A new school for Cotham!

The third and final of the big issues that have been occupying my time of late has been the exciting and very welcome plan to create a new primary school on the site of Redland Police Station in Cotham.

This has been in the air as a possibility for some time. It's been known that the Police had come to consider the station as too large and out-of-date for their purposes. At the same time, the Council was looking for potential sites for new primary provision in the Redland/Cotham area to meet growing demand from families - to avoid a recurrence of the mess left by Labour in 2009 when 300 families were left without places for their children.

Just before Christmas, the Cabinet approved a proposal from St John's Primary School to run an extension on the Police Station site from September 2012, provided that the land deal progresses. It looks like it is doing so and I understand that it is expected that the Police will move out at the end of February. They will be temporarily based at Southmead, but the neighbourhood team will be returning to the area as soon as a suitable site can be found for them.

Given that it is intended for the new school to open in September 2012, things are now moving on very quickly. As the Council's contracted school builder, Skanska are leading the project and are currently consulting with local residents about how the school might look and work. The first consultation session was last week, but there is another being held this coming Thursday (26th January) at the Friends Meeting House on Hampton Road between 2.30pm and 3.30pm and from 6.30pm to 7.30pm. As I understand it, this is an 'open door' event, so please come along if you want to find out more.

Regular readers of this blog will know that I am no great fan of Skanska due to their actions during the Cotham School building works. They repeatedly acted in some very questionable ways, especially in terms of working within planning law and responding to the local community, most notably through the felling of four large and beautiful trees on Cotham Road. As far as I am concerned, they have a lot of ground to make up with this new project and I will be watching them like a hawk. I'm obviously delighted to see new primary provision locally, but not at any cost and not half-cocked.

A particular challenge for the new school will be the traffic management and associated road safety issues. Lower Redland Road is narrow and heavily parked. It is not an ideal location for parents to be dropping off their children by car and significant effort is going to be needed by all concerned to promote walking and cycling as the primary means of getting there. As I reported some months ago, there are already plans to improve safety at the junction of Lower Redland Road and Elgin Park and the school needs will now also have to be worked into this.

Teething problems with new waste collectors

As most people will have noticed, there has been a change in the company that the Council uses to collect waste and recycling (and related tasks like road sweeping). This has been SITA for the last few years, but they were replaced in November by May Gurney, who also do Bath, I believe.

As always the case when there is a major change like this, there are teething problems. For reasons that aren't yet completely clear, Cotham seems to have borne the brunt of these and I've had more complaints about waste collection over the last two months than over the last four years. These have fallen into four main types:

• 'Special arrangements' being forgotten, where residents put their bins somewhere that's convenient for them, but which isn't directly outside their house. This often happens with back lanes and the like, with the agreement of their own crew of collectors. There has been an issue with this local intelligence being transferred to May Gurney.
• A super-strict interpretation of the rules, so that May Gurney have been refusing to collect waste that's not put out correctly - e.g. overflowing bins or rubbish in recycling boxes. This is particularly a problem in some multiple occupancy houses and SITA used to be pragmatic if waste wasn't sorted out after a few weeks.
  
• Residents not reading/understanding (or not getting) the information that was sent out in October explaining that some of the collection days have changed, especially over the Christmas period.
• A communication problem somewhere between the Council's Customer Services Centre and May Gurney, so that missed collections were being sorted out once, but that the overarching problem wasn't being resolved.
  

I met with the operations manager at May Gurney two Saturdays ago and we did a tour of problem spots throughout Cotham, so that he could see what was going wrong. It was a very useful meeting and slowly, but surely, all the problems have been resolved - my inbox has gone from being full of angry residents to now being mainly happy ones! There are still a few issues, but there has been a massive improvement.

As I say, I'm not sure why Cotham has been a particular problem, but the rest of the city doesn't seem to have had the same issues. I suspect that it is probably a feature of our demographic mix and particularly the high proportion of subdivided and multiple occupancy houses. These mean that waste collection is much more complex than the suburban areas where every house has one drive and a bin at the end of it.

On the positive side of things, May Gurney are already having a positive impact on recycling rates. The November figure jumped to 48% and I hear that December was 52%! If so, this is a milestone for the city - we're recycling more of our waste than we're bunging in the ground for the first time. This is an important step towards becoming landfill-free.

