Barkingside 21

Not a Dunn Deal

2012-01-27T20:25:00.000Z

There seems to be a lot of cynicism out here on Public Consultations and specifically Redbridge Conversations on the Council’s proposed budgets. One such suggestion is that the council deliberately include contentious items in their initial proposals so that they can take them out when there is a fuss and make it look like they are listening.

Of course we realise that the Coalition government are cutting their grant and that some tough decisions have to be made. You can’t spend what you haven’t got. So, the consultation is out and is currently doing the rounds of Area Committees and on Wednesday 25th we had the pleasure of Cllr Mrs Dunn’s company at Area 3 to answer questions and we were assured that the proposed budget is not a Dunn deal. She is the cabinet member for Highways (which includes waste and recycling – don’t ask!).

The big issue raised was the proposed reduction of the Green Waste kerbside summer (April to October) collection service from weekly to fortnightly. There was a good debate with some interesting points made.

Firstly, there is currently a working party, chaired by Cllr Paul Canal, in progress looking at the whole question of waste and recycling and how we can reduce the costs of this. The council pay £128 for every tonne sent to landfill and £98 for every tonne of recycling. It would seem prudent to wait for the results of this exercise before making any rash decisions on Green waste collection.

Secondly, when the service was introduced it was completely overwhelmed. It is very popular. And when it went from fortnightly to weekly the take-up of the service and tonnage shot up again, as was the case when the general kerbside recycling scheme went from fortnightly to weekly and also when cardboard recycling was introduced. The big question is what was happening to all this green waste before? And the answer is it was being put out in the general waste and going to landfill costing the taxpayer £128 per tonne instead of £98 per tonne. So, we don’t want to go back to that do we? There is a distinct possibility that such a move could be counter-productive and cost us more in the long term. And it also sends out completely the wrong message on waste.

Area Committee 3 voiced their disapproval on this item in the budget as did Area Committee 1 last Monday. Cllr Mrs Dunn did seem to be listening and I am quite hopeful that this will not happen.

Now, my view is that a significant amount of this green waste material really ought to be home composted meaning that it does not enter the council’s waste stream in the first place and therefore doesn’t cost the taxpayer anything. There will still be a need, though, because not all green waste is suitable for home composting. But I’m afraid that if residents don’t want to compost there’s not a lot we can do about it. If you want to give it a try you can get discounted compost bins from here.

What also struck me at the same meeting is this. The cost saving for reducing the Green waste collection service to fortnightly is put at £50,000 - a service that covers the whole borough, 5 working days a week and for 7 months of the year. At the same meeting £15,000 (just under a third of that) was earmaked for hanging baskets in Barkingside and Hainault and a scheme to put bollards at Fullwell Parade was costed at £22,000 (just under half). It seems to me that some council contracts need to be examined more than others because some of them look like a complete rip-off. Perhaps Area 3 should ask the New Fairlop Oak who does their award winning hanging baskets and how much they cost? Or better still, let the contract to Wetherspoons. I’ll bet my boots it’ll be cheaper than whatever the council can come up with.

Redbridge Artist Commission

2012-01-25T18:10:00.000Z

Dear Redbridge Artists,

Are you creative? Want to build up your portfolio and your profile in the borough? Want to help out your community Arts Festival?

The Redbridge Green Fair is seeking the 2012 REDBRIDGE GREEN FAIR ARTIST to create the ART WORK for our flyer and all this year’s materials.

The Redbridge Green Fair is a major arts festival and the largest community event in the borough. Our last fair in 2009 attracted 14,000 people. Whilst we cannot pay you, you will be credited on all electronic media, our website and the flyers. So if you are interested in raising your profile, this is the opportunity for you!!!

The commission: We are looking for a fresh design that captures the essence of the event. Printed flyers may be printed in black and white depending on our budget, so please bare this in mind. Our usual colours are green and yellow, but this is not written in stone. We are also looking for a logo design that can be used on Facebook and Twitter, and long banners to use as page headers on our own website.

Key themes to consider: A community festival with a strong focus on the environment. Key elements of the fair include: Music, Art Activities, Stalls, Vegetarian Food, Cultural Diversity.

Deadline for submission: ♥♥Tuesday 14 February♥♥, 11:59pm to our email address.

For more information and tips on what we’re looking for: email us on redbridgegreenfair@gmail.com and we’ll give you a call. We can also discuss your expenses which we hope to be able to cover, but they need to be agreed up front.

Date & Venue: Valentines Park, Ilford on Monday 4th June 2012, the Jubilee weekend, but it will not have a Jubilee theme.

We will be in touch later with the paid and voluntary opportunities for Redbridge artists participating in the event. In the meantime keep an eye on our website http://www.rgf.org.uk/ and you can find us on Facebook.

Thank you,
Ros Southern
Chair, Redbridge Green Fair Association

100 Days

2012-01-24T14:29:00.000Z

Apparently today, Tuesday 24th, marks the point where it is 100 days to go before this year’s Big Event in the Big Smoke – the London Elections. The trouble is that not many, including our Chair~~man~~, know what the London Assembly is for or does nor what the role of the London Mayor is let alone the absurdities of the voting system. They might know who he is, (we’ve only had two so far and they have both been male), but not what he is for.

Hopefully we will rectify this by getting some statements from the candidates for the Havering and Redbridge constituency for this blog prior to the Hustings at our AGM on April 4th.

Meanwhile the local Conservatives were out in force in Barkingside last Saturday accompanied by the present incumbent presumably because the polls have turned in Ken’s favour after being 8 points behind last summer.

Locally the Labour Party have been very active for some months on #labourdoorstep but there is a twitter campaign for a hashtag #getoffmydoorstep [that’s the polite version].

