Healthier South Derbyshire Event - Saturday 10am-2pm

The annual Healthier South Derbyshire event is taking place at Green Bank Leisure Centre in Swadlincote on Saturday 2nd March between 10am and 2 pm.  Entry is free.  Sports and Leisure staff will be on hand to demonstrate over 40 sports and answer questions.  There are also several stalls with useful information.  The Local Police will also be present and hosting a surgery.

Suitable for all ages and families, this vibrant event is well worth a visit.  Please see posters and link below:

http://www.south-derbys.gov.uk/council_and_democracy/council_news/february/news_items/fun_and_games_at_healthier_south_derbyshire_day.asp

Review of Finance & Management Committee -21st February

Councillors Trevor Southerd and Gordon Rhind were present at the Finance and Management Committee on Thursday.

A rather one sided "debate" took place with regard to the potential future financial status of the council.

The current controlling administration are going to insist on a freeze in council tax, a move that is driven by current government policy.  This contradicts both the views of the Scrutiny Committee (which voted unanimously in favour of a 1.9% rise and this includes tory votes) and the Council medium term financial plan which acknowledges the requirement of an annual rise of around 2.5%.

This lack of adherence to the medium term financial plan is going to lead to a severe gap in funds.  This will inevitably lead to a reduction in personnel and/or quality of service.

The rising of the council tax is understandably a reluctant requirement as it asking for more money from residents, however, the figures are very small - around 3 pence per week.  The controlling party recently approved a 5.6% rise to Council rents which equates to £3.90 a week - the justification being "to stick to the plan".  Hardly seems fair does it?

A summary of events can also be read in the Burton Mail link below.

http://www.burtonmail.co.uk/News/Labour-furious-over-Tory-tax-freeze-plan-20130223080000.htm

Update on recent events in the ward

Dog Fouling

We have had more complaints over dog fouling, particularly in the Castleton Park area.  The council wardens have been taking action in the area including monitoring leafletting affected areas, looking into potential for more bins and better signage.

A £75 fine was recently given out in the district and this should serve as a reminder of the consequences of being caught.

This is an issue that needs a sustainable solution as it crops up again and again.  We are considering various further options to discuss in the future.

Litter

A litter pick has been requested in the Spring Street area and more bins requested in the Castle Road / Spring Street area.  This area will be monitored.

Leafletting

Our latest Newsletter has now been delivered to over 2000 homes in the ward despite delays due to the recent bad weather.  Thanks to all of those who helped deliver it and thanks for the feedback given so far.

Update to Useful Contact Information

Within our page entitled Useful Contact Information, we have now added contact details for our local police officers.

PC Rob Pilkington and PCSO Adrian Miller may be familiar to some of you as they are our current Church Gresley officers.  They are key figures in our community and are keen to be approached.  We have included links to the South Derbyshire section on the Derbyshire Police Website, the Derbyshire Alert website and also given contact details for Rob and Adrian.

Community Events this Friday

Without a great deal happening this week with Council Meetings events have been scarce but luckily this gives us a chance to fill the gap with some events that are coming up later this week.

These are both on Friday night (15th Feb):

At the Methodist on Church on York Road there is a Chocolate Bingo from 7.30pm, with proceeds going to  Treetops Hospice.

At the Old Hall there will be a concert entitled 'The Festival of Hearts' to raise money and awareness for The British Heart Foundation. It will feature an award winning junior school choir, a dance troupe, a jazz orchestra, two pop/rock cover bands and a table magician.
This has been organised by a volunteer fundraising group, Lucy's Pockets. To get tickets , which are £5 each email your contact details to festivalofhearts@nokiamail.com
The organisers will contact you by return to arrange payment and send tickets. 

Issues in the ward over recent days

A quick review of issues over the last couple of days include:

• Communication of some anti-social behaviour around Unity Close.
• Concern over the wall at the top of Castle Road near Colliery Row as it is listing badly.
• Lights out on Alleyway between York Road and Pennine Way and an incident of a taxi driving down it (there is no signage to stop this!).

All of the above have been reported appropriately by your local councillors.  We will feedback on any news.

