Last week I chaired the Full Council meeting of Tamworth Borough Council. Part of the agenda is for the Mayor, Leader, Cabinet or Chief Exec to make announcements, this year I decided to use this opportunity to make sure we say Thank you to the councillors who have either retired or did not get re-elected.
I have always felt that it is a tragic shame for outgoing councillors to simply leave without mention. Well they get a letter asking them to return their badge and laptop, doesn't even warn them that the door may hit their backside on the way out. So as simple as the gesture is I had some certificates printed which I signed and framed, these thanked the former councillor on behalf of the people of Tamworth and listed their terms of office.
Mr Martyn Price served on the council from 2007 to 2011
Mr Ben Price served on the council from 2007 to 2011
Mr Steven Nicklin served on the council from 2007 to 2011
Mr John Wells has served a number of terms totalling 24 years on the council retiring in 2011
There names will be recorded in a set of minutes which their children or grandchildren may never see, In fact John Wells has also been Mayor so will have more recognition in local history but still little. I hope the certificates I gave out will give them some pride that they can share with their kids and grand kids in years to come.
Simple gift but a Thank you and the respect they deserve.
Tuesday, 24 May 2011
Monday, 23 May 2011
Tamworth Unicorns Swimming Gala
Tamworth Unicorns website
On Saturday I was invited to attend the 35th Annual swimming Gala organised by Tamworth Unicorns, for those who do not know this group provided swimming coaching for disabled people. This Gala attracted swimmers from all over the midlands.
During the evening we watched 58 races and 4 relays all except 2 were 25 meters or one length of the Peaks pool or should that be snowdome. The effort and dedication shown was tremendous, due to different levels of ability there were staggered starts with some competitors having up to 20 seconds head start and still finishing in a tight finish. The thing that I noticed from this staggered start was the shear time some of them spent in the water, they may not have been the fastest swimmer in the world but the effort and stamina they put in was huge. they just kept going until they finished regardless of their position.
When i was younger I attended Moorgate infants school where the school motto was "there is a Can in Can't" these people Saturday night proved this.
I was privileged to hand out some of the medals and must say that Tamworth swimmers received a fair few. This was a great opportunity for my to see the sheer delight in the faces of those receiving medals but also their team mates who were all really pleased for each other.
Apart from mentioning the great efforts of the swimmers who performed so determinedly and well on Saturday but I feel I must pay tribute to the coaches and organisers, some of which were also disabled and some who were parents of disabled people. Their love and dedication to that club is fantastic. these people are truly hero's in Tamworth and the midlands not only improving swimming skills but also elevating spirits of the community.
Saturday was truly fantastic and a real pleasure to attend
During the evening we watched 58 races and 4 relays all except 2 were 25 meters or one length of the Peaks pool or should that be snowdome. The effort and dedication shown was tremendous, due to different levels of ability there were staggered starts with some competitors having up to 20 seconds head start and still finishing in a tight finish. The thing that I noticed from this staggered start was the shear time some of them spent in the water, they may not have been the fastest swimmer in the world but the effort and stamina they put in was huge. they just kept going until they finished regardless of their position.
When i was younger I attended Moorgate infants school where the school motto was "there is a Can in Can't" these people Saturday night proved this.
I was privileged to hand out some of the medals and must say that Tamworth swimmers received a fair few. This was a great opportunity for my to see the sheer delight in the faces of those receiving medals but also their team mates who were all really pleased for each other.
Apart from mentioning the great efforts of the swimmers who performed so determinedly and well on Saturday but I feel I must pay tribute to the coaches and organisers, some of which were also disabled and some who were parents of disabled people. Their love and dedication to that club is fantastic. these people are truly hero's in Tamworth and the midlands not only improving swimming skills but also elevating spirits of the community.
Saturday was truly fantastic and a real pleasure to attend
Thursday, 19 May 2011
Land Locked Tamworth, it's Mayor and the RNLI
This week I Jeremy Oates swore an oath and became Mayor of the Borough of Tamworth. This was for me possibly the most emotional Council Meeting I have attended. Nerves played like never before and to say I feel proud and honoured is simply an understatement. I have lived in Tamworth all my life and coming from a political background the Mayor of Tamworth has always been someone I have looked upto and aspired to. two days later and I am still pinching myself.
As Mayor of Tamworth one of the roles is to choose a charity and raise money for throughout the year, This year I have chosen the RNLI and i thought it might be useful to explain here why I have chosen this particular group.
Within the UK it is difficult to get further away from the sea than we are in Tamworth but as I do there are hundred possible thousands on people from Tamworth who visit the uk coast line every year and for me that means it's only time before the RNLI will be involved in a rescue involving the a resident of Tamworth. Along with this the RNLI is also the charity my gran left money to when she passed away and she was a great supporter of them, I'm pleased to support the same charity as my gran did.
