Update - Library Repairs

Floors, shelves and books protected and scaffolding up inside

This morning, I attended the first of the regular meetings about the progress of repair work to the library. The roof covering is being replaced, along with all the skylights. Fortunately, we've managed to get the price down so that we're able to do the whole roof (the previous plans only envisaged two thirds of it being done, with a chunk over the staff areas being left to rot, even though water damage is apparent).

You won't see a lot from the front - the parapet at the top is far higher than you think at about 3m. Work is underway scaffolding the building and the internals have all been protected and wrapped properly. There are a few asbestos tests planned in for the start of next week - ones that couldn't be done until work is ready to start, owing to the destructive nature. The outcome isn't expected to cause any major delays, as they are most likely to only require a shift in working practice rather than outright removal.

Final designs of the roof lights are still to be agreed with the conservation officer, but the lead time on the replacement units is such that this isn't going to cause a delay. Similarly, we're just finalising the type of glass to go into the roof elements of the rooflights - it will probably be a self-cleaning, heat reflecting glass - while the side panels will be clear glass.

Up on the roof - four different types of roof lights in this space

The contractors are aware of the war memorial to the front of the building and there will be no need to restrict access. They have also been reminded of the need to show particular respect around any services held on Monday 11 November.

Currently, we're still on budget and on course to complete site works by the 13 December. After that, there will be some delay while the library staff get themselves back into their home, but hopefully no more than a week.

As always, keep an eye on the blog for the next update - probably in about a fortnight.

Birmingham to cut speed limits on 9 out of 10 roads

Friday's marathon session of the Transport, Connectivity and Sustainability Overview and Scrutiny Committee saw the launch of the strategy that will help to make Birmingham's roads that bit safer. Over the next seven years, we'll be changing speed limits on 90% of the city's roads to 20mph. I'm delighted to see this - I've supported this for years and spoke in favour of the change last year.

During the three years from 2010 to 2012, the city saw 7349 road traffic collisions, which caused slight injuries to 9377 people, serious injuries to 1204 and claimed 79 lives. While that is better than 2000-02, the drop from 12497 collisions is perhaps more closely related to a drop in traffic volumes. Any economic recovery may actually see an increase in injuries. Bear in mind that the number of non-injury collisions - and probably many causing minor injuries - is not known with any degree of reliability.

A quarter of all casualties are pedestrians or cyclists - and over 40% of child casualties are on two wheels or two legs.

Almost half of all collisions occur in just ten wards in Birmingham - Nechells, Ladywood, Sparkbrook, Edgbaston, Aston, South Yardley, Washwood Heath, Tyburn, Bordesley Green and Moseley and Kings Heath. Similarly, almost half of all pedestrian collisions occur in only a quarter of the wards: Ladywood, Nechells, Sparkbrook, Washwood Heath, Aston, Bordesley Green, Soho, Lozells & East Handsworth, Moseley and Kings Heath and Tyburn - in order.

There is clear evidence that accidents are concentrated in areas of deprivation and in local centres and that we are need to focus on collisions involving child pedestrians, particularly those in the 10-14 age group who are transitioning to secondary school. It is also worth noting that young men aged between 20 and 29 are disproportionately represented in the numbers of dead or seriously injured.

Travelling at 20mph rather than 30mph almost halves total stopping distance and massively reduces the risk of pedestrian fatality. A 1mph reduction in speed at 30mph produces a 3% reduction in collisions, while a 1mph reduction in speed at 20mph will cut collisions by 7%. 20mph zones, which include traffic calming measures, typically see a 44-60% drop in collisions, for which there is a good body of evidence. The evidence is still developing for the sign-only limits, but Portsmouth saw crashes drop by 8%, Warrington by 25% and the Trescott Estate in Birmingham saw a fall of 80%. Following objections from the emergency services, traffic calming has generally fallen out of fashion unless there are specific local reasons.

Quite apart from the human cost of these injuries and losses, everything has a value, calculated by the DfT. A fatal accident has a cost of something of the order of £1.8m and others are similarly accounted. That would suggest that collisions in Birmingham over those three years 2010-12 cost around £625m. If we can reduce accidents only by Warrington's 8%, that would produce savings in excess of £50m - quite aside from the cost in terms of injury or human life. That's not a bad return for about £7m of spending.

The proposal is that about 90% of the city's road network would be limited to 20mph. Obviously, this will cover residential streets, but it will also include major roads with primary shopping frontages - like the Warwick Road through Acocks Green or the A435 High Street in Kings Heath, entrances to schools, leisure facilities, parks, health centres, hospitals and public transport hubs. Roll out will take about seven years and £7 million to complete - cost limitations prevent it being any faster and we are likely to prioritise those areas where the risk is greatest. There will also be areas where putting in limits makes sense if other work is being carried out - an example here is around the centre of Acocks Green. As the 20mph limit is put into effect on the Warwick Road as part of the LSTF proposals, as it makes sense to put limits into effect on the side roads so that drivers don't leave the main road 20mph limit and return to 30mph on the side streets. It wouldn't be difficult to create a contiguous area out of those roads. New developments are also likely to have the limits imposed from the start and there may also be opportunities with Amey on the highways capital improvement programme.

This is supposed to be self-enforcing - it is suitable for roads where typical speeds are around 24mph - but the limits will be legally enforceable and the police will carry out their usual work as they do currently.

Overall, this will help to make our city a better place to live and will encourage people to use the appropriate form of transport - particularly walking or cycling for local journeys. That has tremendous implications for carbon reduction and the general health of the city.

There will be a consultation exercise starting over the next month or so and - as always - I'd encourage you to have your say.

Planning Applications to the 21st September 2013

Only a single application this week.

2013/06910/PA - 1 Laurel Gardens, Acocks Green, B27 6TS
Erection of single storey side extension

You can find the details by inputting the reference number into the Council online database here

If you have any comments, you can submit them online - feel free to pass your comments on to me.

The Prince's Trust Team 136

I spent part of Wednesday evening with Team 136, who are part of the Prince's Trust scheme that operates out of Acocks Green Police station, supported by PC Stuart Toogood and PCSO Fae Palmer. They search out young people who have lost their way a little - some have records of trouble with the police, some have had problems finding work and have had their confidence knocked by repeated rejection. Many had problems at school and left with few qualifications and some have a history of substance abuse. The easy answer is to mark them down as failures or scroungers and abandon them to the system, but that's not part of the plan for the Prince's Trust, Solihull College and the police.

Last night, we heard their stories as they stood in front of an audience of friends, family, previous scheme graduates and assorted invited guests. They talked through the scheme - their recruitment, the residential team building week rock climbing, hiking, kayaking and gorge walking on the Welsh border (a free holiday if you believe the Daily Mail), their work with groups of disabled youngsters and the elderly, fund raising for their project and building a playground on Cheddar Road. After that, they prepared their CVs and had a period of work experience with a range of local employers, including Jaguar Land Rover, DHL and other companies and social enterprises.

