megilleland Posted February 22, 2015 Report Posted February 22, 2015 Ubique, It isn't that I don't care about anywhere else, but in my defence I have one of the biggest wards in the city, and as I said previously the other councillors should be looking after their own areas whether in the city or countryside, if they did try and keep on top of issues we would not be in the mess we are in. Don't you have a group meeting. You can put on the agenda for discussion and action. We know the tories couldn't care less and expect us all to get on the streets and clear it up ourselves. This has been reflected in another council tax increase this April. Quote
Colin James Posted February 22, 2015 Author Report Posted February 22, 2015 I have heard back from Balfour Beatty on Friday, they are going up to clear both parts of the Newton Brook, I have also reported black bags and a mattress by the steps leading to GWW. I have been notified that trees in Glastonbury close have been cut back. No tree's in Glastonbury Close have been cut back yet Glenda?? Quote
Glenda Powell Posted February 22, 2015 Report Posted February 22, 2015 Although going off subject, yes the Independents have monthly meetings and the agenda changes from month to month in accordance to what happening in council, finances, budget, BB, care act, core strategy, SC2, roads, rail to name but a few. Quote
flamboyant Posted February 22, 2015 Report Posted February 22, 2015 Cllr Vaughn Powell you haven't really gone off topic you exposed the Councils Contractors as liars which illustrates serious flaws in BBs contract and Service Level Agreement, not to mention the works audit, isn't it fraud to claim you provided a service you were paid for when actually you didn't? You went on to remind us of the rest of the Councils c.o.c.k ups! Finances, budget, care act, core strategy Balfour Beatty etc........ I think you were bang on topic! 😄 Quote
Glenda Powell Posted February 22, 2015 Report Posted February 22, 2015 Flam, I just answered Megilleland post, the Independents work very hard for the areas we represent, and we are the main opposition group who questions every move the Tories make, it is unfortunate that I cannot say that for any other group on the council, they make the headlines but as the HT have said many times there is no substance to what they say afterwards. And yes I have gone off topic now sorry Colin! Quote
flamboyant Posted February 22, 2015 Report Posted February 22, 2015 Cllr Vaughan Powell it wasn't a criticism. Herefordshire Council were warned that if they handed reporting Highways issues to Balfour Beattie they would remove the audit process. When reporting was in house if BB or their predecessors Amey failed to do a job they'd been sent it was recorded by the Council because of repeat calls from customers. I.e. We've had 450 potholes reported and 200 have been re-reported as not been repaired, hence they got a kick up the backside! The Council were warned that giving BB full control would remove the audit process but they ignored warnings. You stated to Colin that you'd been told the trees had been cut, when in fact they haven't, you wouldn't have known had Colin not told you. BB don't bank on people like Colin being a blogger who just happened to report some overgrown trees. Trust me there will be a lot more occasions when you will get conflicting reports of the work that's been undertaken when it hasn't. I'm confident you will challenge them at every opportunity, however other Councillors won't be quite so willing. The report I posted earlier states that 55 Parish Councils had joined the lengthsmen scheme back in 2005 but at the current time most Parish Councils haven't got a clue what the lengthsmen scheme is? There's an awful lot of the left hand not knowing what the right hand is doing. Has your area got a lengthsman, I'm sure their supposed to tackle litter, which is the subject behind this post. Good luck in the elections Councillor, you deserve it! Quote
Glenda Powell Posted February 22, 2015 Report Posted February 22, 2015 Flam, I did not take it as a criticism so if I gave that impression sorry! I have often said on here you have to be on the inside to know what other groups are like, half of the time they say nothing but to the people they are trying to impress they tell a different story. Maybe I am a little too out spoken on occasions but that is me! going back to the topic I have to say I have got a lot of work done between May & December last year that I asked BB to do and I have been told there is more being done for me in April, and if it doesn't happen I will be asking why!. BB always say to me that I ask politely for work to be done and they are pleased to do it for me. I always treat everyone the way I like to be treated myself and that is with respect, and so far it has worked for me. Quote