We all talk about the value of volunteering and this should not be diluted, for me the lifeboat men of the uk are a fantastic example of what I have termed "Extreme Volunteering" they go out in awful conditions at their own risk and no income to rescue the lives of other.
I recall a story from my childhood which to me is a story of fantastic heroism and bravery I can only dream of, this is the story of the Penlee lifeboat on the night of the 19th December 1981.
Only 5 nights before christmas a call was recievd by the falmouth coast guard that the union star, a brand new gargo ship, had lost it's engines and could not restart them. That night the weather was horrendous and worsening, a call was put out to the crew of the Penlee lifeboat in the village of Mousehole cornwall, who sped to the rescue in the boat above. These guys displayed a selflessness and command of the seas that has me in tears just to think of. that night events happened quickely and some of those on the union star made it to the life boat, this life boat then stayed on the scene to rescue the rest when tragedy struck and took the lives of all on board the union star and the volunteers on the Penlee lifeboat.
I have missed alot out of this story but remember it from my childhood and remember being in cornwall when th new lifeboat was delivered. I am can not start to comprehend the selflessness of these men and their families. whilst I will not be collecting for any Penlee memorial I feel this story of heroism should be told and this year I will be supporting the RNLI and the volunteers who genuinely put their own lives at risk for other simply because they want to.
As Mayor of Tamworth one of the roles is to choose a charity and raise money for throughout the year, This year I have chosen the RNLI and i thought it might be useful to explain here why I have chosen this particular group.
Within the UK it is difficult to get further away from the sea than we are in Tamworth but as I do there are hundred possible thousands on people from Tamworth who visit the uk coast line every year and for me that means it's only time before the RNLI will be involved in a rescue involving the a resident of Tamworth. Along with this the RNLI is also the charity my gran left money to when she passed away and she was a great supporter of them, I'm pleased to support the same charity as my gran did.
We all talk about the value of volunteering and this should not be diluted, for me the lifeboat men of the uk are a fantastic example of what I have termed "Extreme Volunteering" they go out in awful conditions at their own risk and no income to rescue the lives of other.
I recall a story from my childhood which to me is a story of fantastic heroism and bravery I can only dream of, this is the story of the Penlee lifeboat on the night of the 19th December 1981.
I have missed alot out of this story but remember it from my childhood and remember being in cornwall when th new lifeboat was delivered. I am can not start to comprehend the selflessness of these men and their families. whilst I will not be collecting for any Penlee memorial I feel this story of heroism should be told and this year I will be supporting the RNLI and the volunteers who genuinely put their own lives at risk for other simply because they want to.
Friday, 13 May 2011
May Concerts, Brass, Woodwind, Strings and Saxophone
Tamworth Performing Arts Centre
Amington Band
In just 3 days I was privileged enough to be invited to 2 concerts displaying the fantastic talents that Tamworth manages so well to hide. This week not only have I enjoyed two great shows but I have also learnt about two sets of people who I knew existed but didn't really grasp what they do.
Amington Band
In just 3 days I was privileged enough to be invited to 2 concerts displaying the fantastic talents that Tamworth manages so well to hide. This week not only have I enjoyed two great shows but I have also learnt about two sets of people who I knew existed but didn't really grasp what they do.
Friday, 29 April 2011
Royal Wedding
Every young girl in the country will at some stage dream of a fairytale wedding and marrying a prince, in Great Britain it really happens.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/in-pictures-13231282
I suppose I must be a royalist but I don;t think on a day like today it matters, we are currently the today the envy of the world, we have a strong democratic system and a monarch, where else in the world would you have such a huge event like a Great British Royal Wedding.
This country is built on it's traditions and to join in and watch, celebrate the royal wedding is for me what makes us British.
Going to get soppy now so will end with that
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/in-pictures-13231282
I suppose I must be a royalist but I don;t think on a day like today it matters, we are currently the today the envy of the world, we have a strong democratic system and a monarch, where else in the world would you have such a huge event like a Great British Royal Wedding.
This country is built on it's traditions and to join in and watch, celebrate the royal wedding is for me what makes us British.
Going to get soppy now so will end with that
Thursday, 28 April 2011
Savings Verses Cuts
With election fever gripping the nation and the media getting all excited about providing a 'balanced view' I thought I would take the opportunity to talk about how myth, rumour and hype are running away with us.
This year (as I have already covered) the council tax bills for the people of Tamworth have not increased and there have been no cuts to services. however in order to achieve this there has been some savings made over the last 7 years and to make savings as everyone knows you have to change the way you do things. Recently there has been some scaremongering about the numbers of police in Tamworth and we have a statement from the local commander to state that this is not the case. so how does the public sector make savings without cuts to services.