Their stories were inspiring - the young woman who has had a string of short term jobs. She said that this scheme had "made her realise that she wasn't as useless as she thought she was." She's starting an apprenticeship next week at a social enterprise dealing with those recovering from substance abuse. Others are going through the recruitment process at JLR - which includes a drug test - and another is a groundbreaker. He had a placement at DHL and they have asked him to return as an employee - the first time that the scheme has had someone placed there, so his success will influence their decision to take on others. I had a chat with one proud dad who was delighted that his son had a job so that he could help support his own son.

This is a really effective programme that clearly has results - it gives these young people a real chance to restart their lives in employment. The fact that it works is a tribute to the Trust, West Midlands Police and the officers that run it. It was an absolute pleasure and an honour to be invited.

Planning Applications to the 14th September 2013

Nothing to report for the first week in September, but a couple for last week. Nothing controversial here.

Or is there? 

2013/06866/PA - 2 Gospel Lane, Acocks Green, B27 7AA
Erection of first floor side extension and single storey rear extension

2013/06516/PA - Acocks Green Baptist Church, Yardley Road, B27 6HG
Demolition of Glynn Edwards Hall and construction of a new two storey building to accommodate
community uses and restoration and redevelopment of Grade II Listed Church and Arthur Moore Hall
OK, maybe there is something controversial. There's one view of the proposals here - other thoughts are available. I should note that I have been formally advised of the application as a local resident close enough to be affected. 

2013/06696/PA - 1285 Warwick Road, Acocks Green, B27 6PX
Application for a Lawful Development Certificate for a proposed use for the installation of a dormer window to the rear

You can find the details by inputting the reference number into the Council online database here

If you have any comments, you can submit them online - feel free to pass your comments on to me.

Free cholesterol testing still on at Sainsburys!

Sainsbury's Acocks Green is offering free cholesterol testing - there should be another week left of the offer. I was asked to be the guinea pig.

Despite my pathological fear of needles, I took one for the team and had one of the pharmacy team gently used a captive needle to get a blood sample which is popped into an electronic reader. The pharmacist then looks at the results and gives you some relevant advice. If they need to, they will refer you to your GP if the results show something that needs further attention.


For the record, my cholesterol was - surprisingly - within recommended limits. Thanks to Sainsburys for asking.

We have a winner!

Particularly delighted to hear from Fran that Acocks Green went up a level in the Heart of England in Bloom competition. Last year, the hard work delivered bronze. This year, the team went one better and brought home a silver award, along with art awards for pupils at Acocks Green School and a special award for Fran for her hard work in energising the volunteers and local services to green up the village.

The judges were especially pleased with the mural, created by a local young artist.

Next year - can we do better?

Fox Hollies Forum Environmental Centre reopens

Matt Redmond welcomes the Lord Mayor & Lady Mayoress

I was delighted to be invited, along with Cllr Stacey, to the reopening of the Fox Hollies Environmental Centre, which has been refurbished thanks to a generous grant from Veolia. We also welcomed the Lord Mayor and Lady Mayoress to a gathering of local people and service users. The Fox Hollies Forum is a very special community facility in the ward, acting as a centre for a wide range of services and groups and offering opportunities for employment - they've even taken on an apprentice to help look after the animals in the centre.

Camp fire singing with pupils from The Oaklands school

There's always a tree to plant....

Policing Update

We've had a bit of a spike in crime across the ward over the summer. Total recorded crime is up year on year across Acocks Green by 25%. Within that, burglary is up by 92%, which translates to 35 offences; vehicle crime is up 13%; and robbery is up by 20%, which equates to five offences. As I wrote earlier, I'm always conscious about the level of fear of crime that exists in Yardley, so there needs to be some perspective. This is still a safe place to live. We've got a very good and dedicated policing team here and they are committed to cutting crime and dealing with offenders.

The Gospel Estate has borne the brunt of this - hence the meeting at Lakey Lane School for the start of Operation Seabreeze - this is divided into patrol strategy, offender management and community development, with short, medium and long term goals for each area. The officers in Acocks Green have been clearly very stretched - the Gospel Estate started out with one PC and two PCSOs. One PCSO was removed and after the local PC was redeployed elsewhere, his replacement unfortunately went on long term sick. We now have a replacement - PC Nick Hale, who started last week. An additional PCSO, Dan Coxhead, has also been sent to the Gospel to support PCSO Chelsie Beardsmore. Sadly, PC Ian Davis, who has been a key member of the team, has been sent to a new posting as an Acting Sergeant in Stechford. We'll certainly miss him here in Acocks Green, but we already have a replacement, PC Dan Poore.

In terms of the Gospel Estate, officers from Acocks Green will liaise with their colleagues across the borders in Solihull and Hall Green. Other departments, such as traffic, are putting their people into the area to carry out patrols as urgent commitments allow. There is also work going on to put some additional youth activities onto the Gospel. The initial response, even from some of the young people involved, has been positive and residents have welcomed the additional, visible patrols. Surveys have been carried out by the local teams across hundreds of properties to assess local concerns about crime and antisocial behaviour. On a long term basis, they will look to take out a dispersal order - a civil measure that allows the police to order groups that are causing disruption to leave the area and not to return without facing the possibility of arrest. A number of youths have been identified as getting involved with a number of problems on the estate and the initial response is to explore civil anti-social behaviour action, which may lead to ASBOs. However, this isn't a short term option - evidence has to be gathered and a civil case built.

Elsewhere, anti-speeding operations have recently been carried out on Olton Boulevard East, where nine drivers were spoken to about exceeding the speed limit; four were warned on Tyndale Road, eleven on Fox Hollies Road and none on Mayfield Road. Other speeding operations are planned for coming weeks on other roads.

Wheelie bin survey results

Next Monday, the cabinet of Birmingham City Council will meet and agree the roll out programme for wheelie bins across Birmingham. The current plans envisage that the deployment will reach our local depot in the autumn of 2014, so we've got about a year to wait for them to reach Acocks Green.

What is interesting is the survey work done in the two trial wards - Brandwood and Harborne. 417 people across both wards were interviewed face to face prior to the roll out and there was then a follow-up telephone interview with the same people after the bins had been put into use. These were the individuals with primary responsibility for recycling in a household. The data is weighted to ensure that their backgrounds are a balance that matches the ward, so we can have some decent confidence in the data. 