Review of Housing & Community Services Meeting - 7th February

The meeting held on Thursday Night contained the following:

• Presentation of Sports Passes to young athletes from the area
• Report on Igniting the Legacy sports strategy
• Report on Heritage Lottery Funding for Eureka Park
• Report on Housing Revenue Account Budget
• Review of Corporate Plan and Work Program

Igniting the Legacy Report / Eureka Park

Following the presentation to some fantastic young athletes, the report was discussed and approved.  Within this report were the following:

• Details of several projects of investment due to external funding, including Greenbank and Etwall Leisure Centres, Rosliston Forestry Centre and Eureka Park.  the funding for Eurake park of over £500k was particularly noteworthy.
• Gresley Old Hall was also mentioned with specific regard to the bowls pavilion being moved from the park and the extensive works done already.
• A pilot scheme to install an outdoor gym at Maurice Lea Park has been approved as part of this.  It was pointed out later that not only can these schemes have beneficial health impact but also this may help reduce Anti-social behaviour by attracting more adults to the park.  
• The skate park off Common Road is being upgraded as the equipment is old and the lighting needs to be repaired.
• The School Sport Partnership is being extended until 2015.
• Large mass participation events are planned and will include South Derbyshire Day at Derby County, Festival of Leisure and National Play days.

Cllr Stuart spoke on this report to congratulate the team for a great report for also for the enthusiasm the team bring.  Whilst being a relatively small area, South Derbyshire produces some great young sporting talent and it would be great to see some of them represent Team GB in 2016.  A question was asked whether there were any plans to link in with the new Velodrome in Derby when built, and though this is not yet formalised, it will be looked into.

Concern was also raised by Cllr Stuart on the access to the Skate Park.  It was acknowledged that a lot of good work had been put in by many parties, but access across Common Road left a lot to be desired.  A quote was read from the last forum report from County Council stating that there was no justification for a crossing due to perceived lack of use. 

Report on Housing Revenue Account Budget

This report reviewed the need to increase rents in council properties to continue to bring them in line with Formula rents.  The increase proposed is 5.6% which equates to £3.93 per week.  Cllr Rhind spoke on the proposal and explained why he could not support them for the following reasons:

• Although a rise is inevitable, the rise is above the level of inflation and when pockets are being hit hardest (especially those on benefits) this rise is too high.
• A 1.95% rise in Council Tax is likely to be turned down, though this figure would only be at a cost of 3 pence per week, hence those renting council properties were being pushed too far too soon.
• There is flexibility in the Housing Revenue account (which is separate from General Fund) to be able to put a lesser rise in.

The subject was then debated.  Some sensible discussion was made from both sides before one councillor decided to use the broken record phrase of "what we inherited from the last Labour government" which was inaccurate, unnecessary and farcical.  See the rather interesting link to explain why:

http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/ramesh-patel/growth-cameron-austerity_b_2007552.html?utm_hp_ref=tw

The Conservatives voted the proposal through whilst the Labour Group voted against and asked for this to be recorded. 

Review of Area Forum Meeting - Area 4

This meeting followed on from the Safer Neighbourhood Meeting on Tuesday 5th February.

The key issues raised included the following County Council related issues:

• Issues related to parking at the new Oakland Sheltered Housing complex .
• Issues relating to signage and lorry movements on Coppice Side.
• The general state of our pothole-ridden roads and the fact that these now have to be reported by the public as opposed to being checked by engineers.
• The issue with the design of the roundabout on Hearthcote road onto Swadlincote Lane and in particular its effect on access to Wyedale.  This was raised by local member Trevor Southerd.

The Forum then had a short presentation from South Derbyshire District Council Chief Executive Frank McArdle which covered the following:

• New signage for access to Pipeworks shopping area
• Increased free parking for up to 6 hours at the above area following feedback that the 4 hour limit is not long enough.
• The old Market Hall can not be used at night due to Chamber of Trade issues with insurance.

The presentation was then finished with a summary of the budget for the coming year.  This and subsequent questions asked provided the following information:

• Due to several factor including Government cuts and reduction in New Homes Bonuses, the council is facing a £300,000 shortfall.
• The council tax is set to be frozen due to an incentive from the government.
• In reality, this freeze means that the council is missing out on a £50000 based on a 1.95% increase (of which the government keep 1%).
• The above would be at a cost of an extra 3 pence per week per house.

It was highlighted that it is very difficult to ask taxpayers for more money at these difficult times, but in order to maintain services it is vital that the gap is bridged.  The extra required for the 2% rise and even the extra required at 6% to resolve the shortfall completely would be far less than the effects of the rise on VAT and reduction in Family Tax credits brought in by the current Goverment.

