Stourport New Walshes Initiative

Jamie Shaw working hard for Stourport and Areley Kings.

Money provided by the Labour government, allocated by the Worcestership Partnership, to be spent on the Walshes estate by a locally-based group, is in the pipeline and should be available from March 2010.

The sum of money involved will be tens of thousands of £s. It will be available for a wide range of projects fitting into a broad definition of “social need”. I see the new Half-Crown Wood Children’s Centre as one potential site for positive community activities. I understand the money can also be spent on Community Safety, such as CCTV, and on environmental improvements.

Membership of the group is yet to be agreed. Wyre Forest District Council will be the monitoring agency.

Stourport Road Closures and essential works.

Jenny Knowles is the Labour Candidate for Lickhill.

Vale Rd, Gilgal, Worcester Rd & Mitton St. 18th Sept – 22nd Nov 2009

Jenny says,

“There is no ideal time to carry out work of this nature. The work, laying new water pipes and electric cables, is essential. As your Lickhill councillor, I will monitor progress regularly, to satisfy myself that work is on schedule. We don’t want work to be carrying on into the Christmas period.”

Phase One : Closure of Vale Road between The Gilgal and Worcester Street

The work to replace the water mains pipe starts at 18.30hrs on Friday 18th September when Vale Road between the Gilgal and Worcester Street will be closed for a section of mains pipe to be installed towards the Gilgal. This will be completed and Vale Road re-opened by 07.00 hrs, Monday 21st September. Access to the Gilgal will still be available along Vale Road from Stourport town centre.

Phase Two : Closure of Gilgal

Work continues to replace the water mains pipe and the street lighting work starts at 07.00 hrs on Monday 21st September : at this point the Gilgal will be closed. The closure will last for five weeks until 18.00 hrs on 25th October. Access to properties along the Gilgal will be available, but there will be no through traffic.

This phase of work will also include a lane closure from Gilgal to the Worcester Road/Hartlebury Road island, also closing the junction with Baldwin Road. Traffic travelling towards Stourport town centre will still be able to use the existing route.

Phase Three : Remaining Works following the Gilgal Re-opening

The work to finish the water pipes renewal and the electricity cable work will start on Monday 26th October and last for four weeks until Sunday 22nd November. One of the two lanes will be closed to allow the work to be done.

The emergency services will have access through the roadworks at all times.

(Text amended from the information booklet prepared by Severn Trent on behalf of all the agencies involved.)

Air Pollution in Stourport High Street

Jenny Knowles is the Labour Candidate for Lickhill.

I am pleased to be able to report developments on the above matter since its inclusion in my “Stourport Manifesto”. Labour pressure at Stourport Town Council level has resulted in a complete reversal in the council’s attitude : a refusal to second a Labour motion in August has become a unanimous expression of concern in September! At last night’s town council meeting, not only was that concern expressed to the district and county councils, but it was coupled with an invitation to Highways chiefs to meet local councillors face-to-face, to discuss traffic management measures which could alleviate the problem.

Labour will keep you informed of what we trust will be progress in the coming months via this website.

New Tory HQ is a Waste of Taxpayers’ Money

Jenny Knowles is the Labour Candidate for Lickhill.

Labour opposes Tory plans to build a “single site” district council headquarters. We have done so ever since the project was first mooted : we believe that there are even stronger grounds for doing so now.

At a time when the very viability of district councils is being questioned, it beggars belief that millions of taxpayers’ money is being reserved for new council offices.

Just look at the uncertain future faced by Wyre Forest District Council

District councils in Shropshire and Herefordshire scrapped
Under pressure to centralise services to save money : currently the district councils in Worcestershire are investigating amalgamation of their Environmental Health and Licensing functions with the county’s Trading Standards
The current WFDC chief executive post is a job share with the county council, suggesting top-flight officers don’t have enough to do at district level.

We believe the new HQ plans to be a waste of your money. As your Lickhill district councillor, I will oppose this irresponsible policy.

Compare and Contrast

Jamie Shaw working hard for Stourport and Areley Kings.

As a councillor, it is gratifying when a policy you have promoted comes to fruition and draws positive comments from people who have no knowledge of your involvement. Such has been the case for me concerning the town centre floral displays provided in recent summers by Wyre Forest District Council. Praise has been expressed by several individuals who have no notion that I was a member of the sub-committee which initiated the recommendation, initially about hanging baskets.