Prior to the launch, 35% strongly supported the introduction of wheeled bins, 28% tended to support them, 22% were undecided, 7% tended to oppose and 8% strongly opposed them. When they were re-interviewed, the shift was quite marked. Now 53% strongly supported them and 23% tended to support, with 11% being neutral and just 4% tending to oppose, although 9% strongly oppose. That shows 63% initially in favour, rising to 76% in favour once they actually had a chance to use the service. The neutrals seemed to have shifted in favour and the total of those opposed has slipped back by a couple of points, although it is interesting that there has been a very slight hardening of those strongly opposed. Interestingly, this is pretty close to the figures produced by a YouGov survey in 2011, which showed 77% with a positive view of wheeled bins, 14% with a negative view and 9% undecided. (Oddly, LibDem voters are most in favour). 

Although this is still early days and only relating to two of our forty wards, the sample shows that 31% feel that wheelie bins have encouraged them to recycle more, compared to 20% who thought it would when surveyed prior to implementation. Curiously, 6% think that they recycle less than before, double the 3% who thought that they would reduce their recycling. The actual results speak for themselves - residual waste (black bag) collection amounts have dropped by 24% across the wards, while the mixed (glass/plastic) recyling has increased by 40% and paper has increased by 20%. That would be a pretty impressive achievement if it could be sustained, but I would expect variable increases in recycling once the system is fully rolled out, although all the evidence suggests that this change will encourage far greater recycling.

Despite this positive news, however, there's always one who has to find the downside. This week, it is Cllr Jon Hunt, who is leading the charge and has managed to get a story into the Mail claiming that the budget costs have doubled since last year.

Unfortunately for the thrust of the story, they haven't.

Borrowing was always part of the picture and the Liberal Democrats know this. It has been covered at previous cabinet meetings and in scrutiny committee too. A larger part of the modernisation project is funded through council spending and borrowing than is funded by the DCLG money.

But Jon doesn't stop there.

The council has already maxed out its credit card. Now it proposes to conjure another £8 million out of nowhere this year. It is staggering that senior councillors on the council have the brass neck to think they can spend even more money on this. 

Apart from the minor point that prudential borrowing isn't the same as a credit card (the Labour government gave councils the power to borrow to invest, something of which the Tory/Lib Dem administration took full advantage. If the card is maxed out, they are the ones who splashed the cash. 

The facts haven't changed - we need to modernise our waste collection operation. It was left with outdated facilities, worn-out vehicles and is entirely unfit to deal with the volumes that we expect to receive in the future and to deliver on the targets for recycling. 

The initial results from the trial wards look remarkably promising - the public are buying in and are making the effort to recycle more. The scheme is working and the opposition is getting increasingly desperate as they see their imagined political capital draining away. 

Road resurfacing - Victoria Road

Yet another stretch of road in Acocks Green is to be resurfaced - Victoria Road (from the Shirley Road roundabout to Botteville Road).

The work is scheduled to start during the week of the 23-27 September 2013. It is expected to take up to five days and the crews will be working on site on weekdays between 8am and 6pm. Amey will put signs on the road to confirm the precise start date.

As vehicles can't drive over hot tarmac, the section of the road affected will be closed to all traffic while surfacing is being carried out.

If you require access for medical/personal reasons, you can contact Amey on 0121 303 6644 (option 2), to discuss how access can be arranged. Pedestrian access will be maintained as well as access for emergency vehicles. That number can also be used for any other questions that you might have. 

During working hours, it will not be possible to park on the road. Cars left will have to be removed and this may incur a cost to the registered keeper. There are also likely to be speed and width restrictions while the work is carried out. 

Sorry for the inconvenience, but this work needs to be done and is usually completed well within the time allocated. 

Acocks Green Ward Committee - 6 Sept 2013

A quick report back on Wednesday's meeting.

We started with a report and a request for views on the discussion of future council services, in particular with regard to three specific service areas:

• Adults and Communities
• Education Services - this relates to the central administrative services for all schools, not to the schools themselves.
• Support Services Part I - Back office administrative functions of the council

While David Cameron and John Hemming tell us that we're only facing small reductions, in the real world, Birmingham City Council will have to slash our controllable spending by MORE than 50%. This will have devastating effects on the services that this council is able to provide - we've already got rid of 27% of our employees over the past few years. I think the message is getting through to people about the challenges that we are going to face over the coming years. 

If you would like to read the discussion papers and comment, you can find the details here. 

Unfortunately, our environmental health officer was on leave this week, so her report was held over. 

We then moved on to the controversial issue of the redevelopment plan for the Acocks Green Baptist Church on Yardley Road. The Stockfield Community Association and the Baptist Church want to demolish and replace the Glynn Edwards Hall with a new building. That is intended to have a range of meeting rooms, a training kitchen and community facilities and they will also repair the Arthur Moore Hall and bring that back into full use, as well as complete repair work on the church itself. The Arthur Moore and the church building are statutorily listed, but that Glynn Edwards Hall isn't. It is fair to say that there was a full exchange of views, but little meeting of minds. This will continue to be controversial - the planning application is about to be submitted and it will be interesting to see the final designs. It is a genuine strength of Acocks Green that we have so many people who care deeply about the area. 

On that note, we then ran through some other planning applications that are currently live - nothing was flagged as particularly controversial, although the proposals for the former Johnsons dry cleaning site came up for some discussion. 

We then considered some community chest projects, agreeing funding for 

• £1000 Laptops for the Friends Centre on Yardley Road 
• £1000 towards Acocks Green Christmas Lights, replacing the money previously provided from central City Council funding
• £3000 for the TUC Centre, which provides advice on social security applications and support to people in need. The service is provided by qualified advisors and in a range of languages. The centre receives funding from a number of wards, in relation to the number of clients from each ward. Most of the clients from Acocks Green are from the Yarnfield Estate.
• £6300 for the Tyseley & Greet Employment Resource Centre. This also offers advice and will support those who are struggling with the government's changes to the benefit system, as well as those in dire need or dealing with pay day lenders.  
• £1000 for Acocks Green Carers, to provide two events to give this local group a break over the festive season
• £1000 for Gospel Lane Allotments. The members are improving paths through the site and we're helping them with funding for equipment and materials.

After years where I don't remember seeing any petitions presented, we had not one, but two offered to us this week. One contains about 300 signatures asking for more litter collection along the Yardley Road and we had another of around 50 signatures asking for an end to cuts. 

Our next meeting will be 7pm, Wednesday 23 October 2013 at Fox Hollies Forum. 

Pavement resurfacing - Pollard Road

The existing pavement is due to be resurfaced with asphalt along the whole length of Pollard Road from Pool Farm Road to Gospel Lane.

The work is scheduled to start during the week of the 14-18 October 2013. It is expected to take up to four weeks and the crews will be working weekdays between 7:30am and 5pm. Amey will put signs on the road to confirm the precise start date. They may also work on Saturdays during the same hours.

You should be able to get to and from your property, but access may be restricted at times. When the crews are working on the footway outside your home, please ensure that you do not park on the road outside your home. If this is going to cause a problem, please contact Amey on 0121 303 6644.

