Simon's Street Surgery

Radstock’s Liberal Democrat Councillor Simon Allen will be holding a street surgery on Friday 3rd September, at 1pm.

The surgery will take place in Waterloo Road, Pine Court and Pine Way.

Any residents who would like a visit can contact Cllr Allen on 07540 059188, or by emailing simon.neslibdems@btinternet.com

No more clamping on private land

The Lib Dems will be delivering on another manifesto commitment when car clamping on private land is banned. Liberal Democrat ministers Lynne Featherstone and Norman Baker have announced that car clamping on private land is to be banned as part of the Freedom Bill this Autumn.

Home Office minister Lynne Featherstone MP when making the announcment said:

“The Government is committed to ending the menace of rogue private sector wheel clampers once and for all.

“For too long motorists have fallen victim to unscrupulous tactics by many clamping firms. Reports of motorists being marched to cash points or left stranded after their car has been towed are simply unacceptable.

“A ban on clamping and towing on private land will end this abuse and companies who decide to flout new laws will face severe penalties.”

This is a link to the BBC website article: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-10993473

B&NES Cabinet refuses to listen on secondary schools

Campaigners and opposition Councillors have expressed their frustration and disappointment following B&NES Cabinet’s decision yesterday evening to continue with the plan to close Culverhay school in Bath. Several Liberal Democrat Councillors spoke at the Cabinet meeting to try and persuade the Cabinet to listen to the wishes of the local community and to rethink the proposals, which have already been subject to a call in.

Councillor Nathan Hartley (Liberal Democrat, Peasedown), commented:

“I’m very disappointed that the Cabinet has decided to continue with its plan to close a good community school. For decades, residents and councillors in Bath have called for Culverhay to become a co-educational establishment where boys and girls can go to receive a personalised and varied education. “The role of the Council, any council, is to serve the people. It’s a shame that on this occasion the powers that be don't want to do this. I just hope now that the residents of Bath engage strongly with the forthcoming consultation, letting the Cabinet know how much Culverhay is valued by parents and pupils, and that closing it would rip the very heart out of that community in the south west of Bath.”

Councillor Paul Crossley (Liberal Democrat, Southdown), who lead the call in request, added: “I do not believe that this decision is the end of the line. The formal process, starting in September, will be another chance for parents and campaigners to make the case for keeping Culverhay. The announcement that Culverhay will be pursuing Academy status is also a ray of hope.”

Liberal Democrat Councillors who spoke during the meeting included Ian Gilchrist (Widcombe), Paul Crossley (Southdown), Nathan Hartley (Peasedown), David Dixon (Walcot), Caroline Roberts (Newbridge) and Gerry Curran (Twerton).

Speaking during the Cabinet meeting, Councillor Gilchrist said: “It seems to me to be daft to close one school entirely and dispose of the buildings and land as is being proposed for Culverhay. Much better would seem to be an approach of retaining all the sites but, where necessary slimming them down in a way that will reduce running costs in the short term but which will allow them to be brought back to full-strength when the rising population makes this necessary. […] deleting a school is one of the quickest ways I can imagine to rip the heart out of a community”

Speaking during the Cabinet meeting, Councillor Curran pointed out that it was unbelievable that, after five years of work by Councillors and Council Officers, their proposal could be thrown away and the future of school provision in Bath decided by the governors of two schools, one of which won’t even engage with the Council.

£4,000 up for grabs in Radstock

Community groups and projects in Radstock have the chance to apply for up to £4,000, thanks to the Councillors’ Initiative Fund.

Cllr Simon Allen (Lib Dem, Radstock) has been allocated the money by Bath and North East Somerset Council to spend in the town.

Each year, a group of B&NES Councillors are allocated money so initiatives in their wards can receive some much needed funding – giving many of the projects that rely on volunteers that extra financial support.

Simon said:

“This funding was originally allocated to the late Alan Hall and I am proud that this money has now been allocated to me to support some of the good causes in Radstock. I’m looking forward to working with many of the worthy groups and organisations in Radstock to decide how the money can be spent.

Much of the work in our communities to make them more cohesive is carried out by un-paid residents who have a passion for a particular cause. It’s these kind of grassroots projects that I’d like to financially support this year.”

The Councillors’ Initiative Fund is open to both one-off and existing schemes with demonstrable community support that seek to improve the social, economic or environmental wellbeing of a particular area.

Cllr Allen’s allocation of funding is open to any group operating in Radstock.

To apply, contact Cllr Simon Allen on 07540 059 188 or email - simon.neslibdems@btinternet.com

Follow Simon on Twitter

Radstock’s newest Councillor is giving local residents the chance to receive regular news updates from him with the help of Twitter.

Cllr Simon Allen (Lib Dem), who won July’s by election in the town, wants to reach as many residents as possible through a variety of communication methods.

Twitter is a social networking and blogging service that enables people to send and read other user messages called tweets. Simon commented:

“As well as regular newsletters and street surgeries it’s important to use electronic means of communication such as Twitter, Facebook and blogs to reach out to people of all ages and interests. Twitter is a fantastic and simple way of keeping in touch with residents and informing them of what I am doing in the community on their behalf.”

Tweets are text-based posts of up to 140 characters displayed on an individual’s home page, accessible via the Twitter website and on mobile phones.

Twitter currently has more than 100million users worldwide.

To follow Simon on Twitter Radstock residents can sign up at www.twitter.com/proudofradstock

Proud of Radstock

On 29th July 2010 I was honoured to be elected as the first ever Liberal Democrat Councillor for Radstock. Myself and a very hard working team took to the streets of Radstock to speak to as many people as we could to hear their views and concerns. I was delighted to have three serving MP's in Duncan Hames(pictured), David Heath(pictured) and Don Foster come to Radstock to support my campaign.

However, what mattered most to me was what people were telling us about their streets and their communities. Radstock has great communities with many unsung heroes doing good work. As your new Councillor I want to build on these strong communities and make them better places to live. Over the coming months I will be working hard to get the best deal possible for Radstock, making sure that Radstock isn't a forgotten land in the eyes of the Council and that when problems arise I will do my utmost to get those issues addressed.

If there is anything that you feel I can help with then please do not hesitate to contact me :

T: 07540 059 188

E: simon.neslibdems@btinternet.com

Lib Dems win in Radstock

Residents in Radstock have backed local man Simon Allen as their new Councillor in the B&NES Council by election last Thursday.

The Liberal Democrat candidate received 542 votes giving him a majority of over 150 in an historic result which saw Radstock elect its first ever Liberal Democrat Councillor for B&NES.

Councillor Allen, who lives in the centre of Radstock, said:

“I am delighted to have been elected to represent Radstock on B&NES Council. I am honoured and proud that the residents of Radstock have put their faith in me and voted for a fresh start for our town.

“I pledge to stand up for local people and put their needs first. I hope to restore people’s trust in local democracy.”

The full by-election results from Thursday are:

Liberal Democrat - 542
Labour - 386
Independent - 370
Conservative - 55