Trust warns it may axe leisure services

A trust formed last year by Edmundsbury Borough Council to run leisure services in west Suffolk has warned it might axe services unless the council contributes extra funds – reports the East Anglian Daily Times.

Council members have been warned that the trust, which runs leisure centres in Bury St Edmunds and Haverhill, needs an extra £79,400 to cover unforeseen cost hikes.

Without a cash injection, proposed cuts include closing the football school at Haverhill Leisure Centre, ending the agreement with Haverhill Lawn Tennis Club for use of courts, closing the creche facilities at both Haverhill Leisure Centre and Bury Leisure Centre.

The other option would be hiking prices at the centres by 6%, rather than the 3% planned.
The trust’s acting chief executive Alison Bowyer said the main cause of the problems was a 33% hike in energy costs, which was unforeseen by the trust.

West Suffolk MP Richard Spring said: "Obviously I would be very concerned if sport and leisure services were impaired in any way. It is a key element of giving people things to do that are healthy and productive."

Article contributed by: Foster, (IP19 1QB)

Elderly face an end to home care

Blaming a "funding shortfall and the widening impact of NHS cuts", Britain's social care watchdog reports today that hundreds of thousands of elderly and disabled people are facing the withdrawal of their home care services.

The Commission for Social Care Inspection report highlights more than 100 councils limiting care services to only the most dependent people, leaving without help those regarded as unable to manage "several" care tasks like washing, dressing, cleaning or shopping, highlights The Times.

North Yorkshire, Northumberland and West Berkshire are singled out as areas where councils have already started restricting home care services to the most critical cases.

Local authorities are blaming government grants for social services failing to keep up with growing numbers of elderly people, along with extra burdens being placed on their finances by NHS cutbacks.

Grant shortfall leads to cutbacks of £22m

The government was last night accused of short-changing Suffolk after it received an annual grant which will spark £22 million of county council cutbacks – reports the East Anglian Daily Times.

Although the figure was roughly what the council had expected, the grant is not high enough to offer a last-minute reprieve to the services earmarked for cutbacks earlier in the year.

Jane Storey, portfolio holder for resources, finance and performance, said the authority would be "deluding" itself if it thought much bigger grant increases would be given the next year, meaning more savings would have to be made in the future.

She said: "We have plans to cover most of the shortfall by changes to the way we deliver services. However there will be an impact on services in some areas, as we will have to choose between what we want to do and what we can afford."

Reg Hartles, chairman of Protest Against Council Tax Suffolk, said he blamed the need for the controversial milti-million pound savings 90% on the government.

He said: "This is making life more and more difficult for the council - £22 million is a hell of a lot of money and a lot of worthy causes will suffer for this."

- Article contributed by: IP19 0QB

Brighton: City's £20m cuts shock

Town hall chiefs are being forced to consider more than £20 million of cuts to services to avoid council tax rises of up to 30 per cent over the next four years - reports The Argus.

Brighton and Hove City Council is already considering slashing the budgets for street cleaning and social services after revealing it needed to claw back £3 million of debt accrued so far this financial year.

But the authority is predicting a freeze in Government funding - meaning huge pressures on every department's budget.

The news led campaigners last night to call for a root-and-branch review of local government funding.

To avoid slashing services, council tax would have to increase by 4.9% in April next year, 8%the year after, then 7% in 2009/10 and 6% in 2010/11.

This would result in the average Band D household paying an extra £400 a year by April 2010, or £1,661 in total.

But ministers limit council tax increases to 5% and a council spokesman said it did not plan to go beyond the cap - meaning savings of more than £20 million will be needed.

Before the end of the financial year, the council is set to close a home for five children with autism, stop the night-time street cleaning service and cut just under £1 million from adult social services, including scores of council employees not being replaced when they leave.

Council leader Simon Burgess also warned of job losses.

Green councillor Keith Taylor said he would be pushing for charities and not-for-profit organisations to take on more of the council's work.

He said: "We cannot carry on delivering the same for less. It is impossible to carry on making cuts."

Colchester: Evicted special needs nursery faces closure

Owners of a ‘lifeline’ special needs nursery say they have no choice but to close when council chiefs evict them, according to the Colchester Evening Gazette.