As this work is being done, there is a special offer on footway crossings (dropped kerbs). These are required if you want to park in your front garden. They can be installed for just £226 (to cross a footpath 3.0m to 6.0m deep from the kerb line to your property), if you wish to have one installed, or if you wish to have an existing crossing widened, please contact the helpline on 0121 303 6644 (option 1). This must be done before the start of the work.

Properties with existing footpath crossings will have their crossing reinstated at no charge.

We can only install reduced price footpath crossings where there is a hardstanding area to your garden, or you have obtained planning permission for a proposed hardstanding area. Planning permission is required to install a hard standing area to your footpath crossing on your garden, for this please contact the City Council Planning Office direct on 0121 303 1115.

There are occasions where we will not be able to provide a discounted footpath crossing, common reasons are:

• If there are trees / utility boxes & manhole covers / street lighting columns / cables in the way 
• If the depth of your garden from the rear of the public footpath to your building is less than 4.75m 
• Crossings are not allowed on a bend, at traffic lights, or on a road junction

Road Resurfacing - Tibland Road

As part of the ongoing investment in Birmingham's roads, Tibland Road (from Pollard Road to Wildfell Road) will be resurfaced.

The work is scheduled to start during the week of the 23-27 September 2013. It is expected to take up to five days and the crews will be working on site on weekdays between 8am and 6pm. Amey will put signs on the road to confirm the precise start date.

As vehicles can't drive over hot tarmac, the section of the road affected will be closed to all traffic while surfacing is being carried out.

If you require access for medical/personal reasons, you can contact Amey on 0121 303 6644 (option 2), to discuss how access can be arranged. Pedestrian access will be maintained as well as access for emergency vehicles. That number can also be used for any other questions that you might have. 

During working hours, it will not be possible to park on the road. Cars left will have to be removed and this may incur a cost to the registered keeper. There are also likely to be speed and width restrictions while the work is carried out. 

Sorry for the inconvenience, but this work needs to be done and is usually completed well within the time allocated. 

Planning Applications to the 31 August 2013

Just a couple to end the summer.

2013/06342/PA - 119 Olton Boulevard East, Acocks Green, B27 7NL
Erection of two storey side extension and front canopy

2013/06438/PA - 11 Roberts Road, Acocks Green, B27 6NF
Erection of single storey rear and two storey side extension

You can find the details by inputting the reference number into the Council online database here

If you have any comments, you can submit them online - feel free to pass your comments on to me.

Gospel Estate Police Meeting Update

Last Wednesday saw the first in what will hopefully be a series of meetings to address issues of crime and anti-social behaviour on parts of the Gospel Estate. We had an excellent turnout - the local police inspector, Jim Gooderidge, PCSO Chelsie Beardsmore and PC Ian Davis, as well as Cllr Stacey and myself, plus the Victims' Champion for Birmingham, Cllr Jess Phillips.

The most impressive thing, however, was the number of residents who made the effort to attend and it was really positive to see such an attendance from people who aren't usual visitors to that meeting - there was scarcely any room left.

We heard from people who have been victims of crime and anti-social behaviour - including the youth worker from the Gospel Oak, who described how their summer programme had to be scrapped this year. We also heard from some of the young people on the Gospel - who I was particularly pleased to see attending the meeting.

I'm always aware when writing about this that Yardley has a problem with the worst level of fear of crime in the city, a fear entirely undeserved when you consider the actual levels of crime over recent years. The problems that we are seeing on this part of the Gospel is a spike in burglaries from sheds and other buildings, thefts from motor vehicles, use of quad bikes and motor bikes, etc. The police are determined to deal with this and we all want to see the estate become a better place to live.

Some of this work ahead will require cross-border co-operation - the estate sits on the edge of Acocks Green, Hall Green and Solihull, crossing police and local authority borders. I'll be liaising with my colleagues in Hall Green - we already work closely to support the Gospel Oak Community Centre, which sits in Hall Green, but serves many people on the Gospel Estate. We'll also be assembling a stakeholders' group (jargon, I know) of the key agencies - Housing, Youth Services, voluntary and third sector - to discuss what further action can be taken and what needs to be done.

There will be further public meetings and we'll also be trying to arrange a meeting involving some of the young people from the estate to identify their needs and see how we can support them.

It is clear that this will not be an easy fix - this area has been ignored for some years and it will take some time to improve things. This couldn't have come at a worse time - with council and policing budgets being slashed by government, our resources to tackle problems like this are severely limited. Cllr Stacey and I will certainly be making every effort to bring whatever resources we can to bear on the problems and I'm confident that my colleagues in Hall Green will be happy to help as well.

If we can maintain and widen the support from local residents, then we're in with a good chance of improving the life of people in that area of the ward.

Diary Date - Acocks Green Ward Committee

Acocks Green Ward Committee
Wednesday 4 September 2013 - 7pm
Baptist Church, Yardley Road, Acocks Green

A couple of major issues.

• Discussion on future of council services
• Adults and communities
• Education Services
• Support Services Part One
• Environmental Health Update
• Acocks Green Baptist Church Redevelopment
• We will have representatives from the Stockfield Community Association and the Church to discuss the proposals.
• Planning Applications
• Community Chest funding

If you can make it along, this is a chance to discuss key issues in the ward - we want to hear your views. 

Gospel Estate Police Meeting - Wed 28 Aug 7pm Lakey Lane School

If you live on the Gospel Estate, this is an important meeting. 

The police and councillors need your thoughts and feedback on what can and should be done to make the estate a safer and better place to live. 

If you can't make it, let me know what your priorities would be. 

7pm, Community Room at Lakey Lane School. 

Planning Applications to the 24 August 2013

A few more this week. The

2013/06208/PA - 177 Shirley Road, Acocks Green B27 7NP
Erection of two storey side extension

2013/05451/PA - 338 Olton Boulevard West, Tyseley, B11 3HJ
Erection of single storey front extension and a conservatory

2013/04459/PA - 15-17 Station Road, Acocks Green, B27 6DH
Erection of single storey extension to second floor to form new self contained flat

2013/06219/PA - 1173 Warwick Road, Acocks Green, B27 6RG
Change of use from dry cleaners (Use Class Sui Generis) to restaurant with ancillary hot food takeaway (Use Classes A3 and A5) and installation of extraction flue to the rear

This is the former Johnsons premises. An earlier application was withdrawn. 

You can find the details by inputting the reference number into the Council online database here

If you have any comments, you can submit them online - feel free to pass your comments on to me.