megilleland Posted February 22, 2015 Report Posted February 22, 2015 It is not only Hereford City that is suffering from litter and waste on the streets. Saturday 21 February 2015 in Hereford Times Letters Bin bags make Leominster an eyesore Bin bags make Leominster an eyesore IT gives me no pleasure to say that my predictions about the mess and the health hazard which would be caused by the fortnightly bin collections being introduced in Leominster have entirely come true. The piles of bin bags spilling their contents onto the pavement (mostly food waste pulled out by cats and dogs) has turned a quaint market town with appealing shops and cafes into an absolute eyesore which is not going to attract any tourists, on which so many businesses depend. In addition, we residents completely resent paying huge amounts of council tax for insufficient bin collections and no action taken against the perpetrators of this behaviour. Herefordshire Council continues to ignore its duty to take action against this filth and hazard except to send out mild-mannered letters asking residents not to put their rubbish out early, which are completely ignored. Many complaints to the council are met with ‘Yes, we’re monitoring the situation’. Well, stop monitoring and start prosecuting. We as taxpayers demand it. We want this stopped and we don’t want to wait any longer for you to do something about it. ELIZABETH PORTMAN-LEWIS Etnam Street, Leominster Quote
Colin James Posted February 23, 2015 Author Report Posted February 23, 2015 Glenda, what tree's were your referring too in Glastonbury Close? The ones I pointed out on the corner that are overhanging? As I have had a good look around and no tree's have been cut? Also in the Newton brook where the grey wheelie bin is lay, there is also about 30 empty beers cans among other rubbish, needs a few hours spent on it to clean it out. Quote
flamboyant Posted February 23, 2015 Report Posted February 23, 2015 I have absolutely no problem with the guys on the ground at Balfour Beattie. The blame for outsourcing the Highways Contract and giving full control to an independent company rests squarely with the Council. As with Hoople, Futures and any other Company we outsource too they have the cloak of commercial confidentiality and there's no way of holding them to task if they're not doing what we paid them to do! The picture at the top of this thread invokes anger amongst the residents of Hereford and rightly so and it will only get worse. Apathy will set in and people will just accept the grass won't get cut the dog faeces and the litter won't be cleared no matter how much they scream about it! Can anyone confirm which Parish Councils have a lengthsman? One of their jobs would include clearing that mess up. I find it telling that 50 Parish Councils signed up for this scheme and they don't know anything about it? Quote
Glenda Powell Posted February 23, 2015 Report Posted February 23, 2015 Colin, The locality officer with BB said on his weekly report about the trees in Glastonbury Close. I again told him about the problems with the whole length of the Newton Brook between Newton Farm and Belmont together with the black bags and mattress on GWW. He has again advised me he had gone out at my request today. Quote
megilleland Posted February 23, 2015 Report Posted February 23, 2015 Can anyone confirm which Parish Councils have a lengthsman? One of their jobs would include clearing that mess up. I find it telling that 50 Parish Councils signed up for this scheme and they don't know anything about it? According to the council website there are 81 councils signed up to the Lengthsman Scheme. No detail though. More information here. Quote
megilleland Posted February 23, 2015 Report Posted February 23, 2015 One Year On. An update on the services provided by Balfour Beatty Living Places during the first year of the Public Realm contract. Balfour Beatty Living Places came to Herefordshire on the 1st September 2013 after a short mobilisation period following its successful bid for the new public realm services contract. One year on this document reflects the many achievements and challenges as well as highlighting the changes introduced and future plans. Herefordshire Public Realm Services Balfour Beatty Living Places Update September 2014 Quote
megilleland Posted February 23, 2015 Report Posted February 23, 2015 Glenda is Hereford City Parish Council signed up for the Lengthsman Scheme and how does it operate across the eight wards? Quote
Colin James Posted February 23, 2015 Author Report Posted February 23, 2015 Colin, The locality officer with BB said on his weekly report about the trees in Glastonbury Close. I again told him about the problems with the whole length of the Newton Brook between Newton Farm and Belmont together with the black bags and mattress on GWW. He has again advised me he had gone out at my request today. I took these late today Glenda, all still there as you can see. And this is actually quite dangerous, there is a drive up the side of these trees for the blue car parked on the kerb that you can see. When you come around this sharp bend the road clearly narrows plus you have to avoid the blue car. The driveway for this car is so overgrown she cannot park on it, hence why she parks on the kerb, which is not ideal. These tree's really need cutting back!! Quote
Chris Chappell Posted February 23, 2015 Report Posted February 23, 2015 Perhaps I can throw some light the Lengthman's scheme. I recently interviewed the chairman of Canon Pyon PC who have a Lengthsman and are very happy with the work he does for that parish and neighbouring parishes. In the city the situation is slightly different as the Lengthman's scheme does not really fit in with the city environs.I understand that in the rural parts of the county the Lengthmen work vey closely with the local area BB area manager. I was part of a scrutiny Task & Finish group who wanted to investigate the work of Balfour Beatty. Th parish councils appear to be happy wth the Legthmen scheme as they have direct control over their work.The size of the city makes it a little more difficult to run the Lengthman's scheme. I think Glastonbury Close is outside city boundary and therefore Belmont PC would be responsible. I am unsure if they has a Lengthsman. Glenda may know.Task & Finish group has almost finished our report and it goes to Cabinet! befoere it is adopted by Council, probably after May 7th! Quote