I can’t find a website for their candidate Mandy Richards but Haroon Saad the Green Party candidate features on the new Redbridge Greens site. Still no news on the local Liberal Democrat candidate – perhaps hoping to come up on the rails at the last minute in a two-horse race?

Talking of racetracks, here’s a video created by Jim Jepps for the Big Smoke website on road safety: enjoy the soundtrack …

There was a comment recently, which I can’t find now, “that our roads are built for cars not people”. Wrong! Most of London’s road network was built before we had cars, and even the expansion of new estates like Barkingside and Clayhall in the 1930s was when very few people had cars. The problem is that our roads were NOT built for cars and we have had to make the best of it.

A Conservative Conservationist

2012-01-18T18:49:00.000Z

Two things caught my eye today.

First the UK Energy Research Centre (UKERC) issued its response to the Department of Energy and Climate Change’s consultation on the Green Deal, highlighting key omissions and inconsistencies in the document.

The Government’s Green Deal aims to reduce carbon emissions cost effectively by revolutionising the energy efficiency of British properties, but has been criticised by the Committee on Climate Change as being unlikely to deliver this objective. The Government’s own impact assessment has also confirmed that the rate of energy efficiency improvement will be less than 25% than is currently being achieved – in other words the proposed policy change will reduce policy effectiveness, not improve it. More …

Subsidising energy supply, but not energy efficiency improvement makes no sense.

Indeed. So I am asking myself why is it that the “greenest government ever” is having such difficulty in actually doing what it said on the tin when we bought it in May 2010? Well, the answer could be in Caroline Lucas’ review of a book by Roger Scruton titled "Green Philosophy: How to Think Seriously About the Planet". Some extracts …

With the Tory leadership distancing itself from the environmental agenda it had courted so keenly before the last election, and the Coalition government dangerously divided over green policies, philosopher Roger Scruton's thoughtful study on environmentalism in the conservative tradition arrives at a timely moment. Acknowledging that the environment is the most urgent political problem of our age – an intellectual step that already takes him beyond most Conservatives – the author, who is both a conservative and a conservationist, seeks to reclaim it from the clutches of the left.

However,

Overflowing with references to history, philosophy, art, cultural theory, literature and law, Green Philosophy is beautifully written and ambitious in its scope. But it is also curiously old-fashioned, unashamedly tribal and deeply contradictory. Scruton himself admits that his approach is "more philosophical than practical" – and many of his lines of inquiry simply take the reader around in circles.

And

Having failed to resolve this ambiguity, [climate change needs global action] the philosopher goes on to rage against the negative consequences of state-imposed bureaucracies, "bad regulation" and of the dominance of NGOs. While he does chide conservatives for failing to address the obvious fact that environmental "stewardship" does not come easily to multinational companies that have "no civic tie to the countries they operate in", he continues to champion the free market as the lesser evil – and lets big business off the hook.

This exposes the contradiction at the heart of conservative approach to the environment: the desire to promote free enterprise and a smaller state imposing minimal regulation, while also seeking to conserve natural heritage. Recent policy disasters such as the proposed reform of the planning system and the selling-off of the forests have shown the Tory-led Government grappling with this conflict.

In this context, it's even more difficult to accept Scruton's claim that "conservatism and environmentalism are natural bedfellows". The truth is that Scruton can't decide how much state action is too much. He agrees that the resources of government are needed to address problems like climate change, oil spills, plastic pollution, and the loss of bio-diversity. He also believes in the "fundamental moral idea" that those responsible for damage should repair it, and supports such progressive measures as carbon taxes and emissions-limiting legislation.

I couldn't agree more, but how he reconciles this kind of large-scale intervention with his beloved small-state conservatism is anyone's guess.

So there you have it. It’s all down to Cognitive Dissonance or as it is sometimes known Doublethink. And I suspect the same conclusion with "Socialist environmentalism" but I can't quite pin down who the socialists are these days ...

Read the whole review here.

Redbridge Council want your House

2012-01-17T14:58:00.006Z

I do not profess to know everything that’s going on around here. I take the view that if something is important or topical, then someone will draw it to my attention – in this case ex Redbridge councillor and deputy Leader Morris Hickey. As usual there is nothing on the award winning website Redbridge-i but the local press will probably pick up on it later.

This from yesterday’s Telegraph

Elderly homeowners will be encouraged to downsize to smaller properties and allow councils to rent their homes to local families under Coalition plans to ease the nation’s housing crisis. More …

This from Today’s Conservative Home

The Government is urging other councils to follow the example of Conservative-run Redbridge [sic!] with a scheme to encourage the elderly to move to smaller properties and allow the council to rent out their homes. More …

And a comment posted on the above

Our scheme in Redbridge - run by a Conservative-Liberal Democrat partnership - is a new pilot scheme that we're currently testing at the moment. It's targeted at mature home owners who are under-occupying their home and would like to move. Our Housing Service provides advice and support, in partnership with DABD(UK), including a direct offer of sheltered housing where appropriate. The home owner retains ownership of their home which is leased to the council to provide us with additional social housing. The owner receives all of the rent as income, as well as free property management.

Cllr Ian Bond (LibDem Deputy Leader of the Council)

Of course if councils hadn’t sold off most of their council housing and the housing market wasn’t totally screwed in favour of speculators leaving homes empty then just maybe the problem would not be so bad and squatting may not have been such a problem …

Location, Location, Location

2012-01-14T13:39:00.000Z

One of the features that defines our individual identity is where we live. Sometimes we stretch things a little to make out we live in the posh part of town when we don’t. I spend quite a bit of time correcting addresses on a National Charity’s database because of this. There is a big difference between a locality name and a correct Postal Address.

Anyway, the first council meeting I attended was the Modernisation Committee back in the year 2000 to question them about the make up of Area Committees. I particularly recall the antique furniture in the committee room on the first floor of the Town Hall. Also present were Cllr Ian Bond, Cllr Morris Hickey and Cllr Jim O’Shea.