If you are still having difficulties with your waste collections, please drop me a line by e-mail (neil.harrison@bristol.gov.uk) and I'll do what I can to get it sorted out.

Cotham Residents Parking

It's been a very busy winter for Anthony and I, and I regret that blogging has slipped a bit - well, a lot! We've had three very major issues to deal with (alongside the usual host of smaller ones), so it's zapped the spare time that I usually use to keep people in touch. Anyway, I'll be putting up a series of blog posts over the coming week. First up is residents parking...

As covered previously, there was a consultation on the possibility of installing a residents parking scheme in the southern part of Cotham that ran from October to early December last year. Just before Christmas, Anthony (in pic showing nice clear streets within the Kingsdown zone) and I had a chance to look at the over 600 responses that came back into the Council.

The main thing that we drew from that consultation was that a significant majority of local people supported the plans, either as they stood or with relatively minor amendments. My own position over the last four years that this has been on the political agenda has been that I am broadly positive about the concept of residents parking, but only where it has support from the community. It was pretty clear that this is now indeed the case in the area of Cotham south of the railway line, with this consultation being performed in a much more professional way than the one in Kingsdown a couple of years ago.

As a result, the decision has been taken to proceed with the next stage of the process. This will see revised plans worked up as a result of the comments from local people and these should be available shortly - probably early February. These involve changing the allocation of different types of parking bays, moving some of the lines around and altering the boundary slightly to include the section of Hampton Park south of the railway line. We have also asked the officers to look again at the area around Redland Station to see whether this could be improved - they are also looking more generally at how commuter parking in this area might be managed.

There will then be a second consultation period, which is the one required in law. This will probably occur in March/April and will focus on the mechanics of the how the scheme works, especially with respect to the location of parking bays and so on. There will then be a final decision to implement the scheme taken around June. If this is a green light, the scheme will start to appear on the ground over the summer months, with the restrictions coming into force in October 2012. It is not yet a 'done deal' and there will still be several opportunities for residents (and councillors!) to have an input.

The Council also surveyed an area just north of the proposed zone. This was hampered by a cock-up by the printers, so the leaflets were late going out. Nevertheless, over 100 comments did come back. These did not express a single clear view about the proposed residents parking scheme, although most people were concerned about the possible knock-on effects of displaced commuter parking on their own streets.

Drawing on the comments, Anthony and I have worked to get two specific concessions from the Council officers. The first is that these areas will get their own dedicated traffic wardens to help to stop illegal and unsafe parking. One of the early effects of the Kingsdown zone was that some commuters took to parking in ridiculous places until there was a clampdown. This time, we start with off clamping down on this from the outset.

The second is that we will have an assurance in place that the surrounding areas will be consulted about whether they would like to be in a residents parking scheme within one year of the start of the south Cotham scheme. This means that if these areas do suffer badly from displacement, as many residents fear, they will have the chance to see a solution in place in a reasonable timescale.

So that's where we're at - revised road plans should be out shortly and I'll post them up here as soon as I have them.

P.S. Some eagle-eyed residents have spotted notification signs on lampposts throughout Cotham. These are written in an (sadly necessary) incomprehensible legal language, so it's not immediately clear what they are about. They lay out the final legal consultation for the Cotham Parking Review - the separate exercise to the residents parking scheme which is mainly about protecting junctions with yellow lines. These plans have been around for a while now, but it's finally our turn in the queue. If all goes to plan, the lines should start to appear in March/April.

Out on the street

I've been out and about quite a bit recently delivering our latest newsletter across the ward and I've been doing my usual chore of photographing and reporting in little problems with what the Council officers called 'streetscene' - how things look on our streets, in layperson's terms.

Aside from a busted street light or two and the worst of the grafitti I've come across, I've also asked for replacements for a couple of road signs - see pics from Nugent Hill and Clare Road. While a little thing in the big scheme of the world, getting these done this is important, partly as it makes the place look nicer (and therefore reduces fear of crime) and partly because there is always a small danger that an emergency vehicle won't find their way - even in the days of sat navs!