The way I look at it is reasonably simple, I want better services costing less, so somewhere savings must be made either without cutting services or where possible making them better. The police argument is a great one as the public has said for years they want more police on the street and officers top spend less time in the office doing paperwork and feeding process chains. So with the savings that must be made to get this country back to where it should be the police are looking at and changing the processes they perform thus allowing more police on the street without the cost of extra personal. So doing what the public have asked of them changed systems to make savings without reducing the number of police on the street, and reducing the huge amount of paperwork generated by a simple arrest.
Another example I can think of is the new waste management system that Tamworth Borough Council and Lichfield District Council have joined forces on.
It would be wrong of me to comment on the savings over cuts argument without mentioning swimming. Now in Tamworth we have the chance of free swimming at Wilnecote Leisure centre for the first time ever and we still have the same services we had at peaks before the sale. The difference is we are getting those services at Peaks for only £70k per year and not the £600k that it was costing the tax payer of Tamworth. Peaks needed over £1m spending on it at the time of sale to keep it running. The extra investment needed has been put in place by the new owners and the swimming facilities, gym, sports halls are brighter, better and more used than ever still at affordable cost, so a saving and again a better service.
My last example of a saving has to be the opportunity costs of running 2 outlets in the town centre at different times of the day rather than one building. The new TIC in the Phil Dix centre took more money in the first day than the old one in nearly a week, it is bigger and brighter and has most to offer than the old one could giving the opportunity to develop the service further.
So now onto cuts, for me cuts should only be made if a service is under used and not just for cash savings. My approach to the council is simple money is a scarce resource and as councillors we have to allocate that scarce resource correctly. It is not easy to run all services at a profit and this is where the council should be taking up the slack, but for me we should not be providing the same services as shops and local business.
I don't want see any cuts to services that are used but I do want to see less paperwork and better services.
I think that's enough for now because I'll end up listing and dispelling some of the local myths of present
This year (as I have already covered) the council tax bills for the people of Tamworth have not increased and there have been no cuts to services. however in order to achieve this there has been some savings made over the last 7 years and to make savings as everyone knows you have to change the way you do things. Recently there has been some scaremongering about the numbers of police in Tamworth and we have a statement from the local commander to state that this is not the case. so how does the public sector make savings without cuts to services.
The way I look at it is reasonably simple, I want better services costing less, so somewhere savings must be made either without cutting services or where possible making them better. The police argument is a great one as the public has said for years they want more police on the street and officers top spend less time in the office doing paperwork and feeding process chains. So with the savings that must be made to get this country back to where it should be the police are looking at and changing the processes they perform thus allowing more police on the street without the cost of extra personal. So doing what the public have asked of them changed systems to make savings without reducing the number of police on the street, and reducing the huge amount of paperwork generated by a simple arrest.
Another example I can think of is the new waste management system that Tamworth Borough Council and Lichfield District Council have joined forces on.
- The new service launched last year saves over £500k per year.
- All Tamworth Bins are done in half a week.
- All dry recycling is mixed
- More items can be recycled
- Food waste can be collected every week.
It would be wrong of me to comment on the savings over cuts argument without mentioning swimming. Now in Tamworth we have the chance of free swimming at Wilnecote Leisure centre for the first time ever and we still have the same services we had at peaks before the sale. The difference is we are getting those services at Peaks for only £70k per year and not the £600k that it was costing the tax payer of Tamworth. Peaks needed over £1m spending on it at the time of sale to keep it running. The extra investment needed has been put in place by the new owners and the swimming facilities, gym, sports halls are brighter, better and more used than ever still at affordable cost, so a saving and again a better service.
My last example of a saving has to be the opportunity costs of running 2 outlets in the town centre at different times of the day rather than one building. The new TIC in the Phil Dix centre took more money in the first day than the old one in nearly a week, it is bigger and brighter and has most to offer than the old one could giving the opportunity to develop the service further.
So now onto cuts, for me cuts should only be made if a service is under used and not just for cash savings. My approach to the council is simple money is a scarce resource and as councillors we have to allocate that scarce resource correctly. It is not easy to run all services at a profit and this is where the council should be taking up the slack, but for me we should not be providing the same services as shops and local business.
I don't want see any cuts to services that are used but I do want to see less paperwork and better services.
I think that's enough for now because I'll end up listing and dispelling some of the local myths of present
Tuesday, 26 April 2011
Jeremy's got it wrong again
Can I just breifly clarify a mistake I have made on here.
It was in fact Ian Gibbons who set up and created the St Georges's Day celebrations that have been held in St Editha's square for years.
I did not know this and I apologise to Ian for not giving him the credit he deserves for this.
It was in fact Ian Gibbons who set up and created the St Georges's Day celebrations that have been held in St Editha's square for years.
I did not know this and I apologise to Ian for not giving him the credit he deserves for this.
