Redlands Liberal Democrats

Kirsten Bayes: Local Champion and The Best Choice for Redlands!

 

Well the nomination papers are in, and the Council has today published the list of candidates standing in Reading in the forthcoming local elections on Thursday 5 May.

in Redlands we are delighted to confirm that hardworking Kirsten Bayes will be seeking re-election as the Liberal Democrat candidate for Redlands, to represent the ward she, Cllr Glenn Goodall and I care so deeply about.

I've looked at the list of candidates standing for election in Redlands and it is clear that there is only one proven local champion standing in this election with a four year track record of delivery on issues that matter to local people.

And that is Kirsten.

• Unlike the candidates from the two other major political parties standing for election in Redlands this year Kirsten lives in the heart of Redlands and has done for many years. Kirsten cares deeply about her local neighbourhood.
• Kirsten works hard all year round - not just at election time. Some candidates for other parties have come and gone - but not Kirsten!
• No other candidate standing for election in Redlands this year has a record of action to match Kirsten's for getting things done locally or for fixing problems for residents.
• No other candidate standing for election in Redlands this year can match Kirsten's energy and committment to getting the best for local residents. Kirsten has spent the past four years working for the people of Redlands.
• Kirsten has held regular monthly surgeries and handled many pieces of casework on behalf of residents.
• No other candidate standing for election in Redlands this year has fought hard the way she has to protect services to vulnerable people in Redlands in one of the toughest budget rounds this Council has ever faced.
• Kirsten worked hard to cut waste in the Council offices to help keep Hexham Community Centre open and ensure that Eldon Square Gardens continues to thrive.
• And no other candidate standing in Redlands this year can boast the skills and experience Kirsten has on important policy areas such as Planning and Licensing - in addition to her ward and Deputy Leader roles Kirsten is currently Vice-Chair of the Planning Applications Committee and she has regularly represented Redlands residents at licensing hearings.

Kirsten is a fantastic local champion for our area and like me many residents I talk to in the ward are delighted she is standing for re-election this year to continue the work for the community she started in 2007.

If you live in Redlands  and you care about our area and the people in it make sure you vote for Kirsten Bayes on 5 May.

Electoral Commission uses Facebook to get students to register to vote

In Redlands ward we take the business of electoral registration very seriously. There was postal vote fraud in Redlands in 2005 and with a high turnover of voters in our ward it is important that no-one loses their vote. I blogged in March about our annual campaign to get students to register to vote and suggested that councils need to continue to work to find new ways to get everyone who can vote to register. I was delighted therefore to read that the Electoral Commission is using Facebook to remind students and young people to vote. From The Independent:

"From tomorrow, every Facebook user who logs on to his or her homepage will be asked if they are on the electoral roll. If they are not, they will be redirected to a registration page.The initiative has been prompted by research suggesting that 56 per cent of 18 to 24 year olds – many of whom are students – will not be able to vote next month. However, a very high proportion of the same age group uses Facebook regularly: as many as nine in ten students stay in touch with friends through social networking sites".

 

Redlands has one of the largest student populations in the whole of Reading so I really hope this initiative sways a few more students to register.RBC's own voter registration effort has improved markedly since we lobbied the Council for more effective voter registration back in 2006. We are facing two really important sets of elections on May 6 in Reading - for the local council and to elect the next MP for our area. Higher education funding and youth unemployment are just two issues that students are raising with me on the doorstep. I hope as many students as possible register to vote and turn out to vote on May 6 to ensure their voices are heard at all levels of government in Reading. Well done to the Electoral Commission for moving with the times. It's not just students who use Facebook. I chat to constituents of all ages online and pick up plenty of casework issues via Facebook and other social media networks like Twitter. The Commission and other public bodies must explore all these avenues if they are going to increase participation of younger people in particular in public life.

Why electoral registration matters

I've blogged a few times about electoral registration - this is a key issue for us at a ward level as we have a highly-mobile electorate. Turnover is something like 50% annually - a lot of this is down to the fact we have a large student population - but there are other factors too including increasing numbers of HMOs, and flats in the ward. This can make it tricky for us to keep track of our electorate, but more importantly it means we have to work hard to engage with voters to find out what issues matter to them and to keep them informed about our activities - we never rest on our laurels! The high turnover in our area and much of central Reading also makes things difficult for the Council and other bodies when it comes to planning services.