The Stepping Stones Nursery cares for more than 80 children each week, coming from as far afield as Norfolk, Suffolk and the London boroughs. It provides vital respite care for families and an important social opportunity for otherwise excluded youngsters.

The nursery, set up 16 years ago, has been asked to relocate by the council from its home at the Wilson Marriage Centre in Colchester. The transfer of adult education classes to the centre following the closure of Grey Friars College will mean there’s no longer room for the nursery.

As the nursery has nowhere to relocate to, it will be unable to continue providing care.

A special £100,000 sensory garden and room funded by community groups at the centre, will be wasted if the nursery is forced to leave.

- Article contributed by: Mr & Mrs L.C. M, Colchester

Colchester: Library cuts leave estate on the shelf

Plans for cuts in mobile library services will mean axeing trips to a fast-growing estate, reports the Colchester Evening Gazette.

Library bosses have also indefinitely postponed plans for a permanent libraery in High Woods, Colchester. Community services supremo Iris Pummell confirmed it would not be built, as there was no cash available.

Colchester councillor Gerard Oxford (Ind, High Woods) has said the double whammy would penalise elderly and disabled residents, and undermine work to combat illiteracy.

A number of other mobile library stops are set to go, including one at Brinkley Grove Primary School.

Brinkley Grove head teacher Gillian Jasper said: "The mobile library plays a key role in helping our children to enjoy reading and developing their reading skills. Lots of children have benefited greatly from having regular and easy access.

Mr Oxford added: "It’s very frustrating because this is only going to save them a few thousand pounds for each stop."

- Article contributed by: Mr & Mrs L.C. M, Colchester

Poole: ‘Tell Tony to give more’

Poole Council leader Cllr Brian Leverett has issued a plea to local residents for help in getting fairer funding for the district from central government.

Unless funding improves, Cllr Leverett claims, there will have to be drastic cuts in essential services, such as social services, in the future.

Concerned that every year Poole is falling further and further behind, the Borough is now asking people to make their feelings known.

Along with Cllr Leverett, deputy leader Cllr Ann Stribley said: "I want to say to the people of Poole: write to Tony Blair – the buck stops at 10 Downing Street – and express in their own words their total dissatisfaction."

The inequality can be graphically demonstrated closer to home where borough boundaries split roads in half.

In Spicer Lane, Bearwood, people living on the Poole side get £168 per head while Bournemouth residents get £294.

Cllr Stribley said it made no sense that Poole received £128 less to spend per child on education than Bournemouth.

Warning that the future looks bleak, Cllr Leverett’s budget forecast now is for a £3-3.5m shortfall.

Trust set to wield axe again

Essential medical services look to be axed as the Mid Essex Primary Care Trust (PCT) tackles its £24.5 million debt, reports the Colchester Evening Gazette.

Last month the Trust admitted that it had inherited £16.5 million of debt when it was formed from the Witham, Braintree and Halstead Care Trust in October.

But a new financial report has revealed the Trust is expected to be £24.5 million in the red at the end of this financial year.

External auditors KPMG, who have been brought in to address the crisis, will be looking at cutting and merging services in order to bring the deficit down before the end of March 2007.

Mental health services are thought to be particularly under the spotlight for cuts.

Sheila Bremner, chief executive of the Mid Essex PCT said: "We must do absolutely everything we possibly can to curtail spending in the near future. It is likely there will be a number of significant and difficult decisions to be taken by the board."

- Article contributed by: Mr & Mrs L.C. M, Colchester

Threat to outdoor pursuits centres

Special centres that help to "transform the lives" of vulnerable youngsters through outdoor pursuits face possible closure due to county council budget cuts – reports the Colchester Evening Gazette.

Essex County Council admitted today that funding for the centres at East Mersea, Lamarsh and Bradwell-on-Sea and other sites in Essex was "under review".

Amid fears that too many children are overweight, lacking in job skills and at risk of turning to crime, service manager Martin Lowe warned that county officials were looking to withdraw help at a time when youngsters needed it most.

The centres receive about 21% of their funding from the council, with the rest coming through fees charged to schools, youth groups and participating youngsters.

Cuts would inevitably push up such fees and end up excluding the youngsters who could benefit the most.

- Article contributed by: Mr & Mrs L.C. M, Colchester

No cash to repair historic bridge

Essex County Council has admitted it does not have the money to fund repairs to a weak historical bridge.