Review of Area 4 Safer Neighbourhood Meeting

Held on Tuesday 5th February at the Church Hall Rooms in Church Gresley, the event was very well attended. Thanks to those at the Church Hall rooms for their help on the night.

The Key headlines from Sgt Jim Thompson's Crime figures and Overview were as follows:

• Again a decrease in crime in general
• Very little vehicle crime
• Calls to service during Halloween down 50% on last year.
• Slightly concerning were a couple of drugs raids in the village.

The PC who covers Church Gresley, Rob Pilkington is currently assisting in Swadlincote Town Centre.  The question was asked to confirm that he will still cover Church Gresley and it was confirmed that he will.  Our PCSO Adrian Miller gave a summary of events and projects in the area over the last quarter and these included:

• An observation that Church Gresley had been relatively quiet over recent months - probably due to the bad weather.
• Recent projects and priorities had seen the police monitor speeding in a number of places, with several motorists given advice when necessary. See more on speeding below.

The question session was dominated by speeding and the effect of road design on the access to Wyedale.  It was agreed by consensus to make this area part of the priority list.  Though this is in our neighbouring ward of Swadlincote, it is on the border at the edge of Castleton Park and therefore affects our residents too.  This issue was raised at the area forum.

Other issues raised related to the following:

• Speeding on Gresleywood Road
• Issues in the Morrisons Car Park
• Reaction time of police to a Road Traffic Accident.

An update was then given from the Safer South Derbyshire Partnership with news on the Forthcoming Liberation Day and details of ongoing projects including educating children in the importance of being visible when cycling.  Details were also given about the Derbyshire Alert website.  Further details will be added in our other pages relating to this.

Review of last week and look forward to w/c 4th February

W/C 28th February Review

Environment & Development Services Committee Meeting - 31st January 

Issues debated included the noting of the new Planning Enforcement document, a consultation to take place on extending the Conservation zones in the district (none in Gresley), the Corporate Plan and work program.  Staff were also questioned over a recent issue with a council vehicle which was recently reported in the Burton Mail.

Leafletting

Our latest leaflet has been posted around the old area of the village in Oxford Street, Regent Street and surrounding areas.  We plan to post more this week.

W/C 4th February

Key Event:  Area 4 Safer Neighbourhood Meeting followed by Area 4 Forum - Tuesday 5th February

This event takes place at the Church Hall Rooms on Church Street in Church Gresley.  the Safer Neighbourhood Meeting  takes place from 6.15pm (refreshments available from 5.45pm) until 7.15pm.

This part of the meeting is feedback from the police regarding activity and crime figures followed by a question and answer session and then priorities are agreed  The Safer South Derbyshire Partnership also informs us of its projects and then any projects requiring funding are considered.

The next part of the meeting is the Swadlincote Area Forum which runs from 7.30pm-8.30pm.  This is an opportunity to discuss matters with the County Council and District Council.  One of the items on the agenda this quarter is the budget.

Both meetings give the public an ideal opportunity to raise issues.

Link to the agenda is:

http://south-derbys.cmis.uk.com/south-derbys/Meetings/tabid/70/ctl/ViewMeetingPublic/mid/397/Meeting/1559/Committee/290/SelectedTab/Documents/Default.aspx

As previewed in the last post on this blog there have been area  forums in other areas of the district.  There was certainly a lot of debate at the Newhall area forum with Council Tax and Grit Bins on the agenda as reported on the following linked articles from the Burton Mail:

http://www.burtonmail.co.uk/News/To-cut-or-not-to-cut-poser-divides-reds-and-blues-20130131080000.htm

http://www.burtonmail.co.uk/News/New-grit-bin-We-dont-have-cash-20130201080000.htm

Housing & Community Services Meeting - 6pm 7th February

Link to the agenda is:

http://south-derbys.cmis.uk.com/south-derbys/Meetings/tabid/70/ctl/ViewMeetingPublic/mid/397/Meeting/1536/Committee/281/SelectedTab/Documents/Default.aspx

Church Gresley Ward Councillors Surgery - York Road Methodist Church 10-11am Saturday

If you have any questions, concerns, or would like to talk to us, please come and see us during the coffee morning as usual.