Reading Borough Council's approach to electoral registration has improved markedly since I was first elected. We have raised a number of concerns about how the Council went about encouraging people to register over the years (including highlighting inaccuracies in the register) and  I'm pleased to see this matter is now taken very seriously by officers and each year RBC gets better at getting more people who live in Reading to join the electoral register.For more details about the latest electoral facts and figures relating to voter registration in Reading check out this blog post I wrote last November.Sadly this local success is not reflected elsewhere across the country, as this article published today in the Local Government Chronicle confirms. The Electoral Commission which assesses the performance of Electoral Returning Officers (EROs) in councils estimates that 41% of EROs are not meeting the required standard on promoting participation in elections.

Research by the Electoral Commission has found:

• Non-registration is higher among certain groups, particularly young people aged 17-24 years old (56% not registered) and people from black and minority ethnic communities (31% not registered).
• People changing address is a key reason for non-registration. Just 21% of those living at their present address for a year or less are registered to vote.

Councils now have a duty to promote democracy in their areas, not just to count the votes cast. I recently lobbied the Council in Reading successfully to support the natonal 'Shadow A Councillor' scheme to introduce more young people to the democratic process. More needs to be done to encourage under-represented groups including members of Black and Minority ethnic groups to become councillors.  At the end of week 10 of this year's annual canvass, RBC  had received 46,738 electoral registration returns from households, out of a total of 66,785 households (70.0%). There is clearly plenty of work still to be done to increase voter registration but RBC has the right idea - targetting polling districts with low voter registration and targetting types of housing where fewer people tend to register - including HMOs and student areas  This isn't cheap to do but I think it is vitally important if the Council is going to have anything approaching legitimacy - a genuine mandate to govern. As a political party we believe strongly in the need to encourage local people to participate in local and general elections - greater participation will lead to more credible government - better decision-making and more accountability. Low voter registration, like low voter turnout is a concern as it indicates that people do not see the point of voting. If particular groups are represented on the electoral register in small numbers it can be hard for them to get their voice heard.  It's up to us to convince people of the importance of voting. So this weekend we will be out again (as we are every year) encouraging people living in the ward to register to vote and to exercise their vote when the time comes. No taxation without representation is an old phrase but I think it's still valid! For details of the deadline to register to vote in this years important local and general elections and to download a registration form visit RBC's website.

Daisy talks to TweetyHall

Here in Redlands we work hard to keep in touch with our constituents, residents and supporters all year round. In recent years we have been using Facebook, Twitter and blogs to supplement our traditional output of Focus leaflets and streetletters to campaign on a range of local issues.

I've been shortlisted for two awards for my use of social media over the past year. On the back of this I was interviewed by the people behind TweetyHall, a website which connects tweeting councillors with the public last week. Check out the video here

Delays to bin collections: response from RBC

On Monday I blogged about problems residents were facing getting their bins collected by Reading Borough Council.

I raised these issues with RBC's Streetcare team and I have just had this response:

"Unfortunately there are a number of areas in Reading that are suffering similar circumstances to those you describe in Redlands Road, some in fact are in a worse situation. There can be no doubt that our crews did their utmost in what were very difficult conditions over the past few weeks.
 
However it was necessary to make a decision on how we would get everyone back to a normal schedule, as you will appreciate we have a fixed resource and are doing our best to prioritise queries such as this attempting to sort out the worst hit areas first... residents can be assured that our teams will collect all residual and recycling waste presented on the day of collection over the next couple of weeks."

This sounds reasonable to me but may not be much comfort to residents some of who, have had to wait three weeks or more for a bin collection - due to the impact of the bad weather.

We are particularly concerned about areas with high numbers of HMOs and student houses where rubbish easily mounts up.

Regrettably some residents in parts of Redlands have experienced multiple missed collections in the past - notably people living on or around Foxhill Road.

I hope there won't be any missed collections over the next few weeks as this would only  add to residents' woes.

Please do get in touch with us if you are having any problems with your bin collections or if there is an accumulation of rubbish in your street you would like us to report.

Council reviews impact of severe weather in Reading

Reading Borough Council has this afternoon published a report on the impacts of the severe weather conditions Christmas and New Year 2010.

It is has been prepared by the Chief Executive of the Council, Michael Coughlin.

RBC is not the only Council to be investigating what occured. Essex County Council has said it is planning a national 'Snow Summit' for councils.

The report will be discussed in public this evening at a meeting of the Labour-controlled Cabinet. My ward colleague & Lib Dem Group Leader, Cllr Kirsten Bayes, will be attending the meeting.

If you would like to attend the meeting is being held at 6.30pm in the Kennet Room of the Civic Offices.

