| Gipping Valley County & Blakenham District Councillor John Field, April 2021 |
Suffolk & Norfolk bid for £6m flood funding
Suffolk and Norfolk County Councils have bid for £6m from the £200m fund for Flood and Coastal Resilience. The proposed flood protection projects would also capture water for reuse.
A Carer’s database
A LDGI Group motion received unanimous support from the Council. It will see the Council working with Suffolk Family Carers to create an opt-in register for all carers. They will cease to be invisible! They will be offered increased support and the option to be consulted on key policies that affect carers.
Automatic number plate recognition (ANPR)
Four years ago, Great Blakenham asked me to get an APNR camera on Stowmarket Road. Now, at last, Suffolk County Council is following our lead and working with the police to run a 2-year ANPR camera trial in speeding hot spots. The cameras will be used to detect and deter speeding offences. It will be possible to target driver education on the importance of road safety.
Local councils, with support from their county councillor, will identify sites with problem with speeding or rat-running on roads with a 20 or 30mph speed limit. The devices will be moved between sites and will remain in situ for up to one week per site.
The scheme will operate like community speed watch but on a 24/7 basis. It is a pity there will be only 10 cameras, one per 70,000 of the population, but if this can be used to deter the few drivers who risk our lives and not to target the occasional mistake it will be valuable.
Suffolk Inclusive Growth Investment Fund
As part of the response to the Covid-19 pandemic, Suffolk Public Sector Leaders have established the £1.65m Suffolk Inclusive Growth Investment Fund.
The fund is open to projects which address the significant impact of Covid-19 on Suffolk’s businesses, employees, and the local economy. Projects must be sponsored by either a Suffolk local authority and/or the New Anglia LEP. Thus far £367,292 of the money has been allocated to town centre improvements in Babergh and Mid Suffolk, a multi-media improvement hub in Ipswich, and flexible retail ‘pods’ in West Suffolk.
Highways improvements near schools
Locations around schools across Suffolk have benefitted from new road markings and signs, following an investment of £500,000 from the Highways Investment Fund. Work has been focussed on improving the safety of pupils and parents travelling to and from school, refreshing lines and cleaning and repairing signs in and around school zones. 146 locations had new signs to replace those that were damaged or missing and 218 areas with faded road markings are receiving a refresh. They can find the money at election time!
New sustainable travel website
The Way To Go Suffolk provides information and advice on walking and cycling, public transport, car sharing and electric vehicles. The new website will feature up to date information on how people can travel more sustainably across the county.
SCC plants 102,586 trees in five months
Suffolk County Council committed £228,000 from its Suffolk 2020 Fund to protect biodiversity. Since then it has worked with its farm tenants, The Woodland Trust, Giles Landscapes, The Suffolk Tree Warden Initiative and local communities to ensure that a total of 102,586 saplings have been distributed and planted in the best possible places.
Goodbye
I will continue to write to Blakenham Ward as a district councillor but as I am not standing for the County again after 20 years, I want to wish the rest of the division well. Please go out and vote and make your best judgment on who will serve your interests best for the next 4 years, not just at election time.
john.field@suffolk.gov.uk. 07545423808