Thursday, 21 April 2011
St. Georges Day celebrations
Once again this weekend Tamworth Borough Council will be delivering another fantastic Free event to celebrate St. Georges Day, whilst reading the promotional material I remembered the difficulty we had getting the event started. This year the thought of a bank holiday for to celebrate our patron saint also crossed my mind and how would it possibly have fit into Easter, royal weddings and may bank holidays.
Tamworth has for years had St Georges day celebrated with the kind help of local volunteers in St Editha's square and not only were we grateful for what they did we also didn't want to take that away from them( I would name them but I'm really not good with names and have forgotten them, the gent that runs the cooked meat stall in the indoor market organised most of it). When I was leader of the council the now leader of the council came to me and said we should look at doing something about celebrating St. Georges Day and off we went to discuss it with officers at the council. the initial response we got was not as positive as we had expected but was based on common sense. Once again the proposals of a pair of 30 something year olds had been clouded by the behaviour of others in other areas in the past and the hijacking of St. Georges Day by shall we say fascism. This left us with a small problem, how to push the idea further without causing trouble or providing opportunity for trouble
St George's Day in Tamworth has become a great family day of celebration, this is the theme that Tamworth Borough Council strives for in all its outdoor events, they are about bringing the people of Tamworth together to celebrate our history. Over the last few years we have seen one and two days events, activities in the old lido building, civil war re enactments and so much more. The thing I love about all of this is that in Tamworth St George's Day is really an annual celebration as are other patron saints in Wales and Ireland etc and they are a family affair.
The reason we can do this is down to some clear determination from politicians and a can do attitude from staff at Tamworth Borough Council.
I'm looking forward to taking the kids to the Castle Grounds this weekend and hope to see many other families in Tamworth enjoying the weather and free event,
Have a good weekend.
Tamworth has for years had St Georges day celebrated with the kind help of local volunteers in St Editha's square and not only were we grateful for what they did we also didn't want to take that away from them( I would name them but I'm really not good with names and have forgotten them, the gent that runs the cooked meat stall in the indoor market organised most of it). When I was leader of the council the now leader of the council came to me and said we should look at doing something about celebrating St. Georges Day and off we went to discuss it with officers at the council. the initial response we got was not as positive as we had expected but was based on common sense. Once again the proposals of a pair of 30 something year olds had been clouded by the behaviour of others in other areas in the past and the hijacking of St. Georges Day by shall we say fascism. This left us with a small problem, how to push the idea further without causing trouble or providing opportunity for trouble
St George's Day in Tamworth has become a great family day of celebration, this is the theme that Tamworth Borough Council strives for in all its outdoor events, they are about bringing the people of Tamworth together to celebrate our history. Over the last few years we have seen one and two days events, activities in the old lido building, civil war re enactments and so much more. The thing I love about all of this is that in Tamworth St George's Day is really an annual celebration as are other patron saints in Wales and Ireland etc and they are a family affair.
The reason we can do this is down to some clear determination from politicians and a can do attitude from staff at Tamworth Borough Council.
I'm looking forward to taking the kids to the Castle Grounds this weekend and hope to see many other families in Tamworth enjoying the weather and free event,
Have a good weekend.
Wednesday, 20 April 2011
Bring Back Our Gold, Glascote Torc
It's been around 2 years since the Staffordshire Hoard was discovered just down the road and triggered a modern day gold rush with all sorts of local authorities trying to get in on the action or raise funds to acquire the collection.
This year the hoard will be coming to Tamworth castle allowing people to see it for FREE, tickets are available at the new Tamworth Information Centre and are just for crowd management. This is a fantastic thing for Tamworth and serves a s a great reminder of some of the history we have to offer, remember and celebrate. Tamworth has a colourful history, which other people will know better than I, including evidence of Saxons, a Norman castle, Sir Robert Peel, Thomas Guy and so on, all of which have helped shape Tamworth as a place. For me there is one thing missing from the above list and it is something I spoke about at a cabinet meeting in 2004, I want to see the Glascote Torc brought back home and back to Tamworth.
The Glascote Torc is currently ( I believe) in storage at Birmingham Museum, (click this link). The fight to bring it back to Tamworth has gone on before and has been raised in the local press a number of times, it was actually a relative of Tamworth's Mayor Lee Bates who found the Torc which became treasure trove and went to Birmingham.
So why do I want it back now? Well the Staffordshire Hoard will be coming to Tamworth this August with an amount of security around it and the argument has always been we don't have anywhere secure to display it (it has been said for at least 5 years now that this is no longer the case) so why not put the two together and let the people of Tamworth see the Glascote Torc in Tamworth this August. It's our history let's celebrate it together in it's rightful home and along side the Staffordshire Hoard.
So please re post this and lets start a campaign to get our Torc back.