Later, much later, there was the uproar when a council notice board appeared on the north side of Gants Hill roundabout proclaiming it was in “Barkingside”. Well it was, and still is, in Barkingside ward but the residents were not happy and it had to be changed to Gants Hill ££££££. There is also the long story about how we became to be known as Barkingside 21.

So, on Thursday I receive a request from someone by the name of Daud to give a link to his district map of Redbridge. It’s adverstising I know but it is also actually quite good, although I dare say some will take issue, particularly a certain local activist named Rick [with a silent “P”] who lives in IG8 but has been lumped in with the “riff-raff” in IG5. Nothing like putting boundaries on a map to get a bit of discussion going. What do you readers think? Have you been classified correctly?

click image to take you to the big version

But that’s not all. On Friday I was in Sainsbury’s Barkingside and when I returned to my car laden with beer there was a fridge magnet stuck on the driver’s door. It was an advertisement – no more bits of paper under your windscreen wiper and quite a clever new gimmick I had not seen before. At first I thought it was the Florist in the High Street but it’s not. I checked out the web link and in the “Ilforf area they will deliver to Wood Ford Green, Seven Hill, Grant Hill and Chipwell”. I particularly like Chipwell – it sums up the TOWIEs quite well don’t’cha fink, innit?

click image for the full version

This post is dedicated to the grammar police on the Redbridge-i forum.

Disability Hate Crime

2012-01-13T14:00:00.000Z

Here’s a topical theme to be having a workshop on right now, given the flack the government has been getting over their plans to "reform" Disability Living Allowance. Even Bouncy Boris is not happy, not to mention the Lords.

click on image to enlarge

"What is Disability Hate Crime & Harassment" - indeed?

Redbridge Conversation 2012

2012-01-11T17:02:00.000Z

Yesterday I mentioned "Consultations" and today this popped up in my Inbox. To do your "duty" click on the graphic and it will take you to the relevant page on the award winning Redbridge-i website.

The Year in Scams

2012-01-10T16:21:00.002Z

~~Politicians~~ Scam artists are in a tough line of work. Sure, the number of potential victims is massive, but every year the targets get savvier and social media channels informing them get better. It's no wonder that the scams of 2011 are so much more creative than the ones we saw just a few years ago. Even their diversionary tactics like “Blackbusters” and “Tourette’s”, designed specifically to keep your eye off the ball, are getting more innovative.

Social media scams. With over half a billion users on Facebook, it's as wide a target as a scammer can hope to find. Sorry, but that tempting app promising you a better future in return for a cross on a piece of paper? Fake. The invitation to participate in a public consultation on the issue of the day? Also fake. The decisions have already been made. It’s a con to make you think you live in a democracy and you have a say in how it is run. Whenever you come across one of these remember that if sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Like Cuddly Ken promising to save Londoners £1,000 over 4 years by reducing fares on London Transport. Or conning £10billion out of us for a vanity project which will benefit the economy by £1billion. Slashing one budget only for another to cost us twice as much and "reforms" that waste opportunities. These fiddlers are burning our economy.

Disaster scams. Disasters gave scammers all the occasions they need to send out "fundraising" emails. Usually signed by someone like Baroness Warsi, Ed Miliband or Nick Clegg these spam emails try to convince you that your lifestyle is under threat from some Banking Crisis or other and that there is no money left in the piggy bank when the reality is they and their mates have already got it all. It’s just a ploy to get you to donate even more money and tax to the worthy causes of the likes of the Bankers, Vodaphone and Goldman Sachs and Tony Bliar.

Employment scams. With unemployment stuck around 9% nationally, plenty of people were looking for work this year. The thing is they are not looking in the right places, ie abroad. All our meaningful and worthwhile jobs have been exported to places where forced labour is cheaper. There are only so many “Diversity Advisors” the UK can employ. The trick here is to get you to work for nothing either as an Intern or as a volunteer in the Big Society at Tescos. Once they’ve got your personal data via your resume, they can then track you and cut all your benefits.

Scareware. This is mainly the province of the Daily Mail and the establishment press. Stories of undesirables and foreigners screwing the system and living a life of luxury on your tax pounds while you try to hold down a job and pay the rent or mortgage. Of course the real villainous thieving bastards are noshing it up at your expence in Westminster while suppressing reports that challenge their plans to ~~screw~~ deal with all the scroungers and disabled people.

Phishing. So many small and medium sized businesses were affected by hacking this year—either through direct attacks or attacks on marketing partners—that nobody with an email account should have been surprised at the surge in spam volumes from Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs demanding payment. And, of course, there were the inevitable phishing emails purporting to be from hacked companies asking these businesses to log into their sites and verify their financial details. This of course does not apply to politicians, ex-politicians or the large companies who fund their parties.

What will 2012 bring? More of whatever works—which means more personalized, credible, and convincing scams. If you want to stay protected, remain vigilant—and use good, trustworthy sources of information. You need to proactively stop threats before they reach you, like don’t open the front door to anyone wearing a rosette, report political email spammers to SpamCop and filter out unwanted advances and promotional offers from Ken Livingstone, Boris Johnson et al.

Hopefully this year political scams will be someone else's problem.

The original of this article can be found in the Trend Micro Newsletter here.

What’s Cooking in 2012

2012-01-05T17:56:00.000Z

According to some the big issue in 2012 will be food - it's cost and availability. The signs were there last year. Unfortunately I missed Blog Action Day on 16th October but I did make some notes at the time.

Government publish Healthy Lives, Healthy people – a call to action on obesity in England.

But the Children’s Food Campaign slam it thus "This is a deeply disappointing and utterly inadequate response which represents a squandered opportunity to address the UK’s obesity crisis.”