Library Update

We're on course for closure as planned. The staff will spend most of next week preparing the building and should hand over the keys to the contractors on Monday 2 September. Then they have to install the scaffolding, heavy duty protection to the carpets, shelving and the model train collection and carry out a few more tests while they are mobilising materials and people to the site. Although the building is locally listed, it isn't statutorily listed, but the design of the new roof lights will be very similar to that already used on the listed buildings in Kings Heath and Selly Oak.

All being well, we'll be looking to have the building back just before Christmas. There will be regular meetings while the repairs are carried out, so I'll keep you up to date on progress.

Don't forget that books already on loan can be returned to any other library, but there's no fine payable if you wait to return it to Acocks Green.

From Monday 2 September, South Yardley Library will be open extra hours to partly fill the gap while Acocks Green is closed:

Monday 9am - 7pm

Tuesday 9am - 5pm

Wednesday 9am - 5pm

Thursday 9am - 7pm

Friday 9am - 5pm

Saturday 9am - 5pm

Planning Applications to 17 August 2013

Nothing at all last week and just one to report from this week. All quiet, really.

2013/06026/PA - 3 Greenwood Avenue, Birmingham 
Erection of single storey side extension

You can find the details by inputting the reference number into the Council online database here

If you have any comments, you can submit them online - feel free to pass your comments on to me.

Golf - a good walk ruined?

The new clubhouse at Pype Hayes

Tuesday saw Cllr Majid Mahmood and myself visiting Pype Hayes Golf Club to see how the My Time contract is performing one year into operation.

I have to confess that golf is not a sport that has ever inspired me, but I was impressed by the potential that this operational model offers the city.

The club house has just been rebuilt from the ground up after a fire prior to the contract starting and represents what the providers want to offer more widely. The ground floor is open-plan, but can have areas closed off to create rooms for meetings or private hire. It includes the golf shop and a bar and restaurant, which looks out onto a large decked area and the 9th and 18th greens. Membership is priced competitively within the market and they consciously want to attract a wider, younger group - dress codes have been scrapped and membership is made easy so as to attract those put off by other, rather more old-fashioned clubs.

On the upper floor is an air-conditioned, light and airy gym, which is largely unstaffed, allowing the costs to be kept exceptionally competitive - a day pass costs £5 and monthly membership can be had from about £25 a month. For that, you get access to 60 of the latest machines - many of which have Freeview, will connect with smartphone apps to provide individual training routines and will shortly have internet access as well. The machines are so smart that if they break down, they notify the supplier electronically and an engineer is tasked to visit within 24 hours.

The view out from the club house

My Time are a social enterprise - they do make a profit, but it is all reinvested in the business, so that they have no debt to carry. They started out running a number of golf courses in the south east and this was their biggest expansion, running seven council courses in Birmingham. From being a loss-making and under-invested council service, which was massively subsidised, this will generate income for the city council, increase community involvement and also deliver the service that golfers want. They've got a fearsomely long contract period - 25 years with an option for a further 25 years - but the initial signs look extremely promising.

Another win for Birmingham

Earlier in the year, as Birmingham proudly hosted the Cycle City Expo, Andrew Stunell, a Lib Dem MP, accidentally leaked on the internet (and then withdrew it) that Manchester had won their bid for money to develop further their cycling potential. The assumption that followed was that there was no way that Birmingham would win, given the size of Manchester's bid. This view gained a lot of traction - even I bought in to it - but Monday saw the announcement that we were all wrong. Yet again, Birmingham has won a competitive bid and gained the largest chunk of the £62m won by any single local authority (the Manchester bid covers the Greater Manchester area and Leeds is actually a West Yorkshire bid including work across Leeds and Bradford). We've secured £17m of funding - to go with a further £7m of city council money - to make some major improvements for cyclists in Birmingham.

Infographic from Dave Atkinson @roadccdave

Although this is going to be used to create 70 miles of new cycling routes and improve the 60 miles that we already have, this is only a start. As was pointed out during the Changing Gear scrutiny inquiry, the infrastructure in the Netherlands has taken four decades of work to get to the level that it is now - it has taken consistent investment and political will, backed by popular pressure, to get to their standard of provision. As a city, we're a long way behind this curve and this money is only a contribution to what we need to do to revolutionise cycling in our city.

This is a long term investment for the city - changing how we travel and making sure that we can use the most appropriate method for the journey will make our city cleaner, it will improve the air quality and have significant health benefits well beyond the value of the investment. It makes financial and health sense to do this.

While I'm delighted to see this boost for cycling in Birmingham, a tweeter (@roadccdave - Dave Atkinson) put this money into the context that we normally see for transport projects. The realignment of the A45 Coventry Road to allow the extension to the airport runway has cost £30m by itself. The Cycle Expo saw Andrew Gilligan, Boris' cycling tsar, visit Birmingham and tell us that he has the same amount to spend on a single project on the Embankment as we have won from the government for the whole city. I'm not being ungrateful - but let's put this into context.

Of course, we now have to deliver on the promise. That's the next challenge.

By the way - SkyRide Birmingham returns to the city on Sunday September 15. Sign yourself up....

Planning Applications to 3 August 2013

The builders aren't on holiday.

2013/05246/PA - 295 Fox Hollies Road, B27 7PS
Display of 1 no. externally illuminated fascia sign and 3 no. graphic signs

2013/05556/PA - 66, 72, 167 Fox Hollies Road, B27 7TJ
Installation of external wall insulation

2013/05682/PA - 1285 Warwick Road, B27 6PX
Erection of 6 metre deep single storey rear extension. Maximum height 2.5 metres, eaves height 2.5 metres

2013/04062/PA - 1091 Warwick Road, B27 6QT
Change of use of first floor to dining area in conjunction with existing restaurant use at ground floor, and erection of single storey front extension, two storey rear extension and second floor extension to create residential flat at second floor.

(This one has come back again and the Ward Committee resolved to object to it when it last appeared)

2013/05684/PA - 108 Shirley Road, B27 7NA
Erection of 6 metre deep single storey rear extension. Maximum height 4 metres, eaves height 3 metres

You can find the details by inputting the reference number into the Council online database here

If you have any comments, you can submit them online - feel free to pass your comments on to me.

Road repairs - Bretton Road

As part of the ongoing investment in Birmingham's roads, Bretton Road (from Olton Boulevard East to Gospel Lane) will be resurfaced to repair joints and cracks in the concrete road.

The work is scheduled to start during the week of the 19-23 August 2013. It is expected to take up to five days and the crews will be working on site between 8am and 6pm. Amey will put signs on the road to confirm the precise start date.

As vehicles can't drive over hot tarmac, the section of the road affected will be closed to all traffic while surfacing is being carried out.

If you require access for medical/personal reasons, you can contact Amey on 0121 303 6644 (option 2), to discuss how access can be arranged. Pedestrian access will be maintained as well as access for emergency vehicles. That number can also be used for any other questions that you might have. 