However, that district council sub-committee’s remit was Kidderminster town centre. Floral displays in Stourport are the responsibility of the town council. My view has always been that the standards achieved here have been consistently modest. Recently, I have taken the trouble to consult other residents, albeit only informally, and find that they agree with me. Therefore, I have written to the chairman of the town council’s parks committee, Cllr G Talbot, to request that he compares and contrasts the standards achieved in the two towns. I expect there to be an item on this issue on the next parks committee agenda and I intend to make a forceful case for an improvement towards Kidderminster’s standards.

Stourport Town Council Success

Jamie Shaw working hard for Stourport and Areley Kings.

Recent blogs have been about items I am taking forward from Labour’s county council election campaign in June 09. Here is the position so far.

During discussion of my motion to Stourport Town Council, (5.8.09), about the unsightliness of the road surface in High Street, it was stated that funds were now in place to enable resurfacing to be done soon, (though work will have to be co-ordinated with the major works taking place in Vale Road, Gilgal and Mitton Street). Naturally, having pressed for so long, literally years, for the work to be done, I was pleased to hear this news. Not wishing to sound a sour note, I will put aside my concerns about how the work is to be funded and return to the subject at a later date.

Stourport Town Council……and Disappointment

Jamie Shaw working hard for Stourport and Areley Kings.

Also for debate on 5.8.09 was my motion expressing concern about air quality in High Street. I spoke, acknowledging the differences between the district council’s consultants and other expert opinion. My intention was to stimulate debate, but there was none at this meeting. My motion was not seconded and no-one else spoke! Therefore, the motion goes no further. However, despite my disappointment that Conservative and Health Concern councillors, (the rest of the council), are seemingly unconcerned about this potential threat to public health, I intend to continue to pursue the matter.

Stourport Town Centre conservation Funding

Jamie Shaw working hard for Stourport and Areley Kings.

Much of Stourport town centre comes under the designation “conservation area”, denoting a built environment worthy of preservation for this, and future, generations to enjoy its distinctiveness. Unfortunately, it has to be admitted that many of Stourport’s buildings are less than well-maintained. I believe this to be especially so above ground level. It is a sad fact that property owners in Stourport have not shown the same degree of interest in using public funds to assist them in maintaing their properties as owners elsewhere, in Bewdley, for example.

It should be acknowledged that £58,000 of the grant money currently available has been taken up, but double that amount, £116,000, remains unspent. Moreover, if that sum were to be exhausted, I understand that more could be forthcoming. I was one of the town councillors who, when meeting recently with the district council’s Conservation Officer, urged that further publicity should be given to the existence of the funding available. Surely owners are interested in receiving up to 80% of the cost of refurbishing their properties!

At my instigation, the town council agreed to have an item about the town centre on every monthly agenda. By means of this agenda item, I hope to keep the focus on publicity for the grant funding availabe.

Air Quality in Stourport High Street

Jamie Shaw working hard for Stourport and Areley Kings.

I have read the court judgement in the case presented by the Co-op against the granting of planning permission by the district council for the Tesco Severn Road development. One aspect discussed was the impact on air quality in the High Street of extra traffic expected to be generated by the new store. It is clear that there is a difference of opinion between the district council’s advisers and other, very distiguished, expert opinion. I hope my much-deferred motion on this subject will be debated at the 5th August meeting of the town council. I see it as a means of generating a far-wider debate about the extent of the threat posed to public health in the centre of our town.

Labour’s Goals for Stourport Remain the Same

Jamie Shaw working hard for Stourport and Areley Kings.

During the recent county council election campaign, Labour featured Stourport High Street as a priority for action. We did not convince the voters that our policies were best. Nevertheless, we believe that our message is valid. This blog will reiterate our election priorities over the next few weeks and Labour will continue to strive to get things done in what is the single most important street in our community.

This week’s feature is the road surface of the High Street. It is an eyesore. We believe it shows Tory neglect of the north of the county. Ask yourself : would the main streets of Pershore or Evesham be left like this for years to blight the streetscene? Of course, the county council remains Conservative-controlled, so we can give no guarantees, but Stourport residents can be assured that we will continue to lobby for resurfacing for as long as it takes to be successful.