dippyhippy

Not Geoff ....again! Good Lord! I jokingly said on another story, that we should consider starting a Geoff Hughes thread, listing all his official and unofficial roles....I am beginning to think we should seriously start one. The man is everywhere.

Phew!That's a relief!

So it really all is just smoke and mirrors then?? I had always thought that I was somehow missing the point of all these unelected bodies....I am beginning to realise that there is actually no point to get! Why is it that we see the same folk in these roles? Is it simply a case of "who you know?"

Worcester cricket ground also played host to Elton John. The last time a decent sized gig was put on in Hereford, was at The Leisure Centre, many moons ago..... I remember seeing The Levellers there...ah! happy times! Saw them again in 2012....still brilliant! There should be a very strong case for sharing the grounds!

Sandwiches John? Can we take ginger beer too? This sounds like an adventure fit for The Famous Five! Count me in......as long as we're home in time for tea with Mother!!

Two Wheels,I seem to recall you telling me about some sort of "herding" system?? Pedestrian pens, I think you may have called them!! Are they still part of the plan now??

Good point Two Wheels. Is our station manned by wholetime firefighters 24 hours a day? Do retained firefighters get called, if the wholetime ones are called out?? I am really not sure how it works...... Anybody out there know??

I attempted to cross this road today - the dust, dirt and noise were dreadful!! I seem to remember reading that they intended to put "cycle parks" down the middle! If I have remembered correctly, some of us thought it a bit of a daft idea.....why not at one side or the other? why slap, bang in the middle of the road?? They also promised that it would be "tree lined". I shall wait and see if they keep this promise!

Chris, you are beyond kind! One family have contacted me again today, so I will pass this on! Thanks so much!

Is this their idea of a joke?? If it is, it's not very funny. April Fools Day is still a couple of weeks away.....I guess we are the fools though, seeing as how we have paid through the nose one way or another, for this monstrosity!

And a wonderful rant it was too, Mark! Thanks for keeping us in the loop. If they won't organise some sort of consultation, what about some sort of public meeting?? It would inform folk, and gauge opinion at the same time?? One thing though, the ambulance station did undergo a major refurb, and did manage to rent suitable short term premises to operate out of. Is a refurb really so out of the question....or does this just boil down to money??

Sean is fantastic! The Score Project is not the same without him! Chris, I am really pleased that you understand the importance of day centres and the impact of not having these resources makes to adults with learning disabilities. Could I just share with you something I have just been made aware of? Last week, I received a few phonecalls from some very upset parents. They(or rather their adult offspring) are currently receiving money from The Independent Living Fund, which was set up by the government to enable this group of folks to access things such as day care and respite,( a home from home environment )and 1:1 support to get out and about.. This funding is being stopped. Not just withdrawn from a few individuals, but completely stopped. This money is a lifeline. Not only that, but two families tell me, that during annual discussions regarding who pays for what bit of the "care package" they were advised to use ILF money to pay for day centres which were funded by the council. Now, there is no ILF money,(from 2015) the council say there is no money, and the only ones who will miss out are the adults with learning disabilities, as there parents just cannot afford to pay out anymore. I know these families struggle. They have made huge sacrifices to look after their children. As I posted earlier, some are now in their 20's, 30's, 40's, and still being looked after by elderly parents. If they had to be placed in full time residential care, I am told it could be in the region of £200,000.00 per year. Is it not incredibly short sighted of the government to withdraw this lifeline of money, which enables them to stay at home a little longer?? The other aspect of this being, that there just isn't enough local residential placements available. One parent told me, "I just don't know how we will manage. I feel like taking "X" down to social services, and saying, "You care for him 24hours a day! Do it for a month, then tell me we don't need this help." We've been doing it for 32 years....I can't keep fighting for every little thing. I'm too tired." Soon, we may have day care provision, but nobody will be able to afford to access it. I have mentioned your new role. Is it worth individuals contacting you directly??