David Cameron stated that a "FAT tax" to reduce levels of obesity could be introduced.

Public 'need to be more honest about eating habits' - BBC

Meanwhile in the US, more than 30 million tons of food was dumped in landfills in 2009, making food by far the most abundant material there by weight. And we are just as bad per head of population.

But don’t worry, there is a plan behind all this. The global production and distribution of food is heavily reliant on fuel and, as I am sure you are aware from your visits to the petrol pump, there has been a dramatic increase in cost, which is being passed on to consumers. This, plus the government’s austerity programme is driving many people to be much more thrifty in their purchases and what they throw away. On the other side of the coin, exercise, the increases in public transport fares are obviously designed specifically to get us using bicycles or shanks’s pony. We can’t afford to fill the car’s petrol tank too often these days and that’s good for the Mayor’s little problem on air quality which you might say is a hefty bonus, at least for someone, somewhere in charge of that department?

So you see, there is a method in the madness and the Government really do have our best interests at heart.

Here’s some of My Secret Kitchen’s predictions:

1. Price Increases on food – At the back end of last year the manufacturers supplying the retailers realised that they needed to force the raw material increases through the chain if they were going to survive and understandably so. Anything grown in the ground has increased, especially the basics so expect people to think even more carefully about what they put in their shopping basket.

2. Granny’s cooking – Retro was big in 2011 and the desire for security and safety in an uncertain environment will steer cooking towards old family recipes. People still have egos and pride and what better way to show off than by resurrecting that old recipe that was handed down through the generations? – Could there be a rise in dumplings, suet puddings and the like?

3. More of the Grain – Home baking and cooking is a hot trend and people want to know more about what they are eating but without spending a huge amount. Whole grains are great value for money and the likes of Quinoa, oats and cornmeal could see a surge in 2012.

4. Forage, forage, forage – we predicted hedgerow flavours for 2011 and this will continue but expand into the general wild. Expect to see a rise in types of mushrooms, herbs and berries in people’s diets. Wild garlic anyone?

10. Back to the Dinner Table – As family values become ever more important, there will be a push to get more social interaction into the family dinner table which has declined over recent years. More family get togethers and more group meals will mean recipes involving more members of the family. What better way of bring a family closer together than cooking.. unless it goes pear shaped…

2011: a Blogger’s Review

2012-01-04T23:48:00.001Z

Yes folks, it’s time to look back at where we've been in 2011. There was a big increase in traffic on this site around April time as 4 contentious issues hit the proverbial fan – reflected in the top 5 posts for the year:

1. Two for One Police Offer – A Redbridge Sham
2. Clayhall Eye
3. A406 Redbridge Flyover Roadworks
4. Super Scrimpers
5. The Downshall Centre to Close

I can’t tell you how much traffic we’ve had because Blogger, Site Meter, Amazing Counters and Google Analytics all disagree - by quite some margin, but they all show an increase over 2010. However, they sort of agree on the top 10 word strings that land up here via a search engine:

1. barkingside 21
2. barkingside21
3. super scrimpers
4. my favourite shop
5. barkingside
6. morris hickey
7. alan hughes ilford
8. barkingside21.blogspot.com
9. my favorite shop
10. gants hill egg whisk

So, how have things progressed on our shopping list?

The absent Public Toilet at Fullwell Cross.
- the refurbishment of the library completed in April means that the toilets there are less prone to vandalism and open to the public. Tick! It only took 8 years.
Barkingside Regeneration.
- A bid for funding from the London Mayor’s Outer London fund has been submitted with the support of Barkingside 21. The project is for the “Town Square” outside the Leisure Centre and Virginia Gardens. Ongoing.
Completion of Barkingside High Street Road works
- the roadworks at the Fremantle traffic lights were completed in 2010 but we still await the right turn traffic light filter. What a difference a year makes?
Improvement of the High Street Alleyways.
- can it get any worse? It’s just another year.
A Regular Market in the High street
- Still no action. But that’s the “market” for you! No Change.
Putting the Plan into Action at Fairlop Waters
- We now have a new sign outside. Very pleased with progress made here. And for the uninitiated they sell Spitfire in the bar. Bonus points!
King George Hospital A&E and Maternity
- doesn’t look good said the consultant. No change – except a damning report into Queens means the proposals cannot be made just yet.
A Bus route along Forest Road.
- By the time we get one, if ever, will we be able to afford the fares?
The Clayhall Avenue/Woodford Avenue junction
- The CCTV cameras arrived and immediately started fining drivers for “Legal” U-Turns which caused a bit of a rumpus. Sorted out now. But plan to extend Traffic Management Order to cover U-turns up to the width restriction are on hold.
A replacement Swimming Pool
- The faint possibility of the Lorry Park site in Seven Kings was an illusion reflected in a puddle.
Webcasting
- Wow, the council is now seriously looking into this while at the same time also considering banning the use of laptops by councillors at council meetings so they can't tweet what's going on - you couldn't make it up.
e-petitions
- in 2010 they said due on 15th December but they didn’t specify which year….

If I’ve missed anything remind me in the comments.

The POP UP Café

2011-12-30T16:50:00.000Z

This is a new service for young adults (17 - 21) with learning disabilities set up by Barnardo’s and Redbridge Council. It is based in the Uniting Friends ‘OUT THERE’ Project @ 92c Beehive lane, Ilford, (Opposite the Harvester pub) and will be open on Fridays from 5 – 9pm.

For further details see flyer below:

click on image to enlarge

The Café actually opened on 30th September 2011 and I am reminded now by an email from Natalie asking for the poster to be displayed on our Notice Board in the High Street. Strangely, the only reference I can find to this service on the award winning Redbridge-i website is this, and that was via a Google search. The search facility on the council’s website just doesn’t do what it says on the tin, and it has been like that since RiV2 started in November 2009. The words "it", "broke" and "fix" spring to mind.