This year the hoard will be coming to Tamworth castle allowing people to see it for FREE, tickets are available at the new Tamworth Information Centre and are just for crowd management. This is a fantastic thing for Tamworth and serves a s a great reminder of some of the history we have to offer, remember and celebrate. Tamworth has a colourful history, which other people will know better than I, including evidence of Saxons, a Norman castle, Sir Robert Peel, Thomas Guy and so on, all of which have helped shape Tamworth as a place. For me there is one thing missing from the above list and it is something I spoke about at a cabinet meeting in 2004, I want to see the Glascote Torc brought back home and back to Tamworth.
So why do I want it back now? Well the Staffordshire Hoard will be coming to Tamworth this August with an amount of security around it and the argument has always been we don't have anywhere secure to display it (it has been said for at least 5 years now that this is no longer the case) so why not put the two together and let the people of Tamworth see the Glascote Torc in Tamworth this August. It's our history let's celebrate it together in it's rightful home and along side the Staffordshire Hoard.
So please re post this and lets start a campaign to get our Torc back.
Wednesday, 13 April 2011
Bus Passes for Young and Old
This year the Bus pass over pensioners recieve has been returned to the service they deserve in Tamworth, 24 hours a Day 7 days a week, this has been done by moving the responsibility of the Bus Passes to the county council.
Also as from June evryone under 20 years old will be able to have a bus pass in staffordshire that will allow them to make a bus trip for no more than One Pound.
Just thought you might like know.
Also as from June evryone under 20 years old will be able to have a bus pass in staffordshire that will allow them to make a bus trip for no more than One Pound.
Just thought you might like know.
St Editha's Square Canopy
A few years ago the borough council built a tent top or canopy in St. Editha's square, at the time it was perceived that this would hide the frontage of the first floor of the indoor market and provide a space for performance, cafe culture and including space for the market. This never really started with the exception of some lectures that were organised by a good willed local couple.
Councillors were aware it wasn't working but late last year it was time something was done to rescue the investment. The committee I am chairman of set about defining a purpose for this structure and attempted to put a strategy together for usage and promotion. Last week Cabinet accepted the committees suggestion and so the st Editha's square canopy now has a purpose.
We found that there was very little interest in running cafes underneath ands so have suggested the council does not pursue that avenue but considers any approach for cafe use. The council will now improve the way they advertise the canopy and push for more usages as a display/performance space, a place to advertise large goods like cars etc and house the markets.
The key thing we found was that currently the council does not push the canopy as it should and so we have suggested this improves and that groups such as schools and youth groups should be made aware that it is let able.
So look out for more usage, better signage and easier booking for the canopy.
A nice piece of scrutiny work there I think.
Councillors were aware it wasn't working but late last year it was time something was done to rescue the investment. The committee I am chairman of set about defining a purpose for this structure and attempted to put a strategy together for usage and promotion. Last week Cabinet accepted the committees suggestion and so the st Editha's square canopy now has a purpose.
We found that there was very little interest in running cafes underneath ands so have suggested the council does not pursue that avenue but considers any approach for cafe use. The council will now improve the way they advertise the canopy and push for more usages as a display/performance space, a place to advertise large goods like cars etc and house the markets.
The key thing we found was that currently the council does not push the canopy as it should and so we have suggested this improves and that groups such as schools and youth groups should be made aware that it is let able.
So look out for more usage, better signage and easier booking for the canopy.
A nice piece of scrutiny work there I think.
Saturday, 2 April 2011
Sitting Thinking in Traffic
Earlier I was queuing in the traffic caused by Ventura Park and had the time to think a little about the traffic I was in. I don't think I could see any commercial vans or lorries so all these cars are taking people to and from Ventura of Tamworth for either leisure or shopping, that has to be a success story for Tamworth.
The downside is the Traffic I have talked about, every weekend Ventura grind to a snails pace and for many years nothing has been done about it. This year things are going to change.
In a few weeks work will start on the two roundabouts where problems occur, this will see traffic lights installed on the roundabouts and while the works go on this is going to be hellish but once finished some benefits and improvement will be seen. The traffic will still remain at Ventura and there will still be queues BUT with traffic lights every cycle there will be gaps created in the traffic so where as now we are reliant of drivers finding gaps in the traffic gaps will be created. These Traffic lights will also monitor traffic flows and respond accordingly giving priority to the queue that need clearing quickest or is longest.
So you will still queue but you will queue for less time.
The success of Ventura park is fantastic for the local economy but without massive investment I fear the traffic issues will never be completely removed, almost a price of success. but works can be done to help and assist the driver going through the retail park, this year new lights will be put in along with new units to towards the Bonehill road side and by the CIN building, this will improve and grow Tamworth's retail offer. Once this is done traffic studies can be done and future changes to other exits to ventura could be funded and built. I know it's a long process but each step will make an improvement.
Whilst talking about Ventura it would be wrong not to mention the town centre, this area has a different offer to ventura, smaller shops selling different products etc. i would love to see the town centre as busy as it was when I was growing up and I hope that when the Henry boot development is complete it will be. I must remind people that the council didn't own the old precinct or the land it stood on, it was privately owned.
