With so many young people having to hang around the streets, members of our local police team have been whisking them up and taking the youngsters to the Snooker Hall in Stirchley where they have been coached in playing the game properly and now run regular tournaments amongst themselves and with local police officers.
Well done to all of the Police Team who have worked with these youngsters in their own time, we all appreciate your work.
It’s that time of year again, when Councils begin to set the Council Tax figure for the coming year.
Here in Birmingham, where the Conservatives have been in control for the past six years, £2.5 BILLION of borrowing has taken place in six years and general revenue overspend of £50 Million, for this year alone. All of this adds up to EVERY household paying £30 to pay for Birmingham Council’s interest on the loans alone.
I mention this, so that you can watch out for serious cuts in Council services and major redundancies, already expected to be in excess of 2,000 front line workers this coming year, because some people can’t manage our money properly.
In addition they are expected to close almost ALL day-care nurseries, which will result in either one of the parents having to give up work to look after the child, as almost all of the places are taken by low paid workers children.
It really is a shame, but it seems that ‘The Gardeners Weekend’ event at Kings Heath Park, each September, won’t be happening this year. This well established NATIONAL show has had its funding stopped by Birmingham Conservative controlled Council, who feel that it’s not worth doing. What annoyed many of us is the way the news has got out, many keen gardeners still aren’t aware.
What people have been made aware of, are the cuts being made with Park Rangers and their teams. The council want to move them to Cannon Hill Park and cut almost half the numbers, but who will then teach us and our children about wildlife, plants and archeologically history in our area?
I've put an e-petition on the Council's website if anyone wants to sign it.
http://epetition.birmingham.public-i.tv/petition.php?id=81
I mentioned in my December blog, what a difference removing detritus (that's the dust and debris which builds up over YEARS) and the overgrowing grass from verges on to pavements made to the appearance of the area.
Well the past few weeks has seen street cleaning crews sprucing up the area, removing grass, overgrowing from the verges and piles of dirt from gutters and parts of the pavements, other crews have been out removing or painting over graffiti and clearing away rubbish dumped around the area, along with litter picking. This work has really made a difference to the way our area looks and after talking to a large number of residents, very pleasing to everyone.
Your three local councillors along with the Ward Advisory Board have been looking at applications from local groups and schemes to spend the areas allocation of ‘Community Chest Funds’. It’s not a great deal of money, but enough to help small groups who have difficulty accessing funds. What surprised me and the other members of the board was that the two Conservative Councillors wanted to take 25% of this money to support council cuts being made centrally, there was a little revolt and they soon came back in to line. That is not what this funding is about.
However, the last word will and does remain with your three local councillors who will be meeting in late March at a Ward Committee, to consider the agreed funding proposals, so let’s all hope the two conservative councillors listened to the resident’s views and not have their own agenda.
The council has started to consult residents on proposed changes it wishes to make around the Howard Road and Alcester Road South traffic junction, to make matters better for pedestrians. Whilst I can see some merit in doing this, I’m unable to get them to reconsider their decision NOT to do anything for the Taylor Road – Woodthorpe Road junction at Alcester Lanes End, which is ludicrous, with many motorists taking their life in their own hands, particularly at peak times
A retrospective planning application to create a hot food take-away at 156 Woodthorpe Road, which I have made an objection to, was approved at this weeks Planning Committee.
Whilst I fully understand the concerns of a couple of residents who wanted this application to get approval. My objections were that their had already been approval given some years ago, but never carried through by the landlord, leaving the site looking a right mess.
If permission had failed, then perhaps another type of business would have taken on the premises and worked to partially regenerate this small shopping parade.