During working hours, it will not be possible to park on the road. Cars left will have to be removed and this may incur a cost to the registered keeper. There are also likely to be speed and width restrictions while the work is carried out. 

Sorry for the inconvenience, but this work needs to be done and is usually completed well within the time allocated. 

Road repairs - Fanshawe Road

As part of the ongoing investment in Birmingham's roads, Fanshawe Road (from Circular Road to Pool Farm Road) will be resurfaced to repair joints and cracks in the concrete road.

The work is scheduled to start during the week of the 12-16 August 2013. It is expected to take up to five days and the crews will be working on site between 8am and 6pm on weekdays only. Amey will put signs on the road to confirm the precise start date.

As vehicles can't drive over hot tarmac, the section of the road affected will be closed to all traffic while surfacing is being carried out.

If you require access for medical/personal reasons, you can contact Amey on 0121 303 6644 (option 2), to discuss how access can be arranged. Pedestrian access will be maintained as well as access for emergency vehicles. That number can also be used for any other questions that you might have. 

During working hours, it will not be possible to park on the road. Cars left will have to be removed and this may incur a cost to the registered keeper. There are also likely to be speed and width restrictions while the work is carried out. 

Sorry for the inconvenience, but this work needs to be done and is usually completed well within the time allocated. 

Road repairs - Lyall Grove

As part of the ongoing investment in Birmingham's roads, Lyall Grove  will be resurfaced to repair joints and cracks in the concrete road.

The work is scheduled to start during the week of the 12-16 August 2013. It is expected to take up to five days and the crews will be working on site between 8am and 6pm on weekdays only. Amey will put signs on the road to confirm the precise start date.

As vehicles can't drive over hot tarmac, the section of the road affected will be closed to all traffic while surfacing is being carried out.

If you require access for medical/personal reasons, you can contact Amey on 0121 303 6644 (option 2), to discuss how access can be arranged. Pedestrian access will be maintained as well as access for emergency vehicles. That number can also be used for any other questions that you might have. 

During working hours, it will not be possible to park on the road. Cars left will have to be removed and this may incur a cost to the registered keeper. There are also likely to be speed and width restrictions while the work is carried out. 

Sorry for the inconvenience, but this work needs to be done and is usually completed well within the time allocated. 

Green in Bloom

For what it is worth, I've not seen Acocks Green looking better than it did on Tuesday morning in readiness for the Britain in Bloom judges' arrival. I spent an hour with them walking along the length of the Warwick Road, supporting Fran and Ged and explaining what had been done, the plans for the future and the tremendous community support that the In Bloom project has received. My horticultural knowledge is severely limited, so that speciality I left up to others better qualified. We dropped by the orchard on Mallard Close, where they met the young artist who has painted the brilliant mural and chatted to a half dozen other local people who were at the heart of creating our entry. I left them at the junction with Woodcock Lane, as I had another appointment, but I understand that they were impressed with the rest of the tour, including Millennium Green, Arden Road and St Mary's Close.

We spend a lot of time being critical, so I'd really like to pass on my thanks and praise to Fran and Ged for their work in putting it together and leading the project, to the dozens of other people in Arden Road, St Mary's Close and those who came to help from across Acocks Green (and the City). Thanks also need to go to the trustees of Millennium Green, that little oasis of the wild in the suburbs and to the businesses and management of the Business Improvement District for their help. I really must praise the city council people who helped out - Highways, Housing, Fleet and Waste Management and Parks managers and crews really got behind the project and they've all contributed to making it the best ever entry from Acocks Green to this contest, many of them going above and beyond the call of duty to help.

We deserve better than last year's bronze, but whatever the result, the hard work of dozens of people has paid off.

Pavement Repairs - Station Road

Amey have advised that they are carrying out patching and slurry seal work on the pavements on Station Road along the whole length. They've already started on site and it may take up to three weeks to complete the work. Work should be carried out Monday to Friday between 7:30am and 5pm, but there may be a call for Saturday working during the same hours.

Slurry sealing sounds unpleasant, but it is a way of recoating the pavement to add texture where it has worn smooth over years and it will also help to prevent water damage and thus extend the life of the footway.

Access will be maintained to properties during the work, but they ask that you do not park outside your property while work is being carried out. Parking restrictions are in place on a temporary basis. As always, if there are any concerns, you can contact them on 0121 303 6644.

Acocks Green Library - Temporary Closure from Tuesday 27 August 2013

After intervention from Stewart and myself, we've now received revised pricing on the work to the roof and a solution has been found that keeps the work within the allocated funding and allows the full replacement of the roof, we can now look to set a date. Amazingly, the initial plans only allowed replacement of the roof over the public areas and would have allowed continued leaking into the staff areas at the rear left of the building - some of the damage there already is quite worrying.

It is proposed that the library will be closed from Tuesday 27 August for an initial week to allow preparation of the building for work - we have also instructed that some additional protection is put in place for the train displays at the rear of the building. The contractors should move in from the 2 September to start work for about 12 weeks.

All groups that currently use the library will be temporarily relocated and any books out on loan can be returned to any other library. South Yardley Library will start extended opening hours from the 2 September. If you can't get the books back to other libraries, don't worry - no fines will be incurred if you wait until Acocks Green reopens.

I am inquiring as to whether we can push the closure date back to the end of the school holidays and will update you if that can be done - although I am concerned that we get the work done as soon as possible and before autumn and winter return.

After discussions with the local service manager, we've agreed that the closure date will remain as it is. There are sound administrative reasons that make the original date sensible. It will be inconvenient, as all closures are, but the library team need the time to complete the handover and establish new working regimes.

Planning Applications to the 27 July 2013

A whole load of them to celebrate the start of summer.

2013/05584/PA - 56 Broom Hall Crescent, B27 7JR
Erection of 6 metre deep single storey rear extension. Maximum height 3.9 metres, eaves height 2.7 metres

2013/05419/PA - 61 Marie Drive, B27 7NY
Erection of 3.6 metre deep single storey rear extension. Maximum height 3.8 metres, eaves height 2.6 metres

2013/04747/PA - 71 Lincoln Road, B27 6PQ
Variation of condition C3 attached to planning application 2008/05485/PA extend the opening times to 07:00 - 23:30 Mondays to Saturdays and 10:00 - 19:00 Sundays and Bank Holidays

2013/04963/PA - 79 Woodford Green Road, B28 8PH
Erection of two storey side/rear extension and single storey forward extension

You can find the details by inputting the reference number into the Council online database here

If you have any comments, you can submit them online - feel free to pass your comments on to me.

A packed weekend

On the run...

It was a very busy weekend. Saturday brought the excellent Stechford Police Station open day, which gave people a great opportunity to see their police service up close.

