.

Can I start by apologising that there was no edition last week. It’s rare that we don’t produce one but I’m afraid that time just got the better of me. I’ll try and cover all the important news for the past two weeks here. Today was the 10^th Hemlock Happening, and everyone involved deserves to be congratulated as it has been another fantastic event (even though my daughters cuddly toy did manage to end up very firmly in the jaws of a passing great dane!)

1. Keith Hanbury

Many people in Broxtowe will have known Keith, who was the county council’s youth worker for the area for many years. He had to retire on health grounds a couple of years ago, and I’m sorry to have to report that he passed away this week. I had the pleasure of meeting and working with him on many projects and he always struck me as someone who really did have the interests of local children and young people at heart. He will be sadly missed.

2. Chilwell Olympia Stake Park

I’m afraid that the condition of the skate park at Chilwell Olympia has now deteriorated so badly that the council have had to close it. The decision was only made on Friday so it is too early to say yet what the long terms plans will be for a replacement but I will report them when I know.

3. Right of Way Across Toton Sidings

Campaigners in Toton have been trying to get a right of way recognised across part of Toton Sidings. This is part of the campaign to oppose the actions of the land owner who chopped down the trees and closed of access to the site. After a year the County Council, who have responsibility for the decision, had still done nothing, but the Conservative administration did promise progress immediately after the Easter Holidays this year. Sadly we’re now in mid-June and there is still no news.

4. Erewash Valley Trail

The Erewash Valley Trail, which goes through Broxtowe and Erewash borough’s, was officially opened at the Hemlock Happening today. My colleague Stan Heptinstall, who deserves tremendous credit for the work he does on the Hemlock Happening, cut the ribbon and a group of cyclists started a ride round the whole trail. The trail takes in some of the most beautiful areas of the East Midlands and I would encourage people to walk all of part of it.

5. Safer Roads for Children

Children from Bramcote Primary School will join with others from across the country on Wednesday as part of a campaign calling on traffic to slow down to create safer roads for children. The march will also be at attempt to set a world record for the longest walking bus ever.

6. Awsworth Recycling Plant

A planning application has been submitted to build a compost recycling centre in the green belt close to Awsworth. This will be dealt with by the County Council as waste management is a county, rather than a borough, responsibility. The Borough Council will however be able to make representations on the matter.

7. A453 Report

The Government have told Anna Soubry MP that they will not publish the result of a public enquiry into dualling the A453 until after a decision has been made as to whether the road project is to go ahead. I am disappointed by this and, given that it was funded by public money and was a public enquiry, I think that the decision is wholly wrong.

8. Forcing Magistrates to Retire

Another issue that our MP has been involved in this week is the question of a compulsory retirement age for magistrates and judges. At the moment they are obliged to retire when they reach 70 years of age, and Anna has called for this to be lifted. In her speech in parliament she referred to long standing Kimberley Councillor Roy Plumb, who has recently been forced to retire as a magistrate because he is now 70, and she feels that people like him should be allowed to carry on further.

9. Attenborough Visitors Hide

The new path to a hide at Attenborough Nature Reserve, installed last autumn, has proved to be a great success. Figures just released show that more than 5,000 visitors have used it since it opened. This was paid for by Cemex, who donated nearly £5,000 for the work.

10. Broxtowe Women’s Network

Local business women are invited to the next meeting of the Broxtowe Womens Network on Monday evening from 5.30 – 8.30, at the Belfrey Hotel on Mellors Way. It costs £10 and the theme is time management. Details are available from the council on 0115 917 3446.

11. Dave Woods Forest Walk

I mentioned before that Stapleford poet Dave Wood was planning a walk around the ancient boundaries of Sherwood Forest. I’m very pleased to read that the Arts Council have now provided £10,000 lottery cash to help fund the project. The last time anyone walked this route was some 350 years ago, and Dave will be seeking to involve local schools and groups as far as possible.

12. House Prices

House prices in Nottinghamshire are continuing to fall, and the latest figures from the Halifax show that prices fell 4.2% in the last year here.

13. Police Swimming

Congratulations to the Notts Police women’s swimming team who won a national life-saving competition in Blackpool this week. It’s the first time in the competitions 56 year history that the Notts team have won.

14. Electric Car Charging

I was interested to read this week that the Belfrey Hotel will be one of the first in the country to install a charging port for electric cars. If this sort of new technology is to succeed then we need to ensure that the infrastructure is there for it, so I‘m delighted at this announcement.

15. Clayfields House

Residents and staff at Clayfields Secure Children’s Home have won the Best Creative Contribution Award from the Kids Count Charity at the House of Commons after they produced two murals at the centre.

16. Meet the police in Beeston

Residents in Beeston will be able to meet their local police officer on 26^th June. There will be a “patch walk” on Thyra Grove, Dagma Grove and Henry Road from 3 to 4pm and people will be able to raise any issues that they want to with the officers.

17. Mayors Coffee Morning

Stapleford Mayor Ray Darby will be hosting a charity coffee morning on Friday 24^th June from 10am to noon. Money raised will go to his charities, Rainbow Hospice and Stapleford Link Youth Café.

18. Pre-retirement Course

There will be a pre-retirement course for those getting towards the end of their working lives in Beeston between 27^th and 29^th June. Details are available from Linda Whitt on 0115 922 3824.

19. Fire Station Open Day

There will be an open day at Highfields Fire Station in Beeston between 11am and 3pm. There will be games for children and demonstrations by the fire service.

20. Delays to work in Kimberley

I’m afraid that the upgrade to power cables in Kimberley, which I reported on previously and which was brought about by my colleague Ken Rigby, has been delayed. There were difficulties in getting the cable installed and work will now begin on 20^th June for three weeks. This will mean that there are road closures during that period in the town, but hopefully everyone will see the benefit of the work thereafter.

21. MP’s Expense Claims

The latest figures for MP’s expenses have now been published. Anna Soubry claimed £4,146 for the first two months of 2011, whilst Gloria De Piero claimed £7,809 for the same period. The last time I reported on MP’s expenses claims it provoked a furious reaction from Miss De Piero, who claimed I was being selective with the figures, but I’m reporting them exactly as they were published.

22. Recycling targets

The city and county councils have published their new waste strategy, which includes increasing recycling targets from 50% to 70%. This will now go out to public consultation and I hope that the public will support this.

23. Wind Turbine Decision

The borough councils development control committee will meet on Wednesday 22^nd June to decide whether or not to grant planning permission for a wind turbine in Newthorpe, which would be 130 metres high in total. Both Greasley Parish Council and the County Council have objected to the application.

24. Stapleford Town Garden competition

Stapleford Town Council is inviting entrants from town residents for their annual town garden competition. Entry forms are available by ringing 0115 939 1818. Entries need to be in by 30^th June.

As ever thank you for your support for this newsletter. Any feedback is gratefully received.

David