We had some great shops in the town centre and still have some great building these need to be preserved and this will only happen if we use them, the delays in the redevelopment do frustrate me but i know it's a marathon not a sprint.
Wouldn't it be nice to have the town centre as busy as Ventura.
I think the message I am sending out here is improvements are coming, they may not be quick or provide a utopia but they will provide further improvements to or town
The downside is the Traffic I have talked about, every weekend Ventura grind to a snails pace and for many years nothing has been done about it. This year things are going to change.
In a few weeks work will start on the two roundabouts where problems occur, this will see traffic lights installed on the roundabouts and while the works go on this is going to be hellish but once finished some benefits and improvement will be seen. The traffic will still remain at Ventura and there will still be queues BUT with traffic lights every cycle there will be gaps created in the traffic so where as now we are reliant of drivers finding gaps in the traffic gaps will be created. These Traffic lights will also monitor traffic flows and respond accordingly giving priority to the queue that need clearing quickest or is longest.
So you will still queue but you will queue for less time.
The success of Ventura park is fantastic for the local economy but without massive investment I fear the traffic issues will never be completely removed, almost a price of success. but works can be done to help and assist the driver going through the retail park, this year new lights will be put in along with new units to towards the Bonehill road side and by the CIN building, this will improve and grow Tamworth's retail offer. Once this is done traffic studies can be done and future changes to other exits to ventura could be funded and built. I know it's a long process but each step will make an improvement.
Whilst talking about Ventura it would be wrong not to mention the town centre, this area has a different offer to ventura, smaller shops selling different products etc. i would love to see the town centre as busy as it was when I was growing up and I hope that when the Henry boot development is complete it will be. I must remind people that the council didn't own the old precinct or the land it stood on, it was privately owned.
We had some great shops in the town centre and still have some great building these need to be preserved and this will only happen if we use them, the delays in the redevelopment do frustrate me but i know it's a marathon not a sprint.
Wouldn't it be nice to have the town centre as busy as Ventura.
I think the message I am sending out here is improvements are coming, they may not be quick or provide a utopia but they will provide further improvements to or town
Wednesday, 23 February 2011
0% council Tax increases for Tamworth
At last nights Full Council meeting Tamworth Borough Council finalised the last segment of the council tax bills for the people of Tamworth and council tax bill are set to remain as they were last year. Before I go on to raise a few feelings about last nights comments I must remind anyone who is struggling to pay bills there is help out there. . . (TamCan and Credit Union on King St . or TBC benefits, housing and council tax teams). .
So whats behind the 0% council tax rise?
Some say it's only been done because the government has said it should and have given a grant. The fact of the matter is that yes the government have said if a council freezes council tax they will provide a grant of the equivalent to what 2.5% would have been, but at the same time they also said you could increase council tax by up to 3.5% before being capped. So there was still a choice and a decision to be made. In Tamworth we are in a fortunate position as the council could afford to accept the 2.5% grant and 0% council tax without any direct cuts to front line services and so did not need to consider a rise between 2.6 and 3.5%.
There is one myth that needs killing and that is the myth that "the last government increased the grants to TBC general fund by millions", what actually happened was a benefits grant that used to be included in the housing account moved to the general fund but still went straight through the council from government to benefit claimants, it just showed up in a different place.
The next question that arises must be how can the council achieve this?
In my humble opinion it has been achieved by years of constant reviewing of how services are delivered. Examples of this include lease and management schemes for the golf course (135k saving per year) and the transfer of Peaks (£600k savings per year) but there are also examples of services being brought back to the council after 25 years of private contractors, here I am referring to the waste management arrangement with Lichfield which returns the control of the bin collections to the council and also generates a saving. the reason I include this is that often the council are accused of simply acting on ideology and currently outsourcing everything this is simply not the case and the bin collections moving back into the Public Sector is further evidence that the current controlling group do not act on impulse but act as a result of review and drive to improve services and gain savings.
To an extent there is a little element of ideology included in what the council group does and that is simply based on getting the right and best people to deliver services while the council acts to facilitate this and ensure better services are delivered, this does not mean the council has to deliver them, some of the best people to deliver services are private companies, volunteers or other public services operating in similar areas.
The Borough Council (has 30 members) has over the years gained huge amounts of income by taking advantage of higher interest rates and this has been part of the way in which the council has now put itself in the position of being able to afford no council tax increase and NO direct cuts to services. The council has always put our money into banks who have had the correct level of rating, on one occasion this advice proved to be problematic and some finance is still frozen however the income achieved contributes to the day to day running of the council, this isn't about gambling this is about storing our money till its needed. The example i use is if we have a grant at the start of the year we can't give the staff all of their wages in one go for work they haven't done yet so we store the money, Tamworth has been lucky to have received such good income for years now which has put us on this even keel for the medium term plan.
