Councillor Will Sandry, who is on a mission to promote sensible attitudes towards health and safety, has welcomed the publication of advice for residents wishing to hold street parties and community events to celebrate the Royal Wedding in April.

The Council’s online guidance brings together all the information needed to organise a local street party, such as advice on how to get a residential street closed to traffic and reassurance that event licences and complex risk assessments are not needed for small, community events. The Council has also announced that road closure fees for Royal Wedding street parties are to be waived.

Will led the Council in signing up to the Health and Safety Executive’s ten principles of Sensible Risk Management and last year asked the Council’s strategic director for service delivery to do more to facilitate community events and to cut red tape.

Will said:

“I’m very pleased that the Council has said ‘yes’ to street parties. Last summer I helped the residents of First Avenue in Oldfield plan their street party and, at that time, navigating the different Council departments was very difficult.

“It’s good that the Council has come up with sensible and straightforward guidance for the community about how they can come together and enjoy a street party and has made it clear that community events do not require lots of expense or paperwork.

“I hope that this guidance will be updated after the Royal Wedding to help residents who wish to organise other community events.”

The deadline for objections to the proposed Closure of Culverhay School is 5pm on 27th January. Objections should be sent to:

bath_seccons10@BATHNES.GOV.UK

Cllr Will Sandry has sent the following objection:

I object to the closure of Culverhay School unless a non denominational co-educational school opens in its place at the site.

The community have for many years wanted a non-denominational Co-educational school at the site and it is one that can serve many in the South of Bath.

I am not convinced by the arguments that have been presented as to why Culverhay should close. Closure will mean more cross Bath journeys by pedestrians, but also more importantly by buses and cars.

The closure will cost many in my community money as they have to find more money for travel and uniforms.

The existing Culverhay School is a wonderful community asset. It understands our community and gets the best out of its pupils. It also and has the best campus of all the schools in Bath. It would be a travesty for it to close.

Will Sandry
Councillor for Oldfield Ward

Cllr Will Sandry has expressed his disappointment that yet again letting agents are filling up Oldfield Park with To Let signs.

 Will wrote to all letting agents in the area in December and asked them to show restraint in the number of signs they put up this year. It would appear that  only Knights and Trusteese have in some way headed this request with Roman City being a particularly bad offender.

Will said: “The only purpose of these signs is for the 10 or so letting agents in the area to attract new landlords to their business. Student accommodation is advertised on-line through the universities so these signs are not required by the people most likely to rent the homes.

The greater disappointment is that if a young couple would like to rent this accommodation they will be refused because the income from a renting to many individuals is much higher than renting to a couple or family. In my opinion,  the way these properties are Let is discriminatory to many in our community.

Cllr Will Sandry was joined today by Cllr David Dixon (Walcot Ward) in First Avenue and Durley Park. We were asking residents about the impact the new St. Johns School had made in our community and any other local issues that were important.

Nearly everyone praised the design of the School, but there were concerns about inconsiderate (illegal) parking by some parents at 9am and 3pm. We have asked the Council’s Parking Enforcement Team to take action against any illegal parking.

We were also asking about how well the new 20mph zone was working on First Avenue. We had a mixed response. Some felt it was working fine, but others felt that there was a problem caused by just a few irresponsible drivers.

Nearly everyone mentioned the litter in the streets. We will see how we can work with the Council and SOMER to target their limited resources to improve litter picking.

When asked what was good about the area, the most common answers were the sense of community and Moorland Road shops.

Look out for us next week when we’ll be back on Second and Third Avenues and Oldfield Lane.

Over the last week, a number of offences have been reported to police across the force where bogus “Waterboard” and Dyno-rod officials have tricked their way into homes before stealing cash, purses and wallets.

Darren Taylor, acting sergeant on the Doorstep Crime Team consisting of police and Trading Standards officers, said: “Offenders have been knocking on doors, unfortunately targeting elderly and more vulnerable people, and claiming they are fixing water leaks and burst pipes in the road.

“A common theme in these offences is that victims are being told that there is blue dye in the water, and they need the victim to run the kitchen taps to check the system.

If you believe that you have seen or been visited by these offenders then please report it to the police on 0845 456 7000. If you have any information that may help catch these offenders call 0845 456 7000 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

Top tips for staying safe

• Always make sure visitors to your home are who they say they are by asking to see their identification.
• Do not use any telephone numbers provided by the caller, as they may be bogus. Always use a number from your utility bill or a phone book.
• ‘Water Boards’ no longer exist, it is an obsolete phrase used only by bogus callers.
• Ensure that if you do let somebody in to your home, that you close the door behind them – distraction burglars often work in teams, where one will distract you while another sneaks in through the insecure door.
• Always close and lock the back door before answering the front door.

LOCK: Keep your front and back doors locked, even when you are at home.

STOP: Before you answer, stop and think if you are expecting anyone. Check that you have locked any back doors and taken the key out. Look through the spy hole or the window to see who it is.

CHAIN: If you decide to open the door, put the door chain or bar on first.