This report was prepared 'as it happened' - by officers who were also attending daily emergency planning meetings - an impressive feat.

The report is available online so I won't go into detail about it's contents here - highways, housing, gritting - are all covered.

There will doubtless be differences of opinion between officers, councillors and residents about whether the decisions taken at the time were the right ones.

Officers have quite rightly differentiated between the snow that fell before Christmas and the heavy snow we experienced in the New Year.

Following the first snow fall the main problems were related to traffic and congestion.

As time wore on disruption to local transport and getting help to the elderly and vulnerable became more of a challenge. Basic services like bin collections ground to a halt.

Many residents contacted me during the first spell of bad weather to complain about difficulties getting around due to snowy and icy roads. I was in regular touch with officers providing them with information about worst affected areas. 

The costs to the Council (and the tax payer)of this bad weather have not yet been added up in Reading but they are likely to be considerable: Gloucestershire County Council is already estimating the road repair bills alone following the bad weather could be around £5 million.

The damage done to our already worn out local road network by snow and grit is there for all to see.

Driving around South Reading on Sunday I noticed a number of large potholes. Please report any you see to the Council for repair on 0800 626 540.

This expenditure will inevitably put major pressure on the Council's already overstretched finances and make the annual budget-setting process even more of a challenge this year.

It is important that the Council is as prepared as it can be for any future severe weather or 'snow events' so I was particularly pleased to see officers proposing that certain functions and areas of the Council's activities should be subject to detailed reviews.

I wrote to the Chief Executive and Leader of the Council on 21 December requesting that all these matters be subject of a review to learn lessons for the future.

Areas officers are proposing need to be reviewed:

• Weather forecasting receipt and dissmenation of information
• Emergency planning processes (including staffing of emergency control centre)
• Gritting - supplies, stores, deployment and priorities - to include footways and provision of grit bins and grit stocks
• Communication - including the Council's policies, role and capacity to get informaton about adverse weather conditions out to the public
• Closer liaison between RTL (Reading Buses) and the emergency operations and co-ordination functions to ensure priority and ‘high community value’ routes remain operable
• A recognised and accessible debriefing, information and update reports, including a “lessons learnt” process.

I welcome the openness of officers and willingness to ensure any problems and issues are identified so more effective policies can be implemented in future.

The weather that we experienced in Reading recently was unprecedented in many people's life-time - the heaviest snow fall for 30 years.

Leaving aside finding out where the Council went wrong, the incredible effort put in by hundreds of dedicated council staff must also be recognised.

I hope the Labour administration has the sense to listen to staff but also listen to the public.

It's important that the views of ordinary people living in Reading who were affected many of them badly by the recent snow fall are also taken into account - after all it is the duty of the Council and councillors as public servants, to serve them.

I have focussed quite heavily on the communications aspects of the recent severe weather in recent blog posts.

I think the Council can substantailly improve its communications with the public and one of the ways it could do this is by embracing social media.

Better communication by RBC will lead to better engagement with and understanding of the needs of local residents which can only be a good thing.

We will be calling for the Council outlined policies above (that were recently tested to the limit by the weather conditions) to be reviewed through the Council's scrutiny process as soon as possible and ideally before the local elections.

I really hope other local politicians will support this as it is vital that local residents get the opportunity to hold the Council and it's performance to account in an open and transparent way.

When the ice melts...

Good to see a thaw is now underway. Let's hope we don't get any more snow over the next few days so that everyone can get back to normal.

Many people are still waiting for their grey and red bins to be collected. Advice from RBC is to leave grey bins and any excess waste out for collection. Streetcare teams will be working extra days to clear the backlog.

With large amounts of snow and ice still around people are understandably concerned about flooding. The Environment Agency are saying that they are not expecting any property flooding during this 'snow melt'.

If you are concerned about flooding visit the Environment Agency website.

But flooding is not the only problem people are facing following the big freeze.

Listening to BBC Radio Berkshire this mornng there was a discussion about potholes.

The experts were saying that what we know - that the recent freezing whether and heavy snow is doing untold damage to our already worn-out road services.

I wasn't aware until I heard the radio show that this website about potholes is based in Reading. It's worth a visit if your car has been damaged by a pothole and you want to see if you can claim for the damage.

You can report potholes via the website and see potholes mapped out in an excellent pothole map.

Here in Redlands we have been campaigning for years to get the Labour-run Council to do a better job of maintaining the local road network. We get regular complaints from residents and we always report them to the Council for attention.

