I have been concerned that the focus on converting three tier schools to two tier would absorb management effort and allow overall standards to fall. This year our schools have again not kept up with national improvement but at last the administration has responded to government pressure. The new school improvement plan identifies the issues, necessary improvements and most importantly the support schools need to make the changes. Our children deserve the best so this is a welcome but overdue step forward.
All posts by johnfield
Care for an Ageing Population
The County is developing “Suffolk Flexicare” which it states, aims to “to focus planners and expert providers on the needs of an ageing population, to bring innovation and more flexibility helping people to remain independent”. This will bring change across the spectrum of care and has both good elements and risk to existing services. I hope that good proven conventional services will not be jeopardised by spend on politically correct innovation.
Speeding Reduction
We are planning to trial vehicle activated electronic signs in the area and measure their effect. I am working on this in a group involving the Police and County Highways. We intend to settle the debate on the most effective way of reducing anti social speeding at an acceptable cost. This will lead to less argument and more action.
The plan is to run the trial in Bramford, Claydon, Gt Blakenham, Henley and Somersham using several approaches. We should have two semi permanent, solar cell powered, 30 mph signs that illuminate when vehicles pass at more than the speed limit and one that displays a vehicle’s speed. There will also be extra speed guns in each Safer Neighbourhood Team area.
One additional permanent sign in this area will be funded by my locality budget for road improvements
10:10 Commitment
At the last meeting of the County Council the Liberal Democrats attempted to sign the council up to the 10:10 campaign, a pledge to show leadership and reduce our carbon emissions by 10% in 2010.
Surprisingly the debate led to the discovery that a number of Conservative members are not convinced that climate change is actually happening! You would think that the almost universal scientific acceptance would have convinced all but those with vested interests.
Instead of a 10% reduction in one year then returning to the administrations target of 4% they stuck to the Greenest County target of just 4% per year
The Waste Core Strategy December 09
The “Waste Core Strategy” has been revised after consultation and on 10th December was approved by the County Council for submission to the Government. This strategy gives the policies by which planning applications for waste processing facilities will be judged and the possible sites for large “strategic” facilities.
Waste quantities are dropping and have saved the County about £1.8million this year and Eastern Region waste estimates are being revised downwards. This should cut the number of waste processing facilities Suffolk needs, particularly when the number of smaller sites that are likely to be built is taken into account.
The County now believes it needs four not five strategic sites and we are heading towards two being sufficient. The chance that Gipping Valley will be faced with two large waste treatment sites in Gt Blakenham and a third at Sproughton is reducing.
I will continue to emphasise this reduced need as we move through the final stages of the plan process. My belief remains that Suffolk’s waste would be better handled nearer to source by smaller more environmentally friendly anerobic digestion plants. However the administration is firmly fixed on an Incinerator (Energr from Waste Plant). Smaller plants that would lend themselves to combined heating and power (CHP) would be less difficult to finance quicker to build and less dominating in our environment.
Signals at Bramford Road / B1113 Junction
The County Highways road safety team has obtained funding to install traffic signals at the B1113 Bramford Road junction in Gt Blakenham. They will control traffic from the Claydon Roundabout turning right towards Gt Blakenham and that from Bramford preventing further serious accidents and fatalities. We should see the signals in place around the end of the financial year.
Waste Strategy
Suffolk is now at the “Final Consultation” stage of its “Waste Core Strategy”. You can make your views known at the County www site. The strategy identifies sites for waste processing facilities and additional landfill capacity. Our main problems are that it seeks to allocate two sites in Gt Blakenham, one for the proposed County Council Incinerator at the Highways Depot and the other for commercial use at Mason’s Quarry. Two sites in the area appear too much even if you accept incineration as an appropriate technology. I do not.
A public fact finding session has been arrange for our area by Suffolk County Council at Gt. Blakenham Village Hall in the form of a drop in session on Tuesday 8th September between the hours of 15.00 hrs and 20.00 hours. Please attend, hear what is intended and make your views heard.
Suffolk Liberal democrats are opposed to Incineration as a means of waste treatment at Gt Blakenham or anywhere else. We have set up a petition at http://suffolkcclibdems.org.uk where you can record your view and ensure we have evidence of local opinion to use in our campaign to get the County Conservatives to change their mind.
Road Safety in Gt Blakenham
Another family has suffered a tragic loss at the B1113 Bramford Road junction in Gt Blakenham. It is difficult to imagine how people must feel and how they can cope after such an event.
The local view was that the road changes introduced in 2001 only solved half the problem at the junction. It was just a matter of time before a severe collision between a right turning vehicle and one from the Bramford direction occurred. However County Highways would not carry out further work – they waited for the changes SnOasis would bring. It is now obvious that we have waited far too long and need action now!
Highways are working with the Police and have reconstructed the tragic events looking for the reason why this junction is worse than other right turns. They have removed some signs that may have contributed and come up with some relatively minor improvement proposals.
I believe that minor changes will not address the core issue and will leave us waiting for yet another tragedy. I have asked them to look at full solutions : a roundabout, traffic signals in a simplified version of the SnOasis plan , or a scheme designed by Liz and Neil Gardiner who have suffered personal family tragedy here and report back to me and to Gt Blakenham within one month.
First Meeting of the New County Council
We spent our first meeting as the main opposition agreeing government mandated changes to the way we operate, hearing who in the administration will be guiding which area of work, the “portfolio holders” and deciding who in our Lib Dem team will be spokesperson on which subjects. Not an exciting or world changing day but a necessary one.
I retain the Chair of the Public Protection Scrutiny Committee which covers the Fire & Rescue Service, Trading Standards, Community Safety and at present Health & Well being.
We have a programme of work laid out but would be interested in sugestions of significant areas where light could be shone to the benifit of Suffolk Residents.
Centre for Public Scrutiny Award
Last year The Suffolk County Public Protection Scrutiny Committee which I chair set up a working party to investigate the strategy set up after the five murders in Ipswich. We wanted to know whether it had been effective, if it was delivering benefits to young women in the same position as the victims, benefits for residents of the neighbourhoods effected and if the strategy was to continue. Ann Whybrow, County Councillor for Stowmarket South chaired the working party, and ensured the task was well done and came to a sound set of recommendations.
It was good to receive, with Ann on June 9th, the Centre for Public Scrutiny’s Overall Impact through Scrutiny Award – chosen by the whole judging panel, on behalf of Suffolk County Council, Ipswich Borough Council and Suffolk Police Authority for the Review of the prostitution strategy. Of course a number of other agencies, individuals and dedicated front line officers contributed to the scrutiny review as they had to the formulation of the strategy and carrying it out.
I hope our efforts contributed in a small way to ensuring the work to help people improve their lives in the aftermath of the terrible events, continues.