Flash Gordon

2011-12-28T17:45:00.000Z

FLASH provides free (at the point of use) support to help London-based small and medium sized enterprises implement sustainable practices and seize the commercial opportunities arising from the low carbon economy. The programme is co-ordinated by the Institute for Sustainability and funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). Working with a range of partners like the Royal Institute of British Architects and the University of East London, FLASH offers exclusive access to learning from practical demonstration projects as well as the most recent and credible analysis and industry best practice. Over 400 London based businesses are already benifitting from the scheme, and one of them is right here on our doorstep – Redbridge Lakes run by Gordon Bullock.

The University of East London Sustainability Research Institute has been down for a site visit with a view to identifying potential habitat alterations that could be made to enhance its capacity to support biodiversity (the variety of life on earth - plants, animals and other living things).

We are looking at Bird feeders in the vicinity of the Club House and a possible nesting habitat for Sand martins and Kingfishers. Both of these have suffered due to river channel management but there is a natural bank close enough to water or an artificial bank [below] could be used as both these species have been known to use them.

Redbridge Lakes is also in the “bat buffer zone” so we are looking here to maintain the tree and hedgerow line plus some bat boxes in the trees. Also shingle beaches, shallows and pools to promote high insect density.

As it is a wetland site you would also expect water creatures – like water voles. Plenty of recommendations on plant and ditch maintenance to assist these creatures in the report.

There are plans for a wildflower meadow which also helps with insects and butterflies plus a solitary bee bank and a bug hotel.

All in all some interesting suggestions for site enhancement to promote biodiversity on an already rich site, providing added value for the visitor experience through contact with biodiverse nature.

The Shortest Day

2011-12-21T23:44:00.001Z

Two related events caught my eye today on this the Winter Solstice.

First, Government plans to cut subsidies for solar panels on homes have been ruled legally flawed by the High Court. See FoE press release here.

Friends of the Earth’s Executive Director Andy Atkins said:
"These botched and illegal plans have cast a huge shadow over the solar industry, jeopardising thousands of jobs. We hope this ruling will prevent Ministers rushing through damaging changes to clean energy subsidies - giving solar firms a much-needed confidence boost. Ministers must now come up with a sensible plan that protects the UK's solar industry and allows cash-strapped homes and businesses to free themselves from expensive fossil fuels by plugging into clean energy. Solar payments should fall in line with falling installation costs but the speed of the Government's proposals threatened to devastate the entire industry."

Birmingham Friends of the Earth campaigner Kara Moses said:
"This could be great news for Birmingham's burgeoning solar industry. We hope that the government will come back with measures that will protect the positive work that's being done by communities locally. With high levels of unemployment and fuel poverty in Birmingham we can't afford to damage the work that's being done to tackle this and give us better energy security."

Second, remember this from Gateshead College? Well, this, below, arrived in my inbox before the above announcement.

Solar powers bright future for unemployed

Group Horizon’s Dennis Latimer and Gateshead College’s Paul Gough showing the type of training that has secured jobs for more than 50 people

More than 50 unemployed people are building sustainable careers on a construction site in North Tyneside thanks to training delivered by Gateshead College and renewable energy training specialist Group Horizon.
The new recruits will work on social housing stock across the North Tyneside area, after securing employment through building services company, Optimal Systems. The Yorkshire-based company worked with Ingeus and Group Horizon to recruit the new workers to carry out their contract for property group Kier.
Group Horizon and Gateshead College work with Job Centre Plus and welfare-to-work organisations, such as Ingeus, to identify candidates for the unemployed training programme. They then work with the trainees to provide them with the skills employers demand including solar PV installation, construction, engineering, security, IT and administration.
Paul Gough, head of commercial operations at Gateshead College said: “We are at the forefront of low carbon training in the North East. The main purpose of this work programme is to develop ‘green skills’ for unemployed people who want to get back into the job market. We work closely with a wide range of employers in the region including manufacturers, installers, local councils and social housing companies, so that we can meet the local demand for skills that get people back into work and help the economy to grow.”
Peter Behan, Managing Director at Group Horizon “The current uncertainty over the future of the Government’s ‘feed-in tariff’ has lead to an unprecedented interest in companies looking to up skill in solar PV installation to fulfil orders before the scheme comes to an end.”
Optimal approached Group Horizon and Gateshead College when it was looking to recruit solar PV installers and electricians for a large project across the North Tyneside area to retrofit the social housing stock managed by Kier. The new employees will be working to install solar panels on over 3,500 homes over the next 24 months.
Peter continues; “The roles are temporary with the likelihood that many will be made permanent. The skills and abilities the employees are learning will provide key attributes that employers are currently looking for and will certainly help them remain in similar work in the future.”

So, here we have a scheme that is creating employment and generating more in tax revenue than it is costing, but our ~~Eton~~ well educated government want to abandon it. The #Luddites of the 21st Century are now in charge.

Santa’s Island

2011-12-17T15:51:00.000Z

For those who are disappointed that Santa will not be at Valentines Mansion this year, [it’s closed for refurbishment] do not despair. I have spotted Santa doing a bit of fishing on the island at Redbridge Lakes.

While Santa is relaxing and having a rest, in preparation for the big day, he has given the café staff permission to allow children to visit his Grotto, conveniently situated in the Café where parents can have a cup of tea, mince pie or even a Full English. Children can select a present for themselves at the heavily subsidised cost of £1.

The Lakes are also open on Boxing Day when Gordon will be dishing out free mince pies and a glass of mulled wine to everyone who visits.

Don’t be shy, the lakes are not just for anglers. Last summer they attracted Bird watchers, Dog walkers and Families along with groups of oldies and others with special needs.

They are still planting shrubs and trees and doing all sorts of things to enhance the environment and now the University of East London is on board doing an ecology study for them.