But councils are not entirely to blame on this one.

Years of underinvestment by central government means that the best councils can do is patch up potholes rather than renewing road surfaces.

The recent spate of bad weather will only make matters worse for hard-pressed councils.

And it's not just motorists that are affected: we regularly get complaints from cyclists about damage to tyres and accidents caused by potholes.

RBC said recently that officers have been responding to all emergencies and reports of dangerous damage to road surfaces on a priority basis.

Highway Inspectors have begun carrying out a detailed survey and will also pick up defects during routine highway inspections.

If you notice a pothole or damage to roads in your area please report it to the Council's highways team on 0800 626 540.

LGIU Online C'llr of the Year award

I've just heard that I've been shortlisted for the LGIU/CCLA 'Online C'll'r of the Year' as part of the C'llr 2010 achivements awards.

Thank you to everyone who nominated me - I'm mega chuffed. I am the only female councillor to be shortlisted in what looks to be a very high-powered list!

The award details is as follows:

"Social networking and online capacities for engagement are fast becoming a popular means for councillors to engage with communities, such as through the use of mechanisms like twitter, facebook, email and blogging. This councillor will have embraced new technologies and used them positively to communicate with communities"

I'm sure this will wind up all the sceptics out there who dismiss Twitter, Facebook and blogging as pointless. The feedback I get is absolutely the opposite.

As anyone who has been following me on Twitter knows, during times like the exceptionally bad weather we've been having here in Reading of late it's important that public bodies and local representatives ensure that they get key messages out to residents.

These tools also encourage councillors to listen more to residents, which I think can only be a good thing.

I have picked up lots of issues via Twitter including the infamous daytime Christmas lights in Reading.

Facebook is also a great way to campaign and engage people about local issues - something I did to highlight tagging and graffiti problems we faced around Reading last year.

I also encouraged people to upload photos of graffiti in their area to Flickr to get the Council to act.

Lately I've been getting more into making YouTube videos such as our "True Grit" video about snow.

I am due to be meeting Chief Executive of Reading Borough Council, Michael Coughlin soon to discuss how the Council can better use social media to engage more effectively with residents.

I'm delighted to see that Reading Buses is now on Twitter, after being successfully persuaded to by my colleague Cllr Warren Swaine.

The winner of the awards will be announced on Febuary at the C'llr 10 conference at easily the best stadium the UK has to offer:

The Emirates!!!

Cold weather hitting elderly and poorest hard in Reading

More snow fell over night in Reading and continues to fall. This is making the lives of many local people very difficult. I continue to be very concerned about the welfare of elderly and vulnerable people.

I spoke to RBC's Head of Housing last night and was reassured to hear that staff are working round the clock to get food and other help to vulnerable residents.

Housing staff are doing spot check in sheltered accomodation to ensure that heating is working etc.

Staff are also keeping in telephone contact with families who are struggling to afford to heat their homes.

Age Concern highlighted a few days ago the fact that cold weather payments have not kept pace with increasing fuel costs. This is a problem.

I am hearing reports of some families on low incomes with central heating not being able to afford to use it.

When I get a minute I plan to raise this issue with utility companies.

Councillors have just received a severe weather update from Sally Swift at Reading Borough Council. This contains the latest info on roads, bin collections and schools - I've attached it below.

Highways and Transport

• All roads gritted and traffic has been on the on the move since the early hours
• All Reading Buses out, RBCofficers working with James Freeman to deploy support to any problem areas check out www.Reading-buses.co.uk

Waste and recycling

There will be no bin collections today, will report on Waste Recovery Plan in the next update, crews are being deployed to snow clearance

Schools/Education 

• Reading's secondary schools are open for students who are due to take modular GCSE, A Level and A/S Level exams next week and we will be supporting the schools by are clearing pedestrian access around the schools - further snow clearance took place this morning to ensure access
• The Avenue School is closed due to heating problems,  Prospect has just closed to all students (except those taking exams ) due to burst pipes all other schools are open (some working on reduced hours) 

Housing and Community Care

• Day-care transport cancelled
• Emergency cover in place for Meals on Wheels/shopping trips etc

Customer Services

• Civic Centre Customer Hub/Cash Office/Post Office and Call Centre all operational

Emergency Cover

The Emergency Operations Centre is open and dealing with issues as there are reported (8am - 7pm Monday to Friday). 

The EOC also deals with the prioritisation the allocation of requests for support/work across the Borough
Next Emergency Planning Meeting at 10.30am.