We all want better services and in this climate it is great that in Tamworth there are no cuts to services, no library closures, no compulsary redundancies at the borough, 24/7 concessionary fares, £1 travel for young people, free swimming at Wilnecote, constantly improving outdoor events, better customer services in housing allocations . . the list goes on.
This seems too long now so I'll Stop, may come back later.
Well done to all those who have brought us a freeze in my council tax bill.
So whats behind the 0% council tax rise?
Some say it's only been done because the government has said it should and have given a grant. The fact of the matter is that yes the government have said if a council freezes council tax they will provide a grant of the equivalent to what 2.5% would have been, but at the same time they also said you could increase council tax by up to 3.5% before being capped. So there was still a choice and a decision to be made. In Tamworth we are in a fortunate position as the council could afford to accept the 2.5% grant and 0% council tax without any direct cuts to front line services and so did not need to consider a rise between 2.6 and 3.5%.
There is one myth that needs killing and that is the myth that "the last government increased the grants to TBC general fund by millions", what actually happened was a benefits grant that used to be included in the housing account moved to the general fund but still went straight through the council from government to benefit claimants, it just showed up in a different place.
The next question that arises must be how can the council achieve this?
In my humble opinion it has been achieved by years of constant reviewing of how services are delivered. Examples of this include lease and management schemes for the golf course (135k saving per year) and the transfer of Peaks (£600k savings per year) but there are also examples of services being brought back to the council after 25 years of private contractors, here I am referring to the waste management arrangement with Lichfield which returns the control of the bin collections to the council and also generates a saving. the reason I include this is that often the council are accused of simply acting on ideology and currently outsourcing everything this is simply not the case and the bin collections moving back into the Public Sector is further evidence that the current controlling group do not act on impulse but act as a result of review and drive to improve services and gain savings.
To an extent there is a little element of ideology included in what the council group does and that is simply based on getting the right and best people to deliver services while the council acts to facilitate this and ensure better services are delivered, this does not mean the council has to deliver them, some of the best people to deliver services are private companies, volunteers or other public services operating in similar areas.
The Borough Council (has 30 members) has over the years gained huge amounts of income by taking advantage of higher interest rates and this has been part of the way in which the council has now put itself in the position of being able to afford no council tax increase and NO direct cuts to services. The council has always put our money into banks who have had the correct level of rating, on one occasion this advice proved to be problematic and some finance is still frozen however the income achieved contributes to the day to day running of the council, this isn't about gambling this is about storing our money till its needed. The example i use is if we have a grant at the start of the year we can't give the staff all of their wages in one go for work they haven't done yet so we store the money, Tamworth has been lucky to have received such good income for years now which has put us on this even keel for the medium term plan.
We all want better services and in this climate it is great that in Tamworth there are no cuts to services, no library closures, no compulsary redundancies at the borough, 24/7 concessionary fares, £1 travel for young people, free swimming at Wilnecote, constantly improving outdoor events, better customer services in housing allocations . . the list goes on.
This seems too long now so I'll Stop, may come back later.
Well done to all those who have brought us a freeze in my council tax bill.
Saturday, 15 January 2011
Endless Road works
It seems that every where you turn in Tamworth there is somone either digging up or repairing the road. It
amazes me to think how much stuff there is under there electricity, water, gas, telecoms, cable tv, fibre
optics, sewers, sufface drainage and then enough aggregates to support the road and vechiles above all of
which seems to need constant support, mix in a little ice and chaos ensues.
This time of year the county council runs round desperatly trying to fill in potholes in the road based on
spare capacity and whilst in need of some maintenance does a great job of bringing traffic together and
amazes me to think how much stuff there is under there electricity, water, gas, telecoms, cable tv, fibre
optics, sewers, sufface drainage and then enough aggregates to support the road and vechiles above all of
which seems to need constant support, mix in a little ice and chaos ensues.
This time of year the county council runs round desperatly trying to fill in potholes in the road based on
their severity, yet when a planned maintenance takes place or the roads are surface dressed to stop
potholes we all moan about the inconvenience we rarely link the 2 elements.
So what am I getting to?
February is going to bring temporary road closures to two of the bridges on the Bolebridge Egg for
maintenaince, these will be done consectutively to reduce disruption but I know I will be one of those So what am I getting to?
February is going to bring temporary road closures to two of the bridges on the Bolebridge Egg for
moaning when it takes me an extra minute or so to get where I'm going. The works are part of essential
maintenaince and will secure the future of the bridges, including following works which can be done below
the deck of the bridges.