Every Lid’ll Help

2011-12-15T13:29:00.000Z

Last week the wind blew the lid off one of my recycling boxes and into the carriageway whereupon it was run over by a passing vehicle and shattered into several pieces. Grrrr! So I’ve had to keep the box in the garage to prevent the paper and cardboard from being soaked by rain.

Today I telephoned Redbridge Council, not being optimistic that I could request a new lid and only the lid. To my amazement and joy we can. My new lid is on it’s way.

I have also reported a defective street lamp, noticed on my way home from the pub last night, via the Report It section on the award winning Redbridge-i. While the new beta version is a complete pain in the a*** the functionality of this bit remains great and Redbridge Council are really good at responding to reported issues.

It’s little things like this that make a difference.

Happy Christmas Redbridge Council.

More of the Same?

2011-12-13T19:33:00.000Z

I’ve been trying to get my head round this economic crisis we have.

If I go to the New Fairlop Oak and find myself financially embarrassed I might borrow £10 from my mate John to buy a round of drinks. This would leave me with a liability which I would have to meet from somewhere else, like the grand children’s pocket money. It would leave John with a verbal credit note from me. He could, of course, pass that credit onto someone else in exchange for cash or goods. This might involve a discount depending upon the risk of default. Meanwhile the £10 is in the till behind the bar. It hasn’t disappeared into thin air. It will be used to pay the staff and overheads and replenish the stock.

So, if all the rich countries on this lonely lump of rock we call home, 600 light years from anything remotely similar, are up to their necks in debt, to whom are those debts owed and where is the cash they have spent? It must be in a till behind a bar somewhere waiting to be used in the global economy? Right?

Answers in the comments please.

Now, has anything changed as a result of Mr Cameron’s handbag moment? Er, No! Did Mr Brown end Boom and Bust? Er, No! Are we putting the very people who caused the problem in charge of fixing it? Er, Yes! Would Mr Brown, Mr Miliband or Mr Clegg have done any different? Er. No! Is there a Rizla between the ConTories, the LabTories or the LibDemTories? Er, No!

Here’s a selection of commentary to confuse you even more:

Britain is ruled by the banks, for the banks – The Guardian

“Cameron is merely expressing more openly something Labour frontbenchers also believe: that the City is pretty much the last engine functioning in Britain's misfiring economy. Indeed, one of the Labour lines of attack against Cameron this weekend has been that he has left the City more open to regulation.”

Hmmm, But:

Bankers cost each one of us £8.40 for every £1 they produce, study shows – The Mirror

“A study by think-tank the New Economics Foundation found the average banker destroys £42million a year in value while creating just £5million.
Meanwhile hospital cleaners on £6.26 an hour are worth £10 for every £1 they cost because they prevent superbugs, saving the economy a fortune”

Austerity it is then, let’s sack the cleaners. This is what happened in Latvia:

Germany believes the only solution to the euro crisis is painful austerity measures – but if everyone's slashing and burning, who is buying? – The Guardian

“Despite the bailout, Latvia suffered the largest decline in economic output of anywhere in the world between 2007 and 2009 – a 24% drop in GDP. Unemployment quadrupled; and that doesn't include the estimated one in 10 of the workforce who left the country to look for a better life somewhere else.”

But then Terry Smith argues that “All Britain is isolated from is a looming eurozone disaster”.

Meanwhile Gary Monro points out that the “UK buys £66bn more in goods and services from the EU than it sells.” Maybe that’s why we are broke?

And so it came to pass as explained by Adam Ramsay:

“And so, having promised that they would deliver rapid economic success, they didn’t. Growth rates stalled. They did however, concentrate more and more wealth into their own hands. And with wages failing to rise with workers’ output they realised they had a problem: if people didn’t have enough money, how would they buy stuff from their companies? And so they needed to lend. We were all encouraged to believe that the houses owned by banks were really ours, and to borrow against this asset as its price rapidly grew as more and more sought to get in on the spiralling act.
Then, the bubble burst. We realised that the surplus that we could now afford was paid for with money lent to us by the very people who had in the first place taken it from us on the promise of making us rich.”

What now? Do we keep calm and carry on as if nothing has happened?

“With leaders providing no guide to the future, the public has decided to keep their heads down and plough their own furrows. The suffering of others, the hundreds of thousands whose hopes are falling faster than Icarus from the heavens, no longer concern them. Support for tax increases to improve public services is diving, according to the British Social Attitudes Survey. Half the public thinks that unemployment benefits are too high – presumably the half that has never been forced to live on them. Many more say that if children are poor that is because their parents do not want to work, not because they cannot find work.”

It was Mrs T who coined the phrase TINA – There Is No Alternative. And it seems the ConLabLib cartel wish to keep their closed shop closed. The Labour party in Brighton and Hove are joining forces with the Conservatives to stop a Green budget with a council tax increase of 3.5%. While their comrades up north are…. Increasing council tax by 3.5%.

But like the little boy who suggested deflating the tyres to extract the stuck lorry from the tunnel, the Green Party are lurking on the sidelines with an alternative. Will anybody notice?

Here is Molly Scott-Cato explaining that she agrees with Mr Cameron’s decision just like she lined up with the Conservatives 10 years ago to oppose joining the Euro, but for very different reasons:

"This morning I believe we have seen these predictions come to pass. This is why I believe that David Cameron was right not to join the treaty although, just like the Tories on the anti-Euro committee a decade ago, we could not be further apart in terms of the economic route Britain should follow. Cameron's interest is almost entirely to protect the City and to avoid its spivs and speculators from being forced to consider the social consequences of their actions. However, some in his party are articulating concerns about democracy that I still believe have merit."