Severe weather update (and other news)

We hope you've been coping during this extended period of extraordinary weather.

I'm pleased to say the burst water main on London Road we reported on Friday was fixed very rapidly by Thames Water.

We hope you were not one of the thousands of households in Redlands who were without water for several hours and you were not too badly affected.

Kirsten and I were in close touch with Thames Water throughout the incident and we were very impressed with the quick, calm and professional way they sorted the problems out.

I picked up a complaint over the weekend from a constituent that the on campus car parks and access roads leading to Foxhill House/Child's Hall had not been cleared of snow by Reading University.

Given that the University term starts next week it was a shame the University didn't act more quickly to keep this area clear.

These problems led to students and their parents parking around the Foxhill entrance on double yellow lines etc making entrance quite hazardous and making getting around local roads even more difficult.

We'll be raising this urgently with Reading University to try and get this sorted.

I was in the Town Centre on Friday during the day and I was pleased to see Council teams out clearing the large slabs of ice that had formed both with trucks and manually.

It seemed as though things were thawing a bit this morning (although there has been snow in places tonight) - let's hope we don't get more bad weather this week.

Many roads and pavements around Redlands remain very icy and slippery: please take extra care.

We received this severe weather update from Reading Borough Council earlier today:

'Highways and Transport

Highways staff worked in the town centre yesterday manually clearing  walkways and JCB's and other vehicles are still being deployed to clear bus routes where possible.

Reading Buses are getting back to normal check update www.reading-buses.co.uk

Waste and recycling

The Bin collections, the situation will be assessed tomorrow

The Household Waste Recycling Centre has reopened

Schools/Education

Reading's secondary schools are aiming to open on Monday (January 11) for students who are due to take modular GCSE, A Level and A/S Level exams next week and we will be supporting the schools by are clearing pedestrian access around the schools.

Decisions will be made by individual schools as to whether they will open on Monday.

Housing and Community Care

Over the weekend  Housing and Community Care Staff have been supported by teams from other directorates, many using their own vehicles, in the delivery of Meals on Wheels and shopping trips to ensure service users have essential provisions. 
More deliveries have taken place to Sheltered Housing over the weekend

Emergency Cover

The Emergency Operations Centre has been open and dealing with issues as there are reported (9am - 5pm Saturday and Sunday)
An Emergency Planning conference call will take place tonight
Emergency Planning Meeting will take place at 10.30am and 3pm on Monday"

And finally in other news... you may have heard that I have been selectedto fight Reading West constituency for the Lib Dems at the next General Election.

Readers of this blog will know I have been campaigning for several years to improve the lives of local residents in Redlands and across Reading.

The opportunity to stand for Parliament came out of the blue after the previous candidate unexpectedly resigned and I jumped at the chance to help campaign on a national stage for a better quality of life for local people in Reading.

I'm not one of those people who got into politics because they liked the sound of their own voice.

I want to become an MP to help get the voices of ordinary people in Reading heard in Westminster.

And there are so many issues and problems in Reading that need sorting out.

Better housing, reducing health inequality and effective action against anti-social behaviour - these are a few of the issues that get me out of bed in the morning and the areas I feel most passionate about.

I feel strongly that we need a fairer, more just society, and to make sure the poor and vulnerable don't get overlooked.

Nick Clegg and Vince Cable have put fairness at the heart of all Lib Dem polices.

Labour politicians nationally and locally have let a lot of local people down over the past few years in Reading and people I speak to are looking for an alternative (and it's not the Tories!)

Martin Salter has been a hardworking MP who is popular with many people but he has already announced that he will be retiring at the next election.

People in Reading West are looking to elect a new local champion - someone who will stand up for them and their interests.

I have already demonstrated my ability to campaign for people of all backgrounds and all ages all year round, on the issues that matter.

I'm part of the local team providing the only really effective opposition to Labour-run Reading Borough Council on a range of issues.

And in case you were wondering - I remain as I always have been - totally, 100% committed to my constituents in Redlands, and, as Kirsten blogged a few weeks ago I will be defending my Council seat in May.

I have worked hard as a councillor since I was elected in 2006 and I will continue to work hard alongside my  ward colleagues to get things done for the  local people who elected me.

I would like to say a special thank you to my ward colleagues Kirsten and Glenn for their unfaltering support (they are the best ward colleagues anyone could ask for), as well as my Council group colleagues and local Party for supporting me throughout the selection process, and finally a massive thank you to all the people who have contacted me over the weekend to express their support and to wish me luck.

Exciting times!