On the left, you see a demonstration of public order officers about to detain a violent thug carrying a weapon. Actually, that's Sgt Danny Cooke in heavy protective kit so that the officers involved can safely use the right level of force to detain him. It was also good to have a chat with the Flightpath Protection Team, who keep an eye on a sizeable area of the West Midlands and Warwickshire that falls within the take-off and landing flightpaths of Birmingham Airport. Alongside a range of community groups, we also had attendance from the Royal Signals and Sheldon fire station, who provided a demonstration of how they can swiftly create a Mondeo convertible with only the help of powerful cutting equipment. It was also good to catch up with some colleagues. The left hand picture shows me with Diane Donaldson, the Labour candidate for Stechford and Yardley North in 2014, Cllr Zafar Iqbal, Cllr Jess Phillips (our parliamentary candidate for 2015 for Yardley), Cllr Nawaz Ali, Cllr Yvonne Mosquito (Deputy PCC) and myself. The next shot also includes Cllr Maryam Khan, Police and Crime Commissioner Bob Jones and Cllr Mohammed Aikhlaq. It was also good to catch up with Bob and have a brief chat about policing in Acocks Green and raise a couple of issues from residents - in particular the hardy perennial that is the anti-social use of motorbikes on parks around the ward.

Sunday brought the annual Sheldon Country Park Festival which was blessed with warm weather. Again, a good turnout for this local show with plenty to see and do and the decent weather was welcome!

Acocks Green Labour - down to work!

After that, a quick dash back across to Acocks Green to help out with the cleanup on Millennium Green. Cllr Stacey, Cllr Phillips and Rachel Seabright, our candidate for election in 2014, were already hard at work - collecting rubbish and painting over graffiti on the end wall of the garages. I joined in, with the help of one of my children, in clearing rubbish from the banks of the stream.

This is all in aid of today's visit by the Britain in Bloom judges, who came to visit Pemberley Road last Friday and will be around and about Acocks Green this morning. Thanks must go to Fran and the team for their hard work over the past months in creating the orchard and generally tidying up. I've also got to note the support of the Business Improvement District, our Parks team and the Fleet and Waste Management crew who have supported the work throughout.

Incidentally, Sunday also saw the judging of Birmingham's entry in the Entente Florale, a Europe in Bloom competition, where Birmingham is the sole UK entry this year. Given our outstanding record in horticulture, we should have high hopes of success, so fingers crossed that the eight hour judging period worked for us.

I had to abandon the team early and dash across to the Arden Road residents' association tea party, who had kindly invited Stewart and myself over. As always, it was good to catch up with local residents and talk about local issues. They'd laid on a fine spread, too, with jam produced from berries harvested in the garden of the hall. I couldn't resist buying a jar of Bee 27 honey - produced from a hive in the road.

Odds and Ends

From the miscellaneous files:

Leaking pipe repaired on Dudley Park Road
This was leaking up through the carriageway and I liaised with Severn Trent and Amey to get the repair completed as rapidly as possible. Allowing for a couple of days to move the bus stop temporarily and get the necessary approvals into place, the work was completed, the leaking water main repaired and the road reinstated in just over a week.

Pedestrian crossing signal on Westley Road fixed

Lamp post repaired on Hartfield Crescent
This actually had the head hanging off the post and only held on by the cable.

Amey barriers removed from Woodcock Lane (and recovered from the canal)
Left behind after the relighting programme had been completed

Diary Date - Transport, Connectivity and Sustainability Overview and Scrutiny Committee

Transport, Connectivity and Sustainability O&S Committee
Friday 26 July 2013 - 10am
Committee Room 1, Council House

 Items on the agenda will be

• DCLG Bid for Weekly Waste Collection Scheme (this is on the private agenda, as the information in the bid is commercially sensitive)
• Birmingham Energy Savers

This is a meeting open to the public - although they will unusually be excluded for the duration of the private agenda item (until approximately 11:15am).

Not a bad couple of days

Not a bad day all round - I had a really good afternoon at the Council House with the young people from the House of Play and Education who were on a guided tour of the building and asked some key questions. Even there, wheelie bins came up for discussion.

I had a quick phone call from the police about some offensive graffiti on Starcross Road, which they had reported and been promised removal by Amey by September 4th. Knowing which buttons to press, I had that graffiti removed within an hour.

And now, after raising a bit of grief over the delays from the contractor on moving forward the repairs to Acocks Green Library roof, it looks as though we might be getting closer. We've got a price which is now within the budget and are moving towards a pre-start meeting. No dates yet, but we look to be more or less on the way now!

Add to that yesterday's highly effective meeting with CENTRO, NXWM and the LSTF design team and it has been a rather productive couple of days.

Still time for the week to go wrong, though.

Warwick Road Acocks Green Improvements Consultation

The initial plans have been put out to consultation for the major improvements to the Warwick Road through Acocks Green as part of the Local Sustainable Transport Funding scheme. We're going to see about £1.7 million spent on this part of the scheme alone and it represents years of work by members of the community and a successful bid to a government fund for this and several other schemes around the city.

There are more extensive plans for the whole of the Warwick Road from the Stratford Road junction down through to Solihull. Over the next couple of weeks, we'll also see the plans to rework the Stockfield Road/Warwick Road/Fox Hollies Road junction, which has not proved effective since the last remodelling.

The pictures to the left show the main area that we're talking about - from Station Road up to just past Woodcock Lane. The existing dual carriageway will be reduced to a single carriageway - with the central reservation removed (the mature trees in the middle will be felled, but more trees will replace them along the roadside) and pavements widened. This will have the effect of removing the bottlenecks at either end of the dual carriageway and smoothing out traffic flow along the road length. The intent is to make Acocks Green a more attractive place to shop and to open a shop - we want to capture the trade that just passes through our village and finds it too hard to stop. To that end, there will be more on street parking and the Station Road car park (actually correctly termed the Warwick Road car park, according to the council) needs to have improved access.

As you know, we're currently updating the street furniture around the Green and this theme will be continued along into the eastern end of the shopping area. The stretch will also be relit at the same time as this programme is carried out - Amey are aware of this and have also held off work to the pavements pending this work, following my intervention.

Pedestrians should find it a nicer place to be, with wider pavements and easier crossing points. In particular, the residents of Woodcock Lane will find the shopping centre more open to them, as they will have new refuges to allow them to cross safely over the new single carriageway, rather than being unable to dash across the dual carriageway.

I hope that the principles of the project will get widespread support, although the details still require work. These are the initial plans and that there have already been some changes proposed following site meetings involving the design team, CENTRO, NXWM, Cllr Stacey and myself.

Proposals to ban right turns out of Woodcock Lane and Oxford Road are set to be dropped. We objected to this as the traffic volume is relatively low and it would make it difficult for residents to turn into the city (Oxford Road residents would have to go north and either out towards the Coventry Road or turn down Dudley Park Road and make a complete turn of the Green to join the Warwick Road city bound. There is relatively little traffic coming out of Woodcock Lane, as there is no southbound access across the rail bridge for vehicles.