Saul’s Bridge in Witham was due to be updated two years ago. In July the county council said it had set aside £150,000 to strengthen the bridge, but then put the repairs on hold.

Concerns have been raised that lorries are flouting the 7.5 tonne weight restriction on the bridge. Yet English Heritage has said the bridge must stay where it is to preserve its historical significance.

Witham town mayor Phil Barlow said: "Until that is done, any ideas we have to improve congestion cannot be carried out."

Rodney Bass, Essex County Council cabinet member for highways said: " It is a question of working off a limited budget, and there is only a limited amount of things we can do."

- Article contributed by: Mr & Mrs L.C. M, Colchester

Hounslow: Green energy as school plans 15-metre turbines

A Cranford college got a step closer to its dreams of green energy this week when Hounslow Council said it could put up two wind turbines – reports the Brentford, Chiswick and Isleworth Times.

The 15-metre tall turbines planned for Cranford Community College will cost around £50,000 to install but should substantially reduce power bills and help the environment.

Julie Spiller, senior laboratory technician at the college, said that the turbines would also be a helpful tool to give pupils practical lessons in sustainable energy.

The machines will be connected to college computers so that youngsters studying geography or science can keep an eye on how much power is being generated.

If MPs weren’t going to vote £2.5bn extra a year away to the EU, 100,000 wind turbines like this could be installed on public buildings across the country every year, making a significant contribution to reducing CO2 emissions.

Surely if MPs were serious about tackling what they call the serious threat of global warming, this is what they’d choose to spend that money on.

Instead they choose to lecture us all about making drastic changes to our lifestyles, while throwing public money that could help combat the problem away on the EU.

There’s a serious credibility problem looming for MPs on climate change if they vote this £2.5bn extra every year away to the EU.

Keen MPs help victims of Farepak

Husband and wife MPs Ann and Alan Keen have visited Feltham residents hit by the collapse of Christmas hamper company Farepak – reports the Brentford, Chiswick & Isleworth Times.

The MPs visited Burns Avenue neighbours said to be worst affected in the borough, after losing £30,000.

The government introduced a Farepak Response Fund after the company went bust last month and Ann Keen has confirmed that she supports the idea.

"Seeing people on such low incomes being exploited really turns you inside. I am doing everything I can to support my constituents who are affected.", she said.

Adding: "On this occasion I can also confirm that Alan Keen MP will be following suit."

Alan Keen MP said: "The top priority is to get the best financial settlement possible for those families affected before Christmas, and every contribution no matter how small will help towards that."

However, the Response Fund, welcome though it is, can only hope to repay a fraction of the amount people have lost.

The fund currently stands at £4m, whereas the total loss to Farepak customers in the UK is estimated at between £60m - £80m.

Yet meanwhile, both Ann and Alan Keen intend to vote to approve paying an extra £2.5bn a year to the EU – a 60% ‘raise’ over the billions we already pay.

That’s money that could relieve the victims of the Farepak collapse at a stroke, if Ann and Alan Keen were really prepared to do "everything" they can.

What would the EU do with the money instead? No-one knows for sure how the EU spends the money we give it. Auditors haven’t been able to sign off the EU’s accounts as accurate for twelve years in row.

Ealing: MP fears at police opening hours

Steve Pound MP has backed calls for Greenford Police Station to be opened for longer in the evening – reports the Ealing & Acton Gazette.

The Ealing North MP backed residents after a series of violent incidents left people feeling "insecure".

He said: "The station is not fit for purpose. It needs to be refurbished and improved so that it can be staffed throughout the night.

"There seems to have been an increase of crimes in the area and people would feel more secure if the station was opened longer."

Last month, a student was stabbed after getting off a bus in The Broadway, while gangs of professional pick-pockets have been targeting shoppers in the busy thoroughfare.

However, funding longer opening hours will take more money and Mr Pound needs to explain where’s that money going to come from. Perhaps he shouldn’t, as he intends to, vote to waste an extra £2.5bn a year on the EU – a 60% increase over current payments?

Especially given there’s no justification for handing the EU such a vast amount extra while auditors can’t tell us how the majority of what we already pay is being spent.

But if Mr Pound doesn’t like that idea, he needs to come up with a better one.

