Tomorrow crunch day for latest Monk Stray plans

Monk Stray

Monk Stray

 There are fears that a gate onto Monk Stray could end up costing taxpayers thousands despite local residents saying they don’t want it.

Labour run York Council wants to install a permanent 8 metre timber gate onto Monk Stray from Stockton Lane.

The gate would allow largevehicles to access the site during next month’s Tour De France.

While York Council was forced to cancel plans for camping on Monk Stray when the Caravan Club pulled out of running the site after opposition from local residents, the Stray will still host a ‘Spectator Hub’ for the Grand Départwith thousands of visitors expected.

(more…)

New figures reveal further threat to York Green Belt

 

 

Liberal Democrats say that thousands of extra houses could be built on the Green Belt after new figures were released by Labour run York Council.

Green Belt campaign logo

 

The housing figures are contained in papers published as part of the council’s 6 week ‘further sites’ consultation, which begins today. Labour was forced to include the housing figures after Lib Dem councillors ‘called-in’ the decision to start public consultation without the numbers.

 

Last year Labour’s Draft Local Plan earmarked 16,000 houses for York’s Green Belt. However, the new information shows that use of so-called ‘safeguarded land’ could increase that figure by thousands more. Safeguarded land is allocated to meet long-term development need and means land that is being removed from the Green Belt and earmarked for housing.Safeguarded sites at Earswick and next to a planned new settlement at Whinthorpe could see over 2,000 and over 4,000 houses built respectively.

 

Meanwhile, some Green Belt sites first identified last year will increase in size, including East of Metcalfe Lane and North of Haxby while new sites such as Stockton Lane, the Old School Playing Fields in New Earswick and off Boroughbridge Road would see hundreds more houses built if Labour’s proposals are agreed.

  (more…)

York’s Apprenticeship Challenge has one week to go

apprentice

There is just one week left for businesses to support the York Apprenticeship Challenge which aims to get 100 pledges to recruit an apprentice in 100 days.

The campaign, led by City of York Council and training providers, already achieved its target in just 71 days but is looking for more Apprenticeship vacancies to be created across the city.
(more…)

Council back down on plan for Huntington Road parking restrictions

Residents have forced the Council to withdraw part of  its plans to introduce parking restrictions adjacent to 191 – 215 Huntington Road.

Huntington Road zebra crossing

The restrictions were intended to improve visibility for users of the nearby zebra crossing.

However residents have pointed out that the local shop and Post Office are shortly to be relocated further down the road and therefore that the pedestrian crossing should also be moved.

Details can be found by clicking here

 

Lendal Bridge – Council Leadership move to block scrutiny review of their decisions

Lendal bridge notice

Papers published for a meeting of the Council scrutiny committee, which covers transport issues, today reveal that the Labour Leadership are trying to block an inquiry into their handling of the Lendal Bridge closure.

Residents in general – and the 70,000 motorists fined “unlawfully” by the Council for using Lendal Bridge and Coppergate in particular- had been expecting the answers to a string of questions about the muddle and confusion which surrounded the ill-judged trial.

The Council Leader describes the request as “politics not scrutiny” and says that “an independently chaired congestion commission” should report first.  As any such commission would take months – if not years – to report, this is clearly an attempt to bury the issue until after the local elections which are scheduled to take place next May.

Similarly the disgraced Cabinet member, who was responsible for the shambles, argues that a review is “premature” and should await the result of the Council’s appeal against the traffic adjudicator’s judgement. As this appeal expected to be resolved within the next 2 months, it does not seem be a valid reason to delay setting up a review committee.

The committee meets next week to decide on its work programme for the coming year.

Although there is a Labour majority on the committee, they will not be able to deny answers to residents legitimate questions for ever.

The new Council, which will be elected in May 2015, will be able to set up an Inquiry when it takes office.

 There will be nowhere for the former Labour Leadership to hide then.

York children gifted tablets

Pupils at Burton Green Primary School are boosting their learning thanks to 80 new Learn Pad tablets, which have been provided by The Little Society Charity and City of York Council.

Childrens Ipad

Access to the Learn Pads for all children from Nursery to Year 6 will improve the pupils literacy and numeracy skills by making learning more fun and interactive, as well as helping their parents practise their own skills, as part of regular pupil-parent joint learning workshops.

A ten year old at the school, said: “I enjoyed the workshop because I was able to experience the activities on the Learnpad, and because I could play games with my Mum.”
(more…)

York Support Group For Military Veterans

horse charge

City of York Council is working with several partners in York to provide a Military Veterans and Service Leavers Peer Support Group.

The sessions, which are held every Wednesday from 5.30pm until 7.00pm in Sycamore House, is a peer network of ex-military personnel who can provide information, advice and support to any member of the armed forces going through re-settlement, any ex-forces personnel or armed forces dependents.
(more…)

School absences amongst lowest in the country

Figures released by DfE last week show school absence in York are amongst the lowest in the country.

Truency

In York, absence in primary schools for the 2013 autumn term fell to 3.4 per cent, a figure bettered in only three of the other 150 local authorities.

Similarly, absence in secondary schools fell to 4.4 per cent – the best ever figure for a term in York secondary schools – bettered by only 11 of the 150 other Local Authorities.

Absence figures in York’s secondary schools are also reducing at a faster rate than the national trend.

Where there are barriers or challenges to a child attending regularly, schools work with families to support them in resolving the issues.