CHECK: If someone who looks official calls at your door, always ask for their identity card; do they look like the person on the card? If you do not have a chain, ask for ID to be put through the letterbox and remember there’s no such thing as the water board.

Visit the Force website on www.avonandsomerset.police.uk where you can also sign up to receive local news and alerts, Crimestoppers appeals and job details, direct to your inbox – on http://www.avonandsomerset.police.uk/Interactive/

Despite disapointing decision at the last Overview and Scrutinity Call-in meeting, local Councillors are still fighting to save Culverhay School.

Please send your support with reasons to keep Culverhay open as a community co-ed school to:

bath_seccons10@bathnes.gov.uk

Shaun and Will would like to wish all the residents of Oldfield Ward a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

Shaun is currently Mayor of the City and would like to invite you to the annual Mayor’s Call to Prayer for the City on Wednesday 5th January at 7:30pm in the Banqueting Room in the Guildhall. The theme is ‘Town & Gown’ and the service will be led by Rev Kieren Bourne; The Mayor’s Chaplain. Music will be provided by The Christ Church Choir.

The official Website for the Mayor of Bath is here:

http://www.thecityofbath.co.uk/

Cold weather service update – 19th December (7am)

Weather Forecast

Last night (Saturday night) was dry with clear skies, which resulted in sub zero temperatures throughout the area. Today (Sunday), will remain very cold although it is unlikely that snow will return.

Road temperatures are still below zero and this will make untreated roads particularly icy and difficult.

Highways and Car Parks

The gritting crews gritted all the 260 miles of main roads during the night, and there are currently no problems on the road network. All main roads are running normally.

However conditions on side roads, minor roads and untreated surfaces are particularly icy and treacherous. We would urge all pedestrians and drivers to exercise due care in these conditions. Drivers should watch out for ice, keep to the main roads and avoid side roads if at all possible.

All the the car parks and park and ride sites are being gritted this morning to ensure they remain open for Christmas shopping. Car parks and key footways in Keynsham and Midsomer Norton will also be attended to.

At this time it is anticipated that the Park and Ride buses will also be operating normally. Members of the public expecting to use this service should check on the First Bus website (see below) for further information before making their journey.

Buses

Before setting out anybody thinking of travelling by bus should look on the First Bus website for the latest information.

Salt stocks

The Council has planned well in advance for the possibility of severe weather conditions. We have a 1,400 ton salt capacity at Clutton Depot and improved storage facilities at Braysdown. Our capacity is at an all time high this winter in order to salt 260 miles of priority routes across the district. This represents 38% of the total highways network – well above the national average of 30%. For us to complete this work, salt stocks and manpower must be prioritised.

The Council maintains 388 grit bins at present. Refilling bins during periods of adverse or severe weather/ snowfall is labour intensive and the salt stored in these is often spread too heavily, used on private drives, or sometimes stolen. We will continue to meet reasonable requests to refill grit bins, although this ability depends upon the demands on resources of keeping the priority route road network gritted.

Although the Council has ordered more salt to replenish stocks following the adverse weather experienced a few weeks ago, there is very high national demand for salt because of the problems experienced in the north and the south east already this winter. Should conditions become increasingly severe with even more ice and snow then the Council will need to consider taking measures to conserve salt supplies.

The Council is unable to supply salt to individual residents and in order to ensure public safety residents should not attempt to collect salt from Clutton Depot. Electronic gates prevent public access and maintain security.

Heritage Services

All the Council’s Heritage buildings are anticipated to be open as normal today (Sunday). This includes the Fashion Museum, Roman Baths, the Pump Room and the Victoria Art Gallery.

Other Services

There could be disruption to some services over the coming days and especially those susceptible to icy conditions, like waste collections. The Council will keep people updated through its website – www.bathnes.gov.uk – about the impact on services – any updates will also be highlighted through its Twitter Feed www.twitter.com/bathnes

In respect of adult care services, clients, carers and relatives should be assured if there is severe weather and any resulting problems with home care services or services for adults with learning difficulties, personal contact will be made with anyone who is expecting a service. This contact will be made by their care provider and they would be kept updated throughout the day.

Useful vulnerable adult telephone numbers: Community and Health Access Team: 01225 396000. Emergency Duty Team: 01454 615165

For more information

1. The quickest and most direct way of bringing to our attention a problem on the roads, or any other service, is by contacting the Council via the following methods www.bathnes.gov.uk/reportit

2. The Council’s website will be updated regularly to keep residents up to date about general information: www.bathnes.gov.uk

3. All other enquiries should be made to Council Connect on 01225 394041 between 8am – 6pm weekdays (Wednesday 9.30am – 6pm);

4. Outside of these times the Council’s Out of Office Emergency number is 01225 477 477;

5.People can email on councilconnect@bathnes.gov.uk or SMS text on 07797806545. These can be contacted 24 hours a day and a response will be sent next working day. These methods should not be used for emergency communication.

Service specific telephone numbers

Enquiries about Adult care transport should call 01225 394371.

For information on the wider public transport network, bus passengers can call Traveline on 0871 200 2233.