And here’s the Green Plan:

"The alternative is twofold. First, banks must pay for themselves. The level of capital reserve must be raised and new ratios of fractional reserve banking need to introduced and enshrined in legislation. In this way, unsustainable sovereign debt will be paid for by the banking creditors who decided to make a profit by taking the risk; not the societies who stand to suffer.
This will mean that the financial sector will need to reduce its asset base which will hit lending to the real economy. To offset this, a massive Green Investment Bank (GIB) must be created to lend to sustainable businesses and industries, where the financial sector fails to do so.
Such a GIB could be funded by the same capital that is being discussed for the €2trillion bailout fund and the recapitalisation of European banks. In addition, the GIB could be funded by a higher banking levy and a financial transaction tax. The difference would be that tax payer's money would not be going into the financial black hole of hedge fund balance sheets. Instead, the money will be used to create real - tax payer owned - assets, in affordable homes, renewable energy and sustainable industry.
The Green Party calls on European governments to dismiss the needs of private financial institutions, provide millions of jobs and give tax payers control over their own economy. You might call it a democratic solution to the Euro-zone crisis."

If you want a vibrant economy you have to have a framework that keeps everybody in the game!

Winter Solstice

2011-12-12T16:41:00.002Z

While the “greenest government ever” is busy making plans to concrete over the environment that sustains us and Bio University courses are being scrapped, small groups of people are making a stand – like the Forest Farm Peace Garden in Hainault.

It may be winter but a season’s work is still to be done, they are still busy harvesting vegetables and maintaining the garden for the winter. They continue to be open on Wednesdays and Fridays from 11am to 4pm through to Wednesday 21st December [Solstice] when there will be a hot lunchtime meal around the fire at 1pm before nature is left to fend for itself until Friday 6th January 2012.

There is lots going on in the new year:

2012 Orchard Skills Programme

The garden has received funding from Awards for All to run a year-long programme of workshops and open days about trees and orchards. Mira will be interested in this, no doubt. The workshops will run roughly once a month, focussing on activities and skills such as hedgelaying, gardening for wildlife, medicinal properties of British trees, composting, pruning and more. Several of the open days throughout the year will also be themed around orchard skills, like a tree-planting Open Day in March and a return of the popular Abundance Open Day in October.

Upcoming events are:

Sunday 29 January, 10.30am - 4pm: Hedgelaying workshop. Learn the theory and practice of laying hedges to create natural and effective borders which protect and support wildlife.

Sunday 26th February, 10.30am - 4pm: Winter Pruning workshop. Learn the skills for winter pruning of trees to keep your trees healthy and effectively manage their growth.

Information on further workshops will be forthcoming in the new year. Necessary materials and instructions are provided but do come prepared for the weather. There will be some hot refreshments, but please bring a packed lunch. RSVP-ing is crucial as places are limited. Contact by email in order to find out more or to RSVP to either or both of the workshops

Tree Planting Open Day - weekend of 24/25 March (day TBC)
Join us for a day of planting trees at Forest Farm Peace Garden as well as the usual open day activities of hot food, plant sales, entertainment and activities.

Get Involved - join the Orchard Skills organising committee

In order to organise this exciting project, volunteers are needed to help plan it and make it happen. You don't need to know anything about trees- as long as you like them! We need all sorts of input- design and web skills, outreach and publicity, working with schools to organise tree planting activities, running the open days and workshops... but most importantly enthusiasm and commitment. Get in touch with Natalie, the Project Coordinator to find out about getting involved in the Orchard Skills working group.

COP17 – Durban – Key Outcomes

2011-12-12T13:17:00.000Z

Every LIDL Helps?

2011-12-09T14:11:00.000Z

This is a cross post from Redbridge Eye written by Morris Hickey.

The Site in Fencepiece Road

The Lidl supermarket chain is currently consulting fairly widely over a proposal to turn the long disused former Volvo showrooms at 250 Fencepiece Road into a store.

Lidl proposes "replacement of ageing premises with a modern energy efficient building, which will incorporate a Ground Source Heat Pump renewable energy system capable of reducing the building's carbon footprint by 20%."

The development will create up to 30 jobs for local people, as well as regenerating a long-standing vacant site that will be subjected to thorough decontamination.

They also say that deliveries to the site will be limited to a maximum 2 HGVs a day during daytime using a purpose built loading ramp, and that there will be on-site parking for 57 cars to avoid parking in nearby residential streets.

Fine - all very friendly. But the car parking provision says quite clearly that they anticipate significant numbers of car-borne customers adding to the already existing severe traffic congestion on Fencepiece Road. The proposed development might also sound the death knell for the already difficult trading conditions in the nearby shopping parades - and those currently working there could lose their jobs.

Editor: But to whatever use the site is put, it will generate extra traffic. Housing, a Polyclinic, a Library, a Swimming Pool, a community centre, a Police Station …

Discuss.

Redbridge Police News

2011-12-05T19:43:00.000Z

Operation Ferrous

Operation Ferrous is the Metropolitan Police operation to tackle metal theft and has been in action in Redbridge over the past week. The Safer Neighbourhood Teams have been visiting all scrap metal yards and car breaker yards in the Borough while commercial vehicles transporting metal have been stopped and asked to account - after all - the metal has to get to the scrap-yards somehow.
If you have any information about such offences please inform your local Safer Neighbourhood Teams.

Operation Cubo

Targetting uninsured and untaxed vehicles this operation had excellent results last week :- 257 vehicles were stopped at 7 locations across the borough with the use of the council’s CCTV van. There were 7 OP Reclaim Vehicle Seizures, 5 Fixed Penalty Notices, 4 Penalty Notices for Disorder, 4 Cannabis warnings and 3 arrests, Possession of a Stun Gun, Disqualified Driver, Drunk & Disorderly.