If you're aware of something like this that needs sorting out, you can usually just telephone the Council's main number (9222000) and they will redirect you to the right person. Alternatively, you can use the Fix My Street website, which sends on an e-mail - I've tried it and it does work, though it seems a little slower than calling the Council directly.

Complaining about First Great Western

I've just posted in a complaint to First Great Western about their revenue collection efforts. I generally don't talk down public transport as it is so important that people do have confidence in using it. However, this particular issue is so bizarre, I felt it warranted a short blog post.

In essence, First Great Western seem to want to make it ever more difficult to actually buy a ticket for their trains. My story goes like this...

I decided on Wednesday evening that I was going to go to Bath (to watch Bath City leave the FA Cup, as it happens). I went to catch the 5.31pm train from Clifton Down to Temple Meads, to go on to Bath Spa.

The first thing was that the ticket machine was out of order. I heard from a resident that it was giving out the wrong tickets for the wrong money last week, so someone had thoughtfully covered it in hazard tape in the meantime.

Remembering how things worked before the machine was installed, I went to the back of the train to find the guard. The guard, however, seemed determined not to sell any tickets, ducking back into his cabin immediately after every station. It was busy on the train, but not so busy that he couldn't get down the aisle to check and sell.

So, I arrived at Temple Meads and did what any respectable passenger should: I went in search of the unpaid fares desk by the exit barriers. And, guess what... no-one there! So, I'd tried to buy a ticket three times between Clifton Down and Temple Meads without success. Finally, I did manage to get a ticket on the way out at Bath Spa, but it makes you wonder how many people would have bothered.

Come on FGW - please make it easier for passengers and let them buy tickets when they want to! It makes me very nervous getting on a train without a ticket, even when I know it's not my fault and this is neither fair nor good business.

Cotham Forum reminder

I've been a very naughty blogger again - sorry for a lengthy period of silence, but I've been really busy with 'real life' recently.

A quick reminder that the next meeting of the Cotham Forum is this coming Thursday (1st December) from 7pm to 9pm at Tyndale Baptist Church Hall on Whiteladies Road. The Church is vaguely opposite Clifton Down railway station and the hall is to the right of the church itself, alongside Imperial Road. Details are on the poster to the left.

The Forum is open to all Cotham residents and it's an informal chance to raise local issues of concern with councillors, council officers and the Police. They are generally very informal affairs and I enjoy them! The theme for this meeting is improving parks, but there will be plenty of chance to raise other matters too. I hope to see you there.

Historic home eco-refurbishment

Another quick plug, this time for a series of events being held in November about eco-refurbishment of historic houses, like most of those in Cotham :

1. Refurbishing your Victorian or Georgian Home: Eco-advice day
Saturday 5th November, 11am to 3.30pm (free drop in) at the CREATE Centre, Smeaton Road, Cumberland Basin, Bristol BS1 6XN.

An excellent opportunity to meet experts including conservation officers, energy advisors and eco-refurbishment specialists who can help you find out about:
- planning permission and listed building consent,
- grants and funding
- materials and suppliers
- renewable technologies including solar.
Get practical advice and see real-life case studies in a programme of short, free talks.

2. "WARM: creating energy efficient homes" Exhibition
At the Architecture Centre (on the harbourside, next to the Arnolfini) from 16th November to 18th December, in conjunction with the Council, Green Capital and the Green Register. Drop and have a look at the latest thinking - I believe that there will also be a programme of talks too.

There is also a conference for architects coming up at the Watershed organised by RIBA, but I can't seem to find any details about this at the moment.

It's also worth remembering that the Council produces a leaflet on eco-refurbishment of historic buildings and I have pushing officers for a review and updating in the light of the coming Green Deal - something I'll be blogging on in due course.

Do you know a lonely older person?

A quick plug for a new charitable service operating in the Cotham area: Contact The Elderly. They aim to stop older people from feeling isolated by getting volunteers to organise tea parties. Perhaps unusally, they aren't short of volunteers offering their time and their homes, but they do need to recruit some older people (or 'guests' as they call them) to take part.

While the demographics of this part of the city are quite young on average, there are plenty of older people here too and I am very willing to bet that there are dozens who don't have loving families who could tap into this as a way of making new friends and staying in touch with society. So, please do have a think about people who you think might benefit and put them in touch with Contact The Elderly. I've cut-and-pasted their press release below as it has all the contact details and more information about how the charity operates.