Evening Biomech! Your comment re Hereford Futures involvement, mirrored mine, when Megillelands post, on page one of this thread, first mentioned their involvement. I think the thing is with the fire service, they maintain they need a central location. Whereas the ambulance service have their main hub at Ross Road, they do have standby points.( Sun Valley have provided crews with a rest room there, for instance.) So they can respond wherever they are needed as quickly as possible.I guess its difficult to have standby points for fire engines! I do wonder though, if they have two engines and crews on duty if they could be split, and say share a station with the ambulances south of the river, and possibly then have a smaller base on the north side.( Although I am sure logistically this probably couldn't be done.) There is plenty of council owned space at the top of Plough Lane!!

No, she's not mine. Mine is Sharon Michaels, and as I discovered when trying to contact her, she now lives in Leominster! Any word back from HCS Two Wheels?

I know Rose Tinted Rags, and the great work they do. In case you don't know where they are, they are the ones who have decorated the railings with bunting, on the little railway bridge at the bottom of Aylestone Hill! They work with a diverse range of groups, and I have only ever heard good reports of what they achieve in their workshops. I really hope Chris has some success in helping them. By the way Chris, you asked for centres you may have missed, have you heard of The Score Project? I think it's run by The Chiltern Trust. It was originally run, for many years, by a brilliant chap called Sean Ladd. An amazing fellow, think he's based in Leominster now. Anyway, definitely worth a look. There premises are down by the snooker centre in Conningsby Street.

Evening GDJ, I have just read the link! Very interesting article....as are some of the 41 comments underneath. Love the bit from the editor, "Although we welcome online comments, we ask contributors to be respectful" Priceless!

What about building a new fire station on the Rock field site? Its only cost us six million quid so far! Failing that, after talks obviously fell through for a joint emergency services depot, what about next to the ambulance main station at the top of Ross Road? There's quite a bit of land up there. Also, when the ambulance station was undergoing its refurbishment, the crews used somewhere down at Rotherwas as their base. Would somewhere down there be viable?

Ha Ha! I had a taxi driver who took precisely that route a few weeks ago! I was a tad confused when he turned off into Merton Meadow,,,,but it was a much quicker journey than I anticipated, so I was well chuffed!

Yes! I had realised that! You should be very familiar with its appearance by now!!

I still give my bin men a tin of Quality Street at Christmas! I haven't had a roll of black bags left on the doorstep for a very long time - I do get the clear, recycling ones! Obviously ,have to pay a small fortune for the green ones!

Thanks so much for this Colin! Aylestone Voice has also posted a link to this, and I have left a comment on this HT news story, urging folk to sign up to Hereford Voice if they would like to contribute to this discussion! I am always really touched when fellow posters help me out with my techno-phobia by posting links etc. for me! You are a great bunch!

I wonder if you went to the local schools, and asked staff if they knew a group of children called, Tommo, Cerys, Shane,Jodie, Max and Seano? If they suspect these children belong to their school, I think a school outing should be on the cards! Scrub the walls clean, and pick up some litter whilst they are there! It's infuriating, when community groups and individuals take the time to try to clean up Hereford, and mindless fly tipping and graffiti just appears somewhere else.

At least some of it is to be reused! A member of staff who vacated the premises told me much was being broken up and skipped. And you're quite right - it IS who you know, I am quite sure of that!

Good Grief Bobby! This woman, Patricia Morgan, is obsessed with you! First, she tries to wrestle your trusty rod from your hand,one dark night down by the Wye, then she's sending you- and only you - a personal response on HT, and now she's got the bare faced cheek to turn up on your doorstep! Harassment! That's what it is! I fear an injunction may be the only answer - this situation is escalating out of control. Thank God your wife wasn't home - yet another non accidental injury caused by a frying pan, would have certainly raised eyebrows down at A and E!

Thanks Two Wheels and Megilleland , I really appreciate you taking the time to do this.