Westfield Ward Committee budget plea

Residents have only until the end of April to suggest uses for this years Westfield Ward Committee delegated budget.

Meanwhile progress on schemes agreed for 2016/17 has been disappointing with the Council web site recording only 14% of the budget having been spent by the end of the year. We understand that the funding – which was heavily oversubscribed – will be carried forward into the current financial year.

Damaged verges could be matrix protected

Among the schemes authorised but not yet implemented are:

  • Painting and refurbishment of street furniture, signs, railings, cycle barriers etc
  • Improved parking arrangements including matrix protection of verges
  • Selective road and path resurfacing
  • Additional flower tubs
  • Trimming overgrown bushes, vegetation and trees
  • Deep cleaning of shopping areas
  • Provision of goalposts on Foxwood park
  • Organised children’s activities in the summer at the Hob Moor all weather play area

During this year estate improvement funds – paid for by Council tenants – are being merged with the Ward Committee budget to allow for additional work to be commissioned.

This change appears to have contributed to the popular monthly skip visits being suspended. We hope that they will be reinstated quickly before fly tipping becomes even more of a problem in the area.

Residents will expect to see progress made quickly to catch up with the backlog of work.

Health check at Acomb Explore library proving popular

 Today’s Health Check and Boccia session at Acomb Explore Library has proved to be popular with residents

Visit www.york.gov.uk/yorwellbeing  to learn more about free health checks

Cllr Sue Hunter had her health checked out

Energise were there

& Health Watch

Muscle or fat?

Older Citizens Advocacy Group

PCSOs were there

New policing plan weak on York neighbourhoods

The North Yorkshire  Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) has published a new plan covering the period up to 2021.

She claims that it addresses the issues raised by respondents to a consultation undertaken last year. It appears that the response to the consultation was very low with less than 1% of the population participating.

One reason for the lack of interest may be the failure of previous plans to successfully address concerns about street level crime.

Anti-Social Behaviour, vandalism, drug and alcohol misuse figure high on many residents list of concerns.

These issues have got worse in sub-urban York since the, so called, “anti-social behaviour hub” was established in West Offices – at a stroke robbing communities of their day to day contact with community constables.

Now the Police are promoting a new “Community Safety Support Team” suggesting that they still haven’t got the message that centralisation isn’t the solution to street level crime problems.

Much of the PCCs new crime plan is waffle. There is a strong undercurrent of ambition – mostly surrounding a planned take-over of Fire and Rescue services. The plan talks about sharing “estates” – a euphemism for downsizing (such as the planned closure of the Acomb Police station)

There are no numeric targets in the plan.

It remains highly unclear how police resources are currently divided between operational and support activities – much less what the future holds.

The approach is reminiscent of the inability of the Police to articulate what effect their, now ubiquitous, speed camera vans have actually had on accident levels (or even average speeds) on monitored roads.

In parts of York, very recently, communication from neighbourhood policing teams has improved.  

Better use is being made of social media channels like Twitter while the police have also launched a Community Messaging service.

This may suggest that, freed from the dead hand of the PCCs Harrogate office, local police forces can indeed engage effectively with local residents.

What’s on in York: BBC Get Creative Weekend!

Here is your chance to join in workshops run by 4 professional local artists in 4 local libraries and loads of creativity for BBC Get Creative Weekend in York.

BBC Get Creative Weekend! – Mosaic workshop with Catherine Boyne-Whitelegg

Date: Fri 7 Apr
Time: 2.00pm – 5.00pm
Venue: Bishopthorpe Library
Cost: Free

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BBC Get Creative Weekend! – FELT BROOCHES with Kat Wood

Date: Fri 7 Apr
Time: 2.00pm – 5.00pm
Venue: Fulford Library
Cost: Free

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BBC Get Creative Weekend – PAPER MARBLING with Emily Harvey

Date: Sat 8 Apr
Time: 9.30am – 12.30am
Venue: Copmanthorpe Library
Cost: Free

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BBC Get Creative Weekend – ORIGAMI with Linda Tomlinson

Date: Sat 8 Apr
Time: 9.30am – 12.30am
Venue: Dunnington Library
Cost: Free

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