The disruption this will cause is testiment to the excellent bit of planning in the late 1970's and early 1980's
that brought us this fit for purpose highway network. 30 years after opening the Bolebridge Egg still has The disruption this will cause is testiment to the excellent bit of planning in the late 1970's and early 1980's
spare capacity and whilst in need of some maintenance does a great job of bringing traffic together and
distributing it efficently. Not being old enough to remember how this was achieved I look to my elders for
advice but this has made me think, if this was to be tried in recent years would we have been able to
achieve this. The reason I am not confident is the amount of regulation that the last government pushed
down to local planning authorities, it is for me still too early to say whether the new governments removal of
red tape has filtered down.
Putting that aside the next few weeks are going to be a traffic nightmare but we should remember how
Putting that aside the next few weeks are going to be a traffic nightmare but we should remember how
lucky we are in Tamworth when it comes to roads, ok ventura isn't the best for traffic but it's not the worst
shopping centre I could mention when it come to navigating a path through. Bolebridge Egg keeps local
traffic in the town moving, something I may have to remember when I'm sitting in the queues next month.
It will take 12 months to complete this work but with more traffic on the roads with the new Holiday Inn and
It will take 12 months to complete this work but with more traffic on the roads with the new Holiday Inn and
Travelodge hotels in the area we're going to need it.
Monday, 3 January 2011
Every Cloud ?
We are seeing in Tamworth and throughout the Uk that savings are being made, the most recent announcement affecting Tamworth is the closure of the Magistrates Courts. I fully agree with the comments that have already been made by our MP Christopher Pincher and many local residents who feel that this is a loss to the people of Tamworth.
I am on occasions an optimist and wonder if this could in fact be a vital catalyst in further changing our town centre.
I don't know the intentions of the ministry of Justice and nor do I know the ownership of the building and land it stands on but what I do know is that it neighbours a reasonably large amount of public sector assets with TamYouth, Connexions and the police station. Is this an opportunity to look at an invest to save approach to both generate savings and protect vital services provided in the area while redeveloping Tamworth's Town Centre and a gateway to the town centre? Possibly providing new youth facilities, new police station, new office space all built in ways to provide better energy efficiency?
So how could or would this happen?
The public sector does not have large amounts on money to spend on capital developments and neither does it have the ability to generate large levels of income from such facilities to generate revenue to pay off borrowing and so the public sector would need some private sector help. There is possibly an opportunity here for a public/ private partnership which would take the benefits of each partners assets and contribution to make something big happen. The public sector has the land and needs new facilities, the private sector has the investment and drive to commercially make a return.
My vision for the area would be a multi use development providing better facilities for the people of Tamworth and maybe any of the following ideas. - New Towncentre housing, new town centre office space, an alternative road access to the new Gungate development, more car parking, commercial exhibition space a complementary offer to Albert Road and the new Gungate development. All potentially generating a return for an investor.
This is only an idea of mine and would depend on a number of parties to make the right moves to make it happen, I'm happy to put the idea out there for discussion and help make things happen for our town centre.
Jeremy Oates
I am on occasions an optimist and wonder if this could in fact be a vital catalyst in further changing our town centre.
I don't know the intentions of the ministry of Justice and nor do I know the ownership of the building and land it stands on but what I do know is that it neighbours a reasonably large amount of public sector assets with TamYouth, Connexions and the police station. Is this an opportunity to look at an invest to save approach to both generate savings and protect vital services provided in the area while redeveloping Tamworth's Town Centre and a gateway to the town centre? Possibly providing new youth facilities, new police station, new office space all built in ways to provide better energy efficiency?
So how could or would this happen?
The public sector does not have large amounts on money to spend on capital developments and neither does it have the ability to generate large levels of income from such facilities to generate revenue to pay off borrowing and so the public sector would need some private sector help. There is possibly an opportunity here for a public/ private partnership which would take the benefits of each partners assets and contribution to make something big happen. The public sector has the land and needs new facilities, the private sector has the investment and drive to commercially make a return.
My vision for the area would be a multi use development providing better facilities for the people of Tamworth and maybe any of the following ideas. - New Towncentre housing, new town centre office space, an alternative road access to the new Gungate development, more car parking, commercial exhibition space a complementary offer to Albert Road and the new Gungate development. All potentially generating a return for an investor.
This is only an idea of mine and would depend on a number of parties to make the right moves to make it happen, I'm happy to put the idea out there for discussion and help make things happen for our town centre.
Jeremy Oates
Sunday, 2 January 2011
New Year New Toys Blogger
Having realised I often have a lot to say and simply can't fit my thoughts into 140 characters on Twitter and no one reads notes on Facebook I thought I'd have a go at a Blog.
So keep your eyes out for my random thoughts and writings here. I think there may also be an opportunity to comment here, wow Jeremy Oates can have his thoughts challenged in public lol, this could be fun.
Post Soon x
So keep your eyes out for my random thoughts and writings here. I think there may also be an opportunity to comment here, wow Jeremy Oates can have his thoughts challenged in public lol, this could be fun.
Post Soon x
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