megilleland Posted February 23, 2015 Report Posted February 23, 2015 In the city the situation is slightly different as the Lengthman's scheme does not really fit in with the city environs. Chris, surely the Hereford city parish is a defined area and that a team of lengthsmen to cover the eight wards could be employed. If you are saying the scheme does not really fit in with the city environs, what scheme does or is it easier to just forget it? Judging by the litter I would say it was forgotten ages ago - time for questions to be asked which were not raised at the scrutiny Task & Finish group. It would be nice to know before the coming election. Quote
Alex Posted February 23, 2015 Report Posted February 23, 2015 Whole place needs cleaning up, all along the Newton Brook and the Brook in Widemarsh Street, BB should be ashamed that they have ignored this for so long. Quote
megilleland Posted February 23, 2015 Report Posted February 23, 2015 According to the council website there are 81 councils signed up to the Lengthsman Scheme. No detail though. More information here. It would appear that there are 53 parish councils that have not signed up for the Legthmans Scheme. Parish councils and the community All of Herefordshire has democratically elected parish councils; there are 134 in total. There are five town councils and one city council: each of these has a mayor, but they are also parish councils. Parish councils are run by councillors, who volunteer their time to make their community a better place. Their work falls into three main categories: * Representing the local community * Delivering services to meet local needs * Striving to improve the quality of life in the parish Parish councils have a broad range of powers and duties covering planning, provision of amenities, and other local services, from youth projects to traffic calming measures. With help from Herefordshire Council, many parish councils across the county employ a lengthsman whose duties include drain and ditch clearing, grass cutting and general local maintenance. These parishes can also undertake Neighbourhood Plans. Another area lacking in the city's development. We do not appear to be represented in both these areas of "Localism" Quote
flamboyant Posted February 24, 2015 Report Posted February 24, 2015 Thank you Cllr Chappell, I would now urge you to take the list of the 81 PCs that signed up for the lengthsmen scheme give them a call and find out exactly how many actually still have or indeed ever had a lengthsmen? The problem you have is as stated above PCs are run by volunteers and as such are constantly changing, one PC signs up to the scheme then leaves before one is appointed and doesn't pass on the relevant information to the next volunteer. There's no paperwork documented processes the entire system falls down. I'm guessing half these PCs do 'not' have a lengthsmen regardless of who signed up to the scheme in '2005' The other issue you have is that a certain amount of money is allocated to the PC from the Council the other half comes from match funding. If the person responsible for bidding for funding within the Council has moved on has the funding actually been acquired? If it has can you comment on who/ where the funding is coming from? Quote
flamboyant Posted February 24, 2015 Report Posted February 24, 2015 Megilleland excellent research, don't suppose you found a list of the PCs that actually signed up and 'have' a lengthsmen? Quote
flamboyant Posted February 24, 2015 Report Posted February 24, 2015 The following is a section from the link Megilleland posted The Council is also considering the potential to extend the scheme to incorporate Town Councils. This might allow Herefordshire’s five market towns - Ledbury, Leominster, Ross on Wye, Bromyard, Kington and Hereford city itself - to participate in the scheme. As highway issues are likely to be more significant in the towns, the scheme would focus more upon ‘Streetscene’ improvements such as litter, sign maintenance, graffiti and even public toilets. Might just have saved all those public toilets closing if they'd got this scheme up and running. The next time Cabinet are rubber stamping these proposals can you make sure these schemes are well documented and there is a continuing strategy should whoever is in charge move on to pasture new that the next person coming in knows what their responsibilities are, here's a really radical idea how about an operational plan, it's a big book of instructions! Simples! Quote
twowheelsgood Posted February 24, 2015 Report Posted February 24, 2015 The lengthsman scheme is a very good idea - local man/men on the ground, doing routine maintenance in a timely manner - how it should be. I know they've done it in Hampton Bishop and it worked very well - the improvement in ditches and verges - and the reduction in local flooding as result - was marked. However, talking to a parish clerk the other day (not Hampton Bishop) why was I not surprised to learnt that not only are Parish Councils now expected to fund this themselves, they will also be expected to take on road repairs for unclassified, C and B roads and not receive any funding for that either. The backlog of work on our highways is still massive - on a very wet bike ride on Sunday, I lost count of the number of blocked gullies - creating standing water hiding potholes, all potentially lethal for two wheeled traffic, as well as breaking down verges. Some lanes were no better than rutted tracks and the amount of litter on the verges was just staggering. Road signs are dirty, damaged or missing, road markings have worn away and are not being repainted. Balfour Beatty can spin it any which way they want in their glossy report, but the evidence to the contrary is plain to see and the bottom line is that we're being fleeced by them and the Council continue to condone it. Quote