CHARITY INVITES OLDER PEOPLE IN WEST BRISTOL TO JOIN THEM FOR A CUPPA, CAKE and GOOD COMPANY!

Contact the Elderly, the charity solely dedicated to tackling loneliness and isolation among older people, is inviting local residents to join up to new local friendship groups in the West Bristol area and enjoy free, regular, monthly Sunday afternoon tea parties.

The charity, with the support of a volunteer network, aims to relieve the acute loneliness and isolation of people over the age of 75 who live alone, without the help of nearby family, by organising monthly Sunday tea parties for small groups of older people within their local community.

Each older person is collected from their home by a volunteer driver and taken to a volunteer host’s home for the afternoon. The group is warmly welcomed by a different host each month, but the drivers remain the same which means that over the months and years, acquaintances turn into friends and loneliness is replaced by companionship.

We are launching 3 new groups in the areas of Clifton, Redland and Neighbours, and Outer NW Bristol so we have capacity for a number of new guests to join and the charity is keen to raise awareness of these openings among the local community.

Contact the Elderly’s Bristol Development Officer, Helen Ker, said: “The charity is committed to offering a lifeline of friendship to the oldest and loneliest people in Bristol, but by their very nature, it’s often a challenge to get the word out to those who would benefit most from joining. We therefore wanted to make people aware that these groups are looking for new members and to encourage anyone interested in coming along, or those who know of people to whom it might appeal, to get in touch with us.

“Our friendship group represents a great opportunity to make new friends within the community, to get out of the house, and to generally have a good time! Perfect for those looking for ways to brighten up a weekend.”

West Bristol residents over the age of 75 who live alone, without the support of family and friends, and who are interested in joining a Contact the Elderly group can contact Helen Ker on 0117 960 9606. PO Box 281, Bristol BS15 0BT or email helen.ker@contact-the-elderly.org.uk

Cotham residents parking plans published

Letters should have started plopping onto doormats across the southern part of Cotham Ward (i.e. between Cotham Road and the railway line) to consult people about a possible residents parking scheme. This is something that Anthony and I have been working on for a few months now - getting together a 'starting point' draft to show people how it might work, but to seek comments and ideas to refine it further.

My position on residents parking has changed somewhat since I've seen how well the Kingsdown zone has worked for the people living in it. Some of the Kingsdown residents have been interviewed for a little video which is pretty compelling - especially the trader who talks about getting it wrong!



I am now positive about moving forwards with this, though I will honour my old promise to only proceed if the majority of people living in the area (or a sensible subset it) back it.

As far as the Cotham plans go, there is a page explaining it all on the Council website, including a pretty neat zoomable online map. The consultation period is running until the 2nd December and a decision about whether to proceed will be taken after that.

There are two drop-in sessions being held at Cheltenham Road Library where residents can go along and ask questions about how the scheme might work and to pass on their comments to the traffic officers.

• Wednesday 2nd November : 3-8pm
• Friday 18th November : 3-8pm

I will try to pop along for some of the time at the latter one, I think, so that people can bend my ear too. In any case, I'm happy to get questions and comments through the blog or by e-mail (neil.harrison@bristol.gov.uk).

Also, Sustainable Redland have produced a very interesting and engaging document about why they are supporting residents parking from a climate change, safety and sustainability perspective. It's well worth a read to remind yourself about the 'big picture' reasons why controlling car use is a good idea.

Here today and gone tomorrow (or the day after)

We're having a little mini-wave of flytipping in Cotham at the moment - I called in a couple of piles earlier in the week (including the one on Ashgrove Road in the pic left) and I am aware of a couple of other instances that have been reported.

Hopefully needless to say, flytipping is illegal. The Council now routinely looks through what's been dumped to try to trace the culprit and they do often get caught and fined. CCTV cameras are also used. Let's just say that flytippers aren't always the brightest of bulbs...

Anyway, the Council have a policy of removing flytipping within 48 hours of it being reported. You can phone in to report it (9222100) or e-mail customer.services@bristol.gov.uk - experience tells me that phone is a more reliable way of getting action, for some reason.