Demanding in newspapers that public services like the police do more, while voting to waste vast amounts of public money on the EU that could help improve their work, is surely simply posturing.

That's unlikely to go down well with Ealing voters, come the next election.

Ealing: Three groups make final list for community award cash

Three deserving groups have been shortlisted for a local community award that will see the winner receive a £1,000 grant towards their work – reports the Ealing & Action Gazette.

Mind in Ealing, the 5th Hanwell Cubs and the Holy Cross under 5s in Greenford are the finalists for the prize, which has been donated by Barclays Bank.

The competition attracted a flood of entries of a "very high calibre", from youth clubs to support groups for children with special needs.

Readers of the Gazette were asked to nominate the ones they felt made a real difference to people’s lives.

Jeri Appiah, chief executive of Mind in Ealing, said: "This is really great to be a finalist. We do give a very good service to the community, supporting people with mental problems, in employment and helping people gain access to services."

The popularity and high number of entries to this competition shows just how many "high calibre" small groups that people feel are "making a real difference to people’s lives" are in need of even small amounts of extra money towards their work.

Put this scramble among community groups for just £1,000 – with only one lucky organisation winning the cash – next to the £6bn a year the government is planning to lavish on the EU. The injustice and waste is glaring.

If Ealing’s MPs weren’t planning to vote pay that money to the EU, when the EU budget deal comes before Parliament for approval, several thousand community groups in each Ealing constituency alone could be given £1,000 to aid their work. Every year!

Sadly this abject irresponsibility with large quantities of public money by Ealing’s MPs means only one deserving group in Ealing will get support for their work.

And an organisation that hasn’t had its accounts approved by auditors for twelve years running is getting billions more to waste.

Is this what MPs think standing up for their communities means?

Deep sense of mistrust over NHS cuts

Thousands of people have taken to the streets of Leeds to protest over NHS cuts, reports the BBC.

Similar demonstrations have drawn enormous support at events across England, promoted by job losses and possible cuts in services.

Last month thousands of demonstrators packed the centre of Guildford, and there were also protests in Haywards Heath and Worthing. Another is coming up in Epsom.

Surrey has five major hospitals yet the local NHS trust is heading for a deficit of more than £90 million (less than one day’s worth of Britain’s contribution to the EU budget).

At a hotel in Guildford last week about 30 people including health managers, clinicians and activists met to exchange ideas and information ahead of formal consultation about NHS changes.

Darlington: MP criticises town police

MP Alan Milburn has criticised Durham Police for a dramatic rise in the time it takes the force to respond to incidents in Darlington – reports The Advertiser.

Statistics from Durham Police show that the number of immediate incidents that were attended by police within ten minutes have fallen from 82.8% to 62.9%.

Mr Milburn said the response times were a ‘real cause for concern’.

The revelation comes only days after Durham Police announced that up to 300 officers could be axed from the force to stop them sliding more than £10m into debt.

Mr Milburn said: "These response times are not brilliant, and people from across Darlington have contacted me about this. I am very concerned about what I have heard."

The MP was in the Lascelles area of his constituency, where many residents were outraged when their dedicated beat bobby patrol was axed last year, despite significant rising crime levels on their estate.

Isn’t it somewhat hypocritical of an MP like Alan Milburn to complain that his local police force is not responding adequately, when it has been forced to make cuts due to a lack of money – while quietly intending to vote billions of pounds extra that could solve such local policing problems away to the audit-failing EU?

Such behaviour would surely expose his ‘concern’ about shortfalls in local policing to be nothing more than posturing, as he would appear to be unwilling to prevent public money that could help being instead wasted on the EU.

Thousands protest at NHS cuts

Oxfordshire health union representatives joined thousands of campaigners marching in London today to express their concern over NHS cuts and privatisation - reports the Oxford Times.

People from across the country were meeting in Westminster to lobby MPs over health trust deficits and hospital department closures.

The rally has been organised by NHS Together, an alliance of unions and organisations representing NHS staff.

Patricia Marquis, the Royal College of Nursing's area manager for Thames Valley, said 20 union leaders from Oxfordshire were attending.

She said: "The issues have not changed - we are talking about funding issues affecting the NHS in Oxfordshire and cuts to NHS services, including plans to downgrade the Horton Hospital.