megilleland Posted February 24, 2015 Report Posted February 24, 2015 Megilleland excellent research, don't suppose you found a list of the PCs that actually signed up and 'have' a lengthsmen? No list found so far. New flyer from Balfour Beatty: Town and parish councils in Herefordshire are invited to join the new lengthsman scheme Expressions of interest are invited from town and parish councils interested in joining the new lengthsman scheme to commence from 1st April 2015. The new scheme being launched allows parishes to employ their own lengthsman to undertake an extended scope of works from the previous scheme. This allows highway maintenance on minor roads including repairs of small potholes, in addition to keeping ditches and drains clear and other general maintenance in the public realm. Whilst Herefordshire Council will fund the scheme it will be managed and coordinated through Balfour Beatty Living Places with greater links with your locality steward. The new scheme has been successfully piloted by a number of parishes including Wellington, Pyons Group and Foxley Group parish councils. Read more with examples.Parish briefing note New lengthsman scheme (3).doc Quote
flamboyant Posted February 24, 2015 Report Posted February 24, 2015 Brilliant Megilleland Particularly like the following new scheme being launched ...... Er it's not new there are 81 parishes already signed up? Scheme to commence 1st April 2015 ..... Er no it apparently started in 2000 with over 50 PCs signed up to the scheme by 2005? Successfully piloted by Wellington, Pyons and Foxley..... Sorry weren't they already signed up, where are the other 78 PCs already signed up to the scheme? Smoke screens and mirrors, or just total incompetence which apparently began in 2000 and continues to date, why am I not suprised? Quote
flamboyant Posted February 24, 2015 Report Posted February 24, 2015 Brilliant Megilleland Particularly like the following new scheme being launched ...... Er it's not new there are 81 parishes already signed up? Scheme to commence 1st April 2015 ..... Er no it apparently started in 2000 with over 50 PCs signed up to the scheme by 2005? Successfully piloted by Wellington, Pyons and Foxley..... Sorry weren't they already signed up, where are the other 78 PCs already signed up to the scheme? Smoke screens and mirrors, or just total incompetence which apparently began in 2000 and continues to date, I mean the incompetence obviously not the scheme, why am I not surprised? Hopefully someone's thought to check the contact details on the PC list are up to date, I was given a number by the Council for a Parish Councillor who passed away three years ago! Quote
twowheelsgood Posted February 24, 2015 Report Posted February 24, 2015 flam - this is a 'new scheme', requiring many meetings at strategy level, much discussion on how to reinvent the wheel, many reports, much officer time and all to fundamentally hide the fact that Parish Councils will be obliged to do much more for less money. Quote
Ubique Posted February 24, 2015 Report Posted February 24, 2015 FLYTIPPING is spreading to the north of the City,. In the last 24 hrs a beige settee has been dumped in a country lane near our home , not just dumped at the side of the lane but thrown into a deep sided ditch making it very hard for the workforce detailed to remove it . I have advised the Council through their email reporting system , I have also advised , for information , my Cllr. Megaland , once again super research. Quote
Ubique Posted February 24, 2015 Report Posted February 24, 2015 JUST HAD A REPLY FROM THE COUNCIL ......THOUGHT THAT HV WOULD BE INTERESTED IN THE DETAILS OF THE COMMUNITY PROTECTION TEAM.....I WILL , OF COURSE UPDATE THE HV WITH THE REMOVAL OF THE SETTEE What has annoyed me is the fact that Mrs U and I sorted out a load of rubbish and recycling stuff over the weekend react to take to Rotherwas yesterday - which I did . That is a ten mile round trip - but I did it . I could tell you a H and S incident that I had at the recycling but I will keep it for another day ! Dear UBIQUE Thank you for contacting Herefordshire Council. Your report has been forwarded to our Community Protection Team (EHTS) to deal with. If you have any future Reports or wish to speak to them directly their phone number is 01432 261761 or their e-mail is Ethelpline ethelpline@herefordshire.gov.uk Quote
dippyhippy Posted February 24, 2015 Report Posted February 24, 2015 Some really interesting information coming to light via this thread. I do recall reading that Ledbury had signed up for, and were very happy with, the lengthsman scheme. It was reported on a couple of times over at HT. As Flam says, there surely must be an up to date list....... although with the lack of joined up thinking and planning countywide, it would come as no surprise if no such list existed. As Megilleland has asked.....I can see no real reason why this scheme could not be tweaked to meet the needs of the city. Quote
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