Relocating the bus stop which serves Iceland. This was proposed to be relocated to the east outside the old convent building, now part of Archbishop Ilsley. We objected to this as it would mean a significant gap between bus stops (the next city-bound is down in the Green) and would force passengers with heavy shopping to drag it up the hill and over the Sainsbury's driveways. The stop will be retained roughly where it is now, but will be extended to take two buses and there will be a taxi drop-off and pickup point in front, instead of additional car parking spaces on that side of the carriageway. This supports current usage of that stretch of road.

Relocating the bus stop in front of the Spread Eagle. The plans see this moving east to a spot roughly in front of the NatWest bank. Again, this would mean a large gap between the earlier stop outside Wilkinsons, especially as the stop has already been relocated east once in the past few years. The stop will again be retained where it is, but marked out for two buses. On both of these, we've also insisted on the continued use of the Kassel kerb to help passengers board buses safely.

There is another item for consideration - what we do with Station Road. Part of this is to improve access to the Warwick Road car park, off Station Road and to do this, a scheme is being considered to change the flow along Station Road, which is currently one-way for the entire length from Dudley Park Road down to Warwick Road. The current suggestion is to make Station Road two-way from Warwick Road to the car park and maintain the one-way flow as it is now along the remaining length. This is, however, up for discussion and views of users and residents are being sought to find the best possible answer.

Other issues - I think the scheme needs more to support cycling in Acocks Green and I'd also like to see the 20mph limit extended onto the residential roads coming off the Warwick Road. It seems rather inconsistent that under the current proposal, drivers are limited to 20mph through the shopping area, but if they turn down Victoria Road or Mallard Close, they can accelerate to 30mph past the schools.

Cllr Stacey and I have raised our concerns about the poor quality of the proposed consultation process, which was originally due to finish at the end of this month. As a result, the consultation will now close on the 16th August and we have pushed the design team to stage two public events at Acocks Green Library on Thursday 8 August and Saturday 10 August. Copies of the plans will be available there in advance for you to look at and Ian Jeffries has very kindly offered space in his shop window to display them as well.

If you want to have a look at them now, you can go to the BeHeard website, view the plans and submit your comments. Your views and opinions are vital. This is one of the biggest investments in Acocks Green in decades and we want to get it right. So, let's have your opinions. If you want to send them to me as well, I'd be really interested to see thoughts and comments.

We are up against the clock, however. The rules of the government grant (which can only be spent on these projects) say that the work has to be completed by the middle of 2015, so work is likely to start during the spring and early summer of 2014.

Whether you write, email, call or pop along to one of the events - make sure your voice is heard!

Summer Activities in Yardley - Bus Plus

Part funded through the Acocks Green Community Chest, this a range of free or low cost activities for young people across the district. 

Summer Play at the House of Play and Education

Another local group that has had support through the Community Chest is the House of Play and Education. They are going from strength to strength from the simplest of beginnings at the Methodist Church Hall.

Planning Applications to the 20 July 2013

A whole load of them to celebrate the start of summer.

2013/05176/PA - Coral Racing Ltd, 25-27 Olton Boulevard East, B27 7RR
Installation of new ATM in existing shop front

2013/05177/PA - Coral Racing Ltd, 25-27 Olton Boulevard East, B27 7RR
Display of 1 no. internally illuminated fascia sign

2013/05238/PA - 75 Fox Green Crescent, B27 7SG
Erection of two storey side extension

2013/05216/PA - 51 Yarnfield Road, B11 3PG
Erection of single storey forward extension and two storey rear extension

2013/05218/PA - 53 Yarnfield Road, B11 3PG
Erection of two storey side extension and part single part two storey front and rear extension

2013/05147/PA - 221 Dolphin Lane, B27 7BL
Erection of single storey rear extension

2013/05245/PA - 41 Mayfield Road, B11 3PD
Erection of two storey side extension and change of use of single dwellinghouse into two self-contained flats.

2013/05277/PA - 3 Holcombe Road, B11 3PL
Erection of 6 metre deep single storey rear extension. Maximum height 4 metres, eaves height 2.7 metres.

2013/05100/PA - 165 Tynedale Road, B11 3QY
Erection of two storey side extension and front porch extension

You can find the details by inputting the reference number into the Council online database here

If you have any comments, you can submit them online - feel free to pass your comments on to me.

Diary Date - Yardley District Committee

Yardley District Committee
Thursday 18 July 2013 - 2pm
Committee Rooms 3 and 4, Council House
And you can now watch online here.

As this is the first meeting of the year, we have some administrative business to take care of as part of a pretty packed programme.

 Items on the agenda will be

• Election of chair
• Appointment of district corporate parenting champion
• Fire Services and Police representative 
• Regulation and Enforcement devolved services out turn 12/13
• Yardley District Budget Monitoring - April to May 2013
• District Income and Expenditure Report 12/13
• Tackling anti-social behaviour locally
• Housing Department Annual Tenants' visiting programme
• Special Educational Needs Commissioning
• Council housing investment programme - environmental improvements 
• Feedback on £2m community chest top slicing for youth unemployment action programme 
• Leisure facilities transformation 

This is a meeting open to the public and we've certainly seen significant use of the online streaming - far more have watched online than have attended these meetings in a year. 

Planning Applications to 13th July 2013

Four this week, including a proposal for the canal side derelict property at the end of Francis Road

2013/04918/PA - 254 The Avenue, B27 6NU
Erection of single storey rear extension

2013/05125/PA - 93 Olton Boulevard East, B27 7NH
Erection of 4.5 metre deep single storey rear extension. Maximum height 3.5 metres, eaves height 2.5 metres

2013/05005/PA - 89 Tynedale Road, B11 3QX
Installation of a footway crossing

2013/04805/PA - Land adjacent to 70 & 91 Francis Road, B27 6LT
Erection of 12 no. two bedroom houses with ancillary works and creation of a turning head
Thoughts on this one would be welcome. There's already outline permission for building on this site and the design includes a turning head to allow vehicles like refuse trucks to turn properly. This would see the demolition of the existing works buildings and the whole site used for housing. 

You can find the details by inputting the reference number into the Council online database here

If you have any comments, you can submit them online - feel free to pass your comments on to me.

Diary date - Partnership, Contract Performance and Third Sector

Partnership, Contract Performance and Third Sector Overview and Scrutiny Committee
Monday 15 July 2013 - 10am
Committee Room 3 and 4, Council House.
This meeting should be live streamed (and with District Committee on Thursday, that's lots of chances to see me in action. If you have a very strong stomach and can take the punishment)

Issues up for discussion this month:

Partnership working with Severn Trent
Grounds maintenance contracts