Community Policing

The new Redbridge Community Police Team [which replaced the Parks Police] is off to a bright start – making several arrests including for exposure, possession of a knife and prostitution offences.
Recently the team arrested a 33-year-old man for indecent exposure following complaints about an incident in Hainault Forest Country Park and arrested a man for possession of a knife in Westwood Park.
As well as patrolling parks and open spaces the team is also able to help the Council’s Enforcement Teams deal with issues in the Borough and as a result, over the weekend of 5 November, the team made three arrests for prostitution, issued two prostitute cautions and made 61 stop and searches.
Residents who wish to contact the team can do so on 07904 640042. In an emergency always call 999.

Licencing

Throughout 2011 Police and Council officers have worked on a range of issues to improve safety at our Licensed premises. One of the key initiatives has been the “Redbridge best Bar None”. This scheme was initially established throughout the country in response to the high levels of street disorder, fighting and assaults directly relating to licensed premises and the Night Time Economy. Awards were presented at valentines Mansion on Thursday 1st December, where 9 successful ‘on-licensed’ premises received recognition for their work in ensuring that our pubs and clubs are better, safer places and achieving the high standards the scheme expects.

Residential Burglary

There has been a 22% increase in residential burglary, but we are dealing with relatively low numbers. Nevertheless, to tackle this Redbridge Police has brought in extra resources and have been carrying out both overt and covert operations across the Borough to catch offenders. The Police along with the Council are also relaunching the “See it. Report it. Don’t ignore it.” campaign which gives residents burglary prevention advice and encourages them to phone 999 if they think they have spotted some of the tell tale signs of burglary. A leaflet will be distributed to every home in the Borough in December.

Rogue Traders

During October the Council's Trading Standards together with the Police joined forces as part of Operation Liberal, a nationwide crackdown on rogue traders and bogus callers that target the vulnerable.
Teams spoke to builders and other workmen in the area about their business practices to check they were complying with the law and that high pressure sales techniques had not been used.
If you or someone you know has been approached by a bogus doorstep caller call Consumer Direct on 0845 040506.

Neighbourhood Link

Enabling our community partners, the public and businesses to receive information from the MPS about local crime and policing and is to become the sole corporate external messaging system for the MPS in time for the final build up to the London Olympic and Paralympic Games. Neighbourhood Link is accessible via the following link: http://www.neighbourhoodlink.met.police.uk/registration/

Signs, Art and Bunting

2011-12-05T16:52:00.000Z

As we approach next year’s Olympic extravaganza there are increasing signs of the borough being spruced up for the visiting hoards. Lots of resurfacing of roads going on at strategic points but not sure how public transport is going to cope and how anybody is going to get to work. I rather suspect the economy will shut down for the duration so don’t forget to stock up with the essentials. The new sign at the entrance to Fairlop Waters is in place, but surrounded by fencing while the concrete sets. It was by far the best of the submitted designs back in May. I think it looks really nice.

Still no sign of the Egg Whisk at Gants Hill though. Delayed by TfL I’m told but Cllr Mrs Clark is hopeful it will be erected in the Spring.

And if you have been impressed with the Christmas Lights in Barkingside this year, just wait until you see the Bunting planned for the summer Olympics …

Seasonal Greetings

2011-12-04T17:17:00.000Z

The committee of Barkingside 21 wish all our readers a safe and enjoyable Christmas followed by a Happy New Year. Please be extra careful on the roads, you may have left the car keys at home while attending the office party, but others may not.

Our hardcopy newsletter number 34, December 2011, is currently popping through letterboxes. If you would like a printable version in either Word or PDF please email.

Any items in the newsletter that are not already published on this site will appear in due course.

And a reminder of the 6 advice sheets from last year given out by the Barkingside Crime Prevention Office

Be Safe, not sorry this Christmas
Bogus Callers
Cash Point Security
Internet Crime
Steer Clear of Car Crime
Street Wise

Winter 2012 Coffee Mornings + AGM & GLA Hustings

2011-12-04T16:32:00.001Z

Yes I know it's nearly Christmas and you are all busy upcycling toys for the children or baking puddings and mince pies, but having booked them up I thought I’d let you know now so you can ponder the delights we have to offer in the new year while roasting your chestnuts over an open fire.

Thursday 19th January 2012
Guest speaker: Terry Casey
on Digital Switch Over

Thursday 16th February 2012
Guest speaker: Shirley Rudge
Life on the Farm

Thursday 15th March 2012
Guest speaker: Cllr Paul Canal
a Redbridge Blue

These are all held in the Hainault Room, Fullwell Cross Library 10:00am – 12:00noon. We do Tea and biscuits too, and it's all Fairtrade.

Our Annual General Meeting will be held on
Wednesday 4th April 2012 at 7:30pm
in the Aldborough Room Fullwell Cross Library

This will be followed by a Public Meeting from 8pm - 9:30pm
Where we will be having a Hustings for the Havering and Redbridge constituency in the GLA elections. We have booked :
Roger Evans, Conservative Party
Mandy Richards, Labour Party
Haroon Saad, Green Party

There is no charge for these events and they are open to all.

Sainsbury’s Go Orange

2011-12-02T16:55:00.000Z

If you go down to the store today you’re sure of a big surprise …. Sainsbury’s have a new recycling scheme, and it’s Orange. Not at the Barkingside store, the car park is not big enough, but at Newbury Park and Central Ilford. As you can see they will accept things that have never been accepted before, Aerosols, Margarine tubs, Yoghurt pots, rigid plastic food packets, domestic batteries and low energy light bulbs.

This is a private initiative by Sainsbury’s so any recycling here will not show up on the council’s wasteline figures, and perhaps more importantly the council [taxpayer] will not be paying for it’s reprocessing.

As part of the revamp the tetrapak containers have disappeared at both these sites but we expect them to be back early next week. In the meantime there are tetrapak containers at Tescos in South Woodford and Craven Gardens car park.