East Bristol & North East Somerset Read by over 40,000 ...theweekin.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/issue-458.pdfthe first instance, contact [email protected] The planning inquiry

Mangotsfield recycling centrewill close for four monthsfrom Sunday 1st February.Significant improvements aretaking place to the transfer

station and recycling yard nextto the Sort It centre and toensure site safety and that theimprovements are completedon time, South Gloucestershire

Council says it needs to closethe centre until 31st May.This work will prepare the sitefor the weekly recyclingcollections that will begin

across South Glos in June andwill also help to improve trafficflow in and around theMangotsfield site, which hasbeen an issue for local

residents.The site will still be used bycouncil collection vehicles tounload household waste aftercollections.The council is giving residentsadvance warning so that theycan dispose of any appropriatewaste they already have priorto the temporary closure.

Continues on page 3

Issue 458FREE 25th January 2017

THE WEEK INEast Bristol & North East Somerset

Read by over 40,000 people each week

Mangotsfield tip to close for four months

2 The Week in • Wednesday 25th January 2017

Continued from page 1The three other Sort Itrecycling centres in SouthGloucestershire - at CollettWay in Yate, Station Roadin Little Stoke and ShortWay in Thornbury - will beopen as usual, 8.30am to4.30pm, seven days a week.Check what can be acceptedat each site before you visitand make sure your vehicleis registered atwww.southglos.gov.uk/sortitregThe changes to the wasteand recycling collectionservice, which includeweekly recycling from Juneand smaller black bins laterin the year, will help SouthGloucestershire reach itstarget to reduce overallwaste volumes and recycle

50 per cent of its waste by2020.Concerns about fly-tippingduring the closure of thecentre were raised at lastTuesday's meeting of theStaple Hill, Rodway andMangotsfield CommunityEngagement Forum. People who see fly-tippingare advised to report it viathe South Glos Councilwebsite. When reporting incidents,try to include as muchinformation as possible,such as a description of anyvehicles involved in thetipping, the location anddate/time, a description ofthe material tipped and ofany people seen tipping,along with photographicevidence if safe to obtain.

The Week in • Wednesday 25th January 2017 3

In thisweek’sIssueMinister lobbied forextra money to speedup viaduct works . . . page 7

Wellsway is top of theclass in the SouthWest. . . page 8

Reported crime isdown in Kingswood . . . page 12

Could tourists in Bathhelp meet the councilbudget? . . . page 14

Rail electrificationcomplete by 2024? . . . page 20

Mangotsfield tip toclose for four months

Keynsham

Marina inquiry gets under way


Barrs Court, Bitton, Brislington,Cadbury Heath, Compton Dando,Corston, Downend, EmersonsGreen, Fishponds, Hanham,Hillfields, Keynsham, Kingswood,Longwell Green, Mangotsfield,Marksbury, North Common, OldlandCommon, Pucklechurch, Saltford,Staple Hill, Stockwood, St George,Warmley, Whitchurch, Wick,Willsbridge.

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THE WEEK IN Imperial WindowsImperial Windows and its customers are unaffected by thecollapse of Enterprise Insurance in 2016. This companyused to underwrite the insurance backed guarantee whichwe provide for each of our clients. Guarantees are stillvalid with cover provided by an alternative underwriter.Customers who may have received correspondence fromthe liquidators of Enterprise Insurance are not required totake any action. Imperial Windows has been trading forthe last 25 years and will continue to do so for much longer.

Radio licence hopesKeynsham Community Radio has taken the first step inbecoming a community radio station. The basis for its recent application is the highly successfulKeynsham Hour weekly programme, which has been goingfor two years and is currently broadcast by SomerValleyFM. Most Keynsham residents are unable to receive the livetransmission and listen to the podcast on the SomerValleyFMwebsite.Keynsham's own FM licence would move the operation up thescale significantly but the process takes some time. Successwill also require a considerably larger radio team than the onethat currently produces the weekly show from the satellitestudio at Community at 67 in Queens Road.Anyone interested in future broadcasting operations should inthe first instance, contact [email protected]

The planning inquiry has opened into thecontroversial proposal for a large leisuremarina off Broadmead Lane.The appeal was lodged by Duchy farmerSimon Bendall after Bath & North EastSomerset Council turned down plans for the326-berth marina, parking for 144 cars, abuilding with a tearoom, office, toilets,showers and laundry, plus a reception andchandlery.Last year they council voted by a majority toaccept the planning officer's recommendation

to refuse the application on several grounds,including harm to the Green Belt, harm to therural character and potential harm to trees,hedgerows and ecology.Planning inspector Mark Dakeyne openedproceedings at the Guildhall in Bath lastWednesday. Mr Bendall was not present butwas represented by Chris Whitehead. There was a six-strong team from the counciland among the other objectors attending theinquiry was Dave Laming, who is chairman ofthe River Regeneration Trust and part of

B&NES' Strategic River Group, andrepresentatives from Saltford Marina.The inspector, who visited the site last week aspart of the hearing, said the main issues werewhether the proposal would be inappropriatedevelopment in the Green Belt; the effect onGreen Belt openness and purposes; the effect onthe character and appearance of the area,including existing trees and hedges; the effect onthe ecology of the River Avon and surroundings;whether the development would be accessible bydifferent modes of travel; the effect on highwaysafety; the effect on agricultural land; and, if thedevelopment is inappropriate, whether it is clearlyoutweighed by other considerations to justify it.The result of the inquiry will not be known forsome weeks.Meanwhile Mr Bendall's retrospective applicationto build an access track and bridge on land to thenorth of Stidham Lane and east of BroadmeadLane is currently pending consideration by B&NES Council, asis another controversial application which he has lodged to

replace existing Broadmead mooring pontoons, walkway andaccess staircases with ancillary replacement of services.

y gets under way


Keynsham The Space tohost annualcharity appealKeynsham councillor AlanHale, currently the Chair ofB&NES Council, has chosenThe Space in Keynsham asthe venue for a major part ofhis annual charity appeal.A full concert featuring theelocal acts, the Phoenix RiverBand, the Honeyfire andRebecca Shelley, will takeplace on Saturday 4thFebruary. All proceeds will go to localcharities and organisations,including Keynsham'sButterflies Haven, thesupport group for familieswith autistic children, andresearch into dementia at theRoyal United Hospital inBath.Tickets on sale now atkeynshamtickets.cloudvenue.co.uk


A section of the A474 ring road said to be thebusiest in the south of England outside Londonwill close for up to a year this summer for £5.9mof vital repairs and improvements, South Gloscouncillors unanimously agreed last week.But council representatives have met with TransportSecretary Chris Grayling to try to secure another£3.7m which would speed up the works on thewestbound carriageway of the viaduct on the A4174between the Bromley Heath roundabout and theHambrook lights.All traffic will have to be diverted on to the northernviaduct during the work, with huge tailbacksexpected, and the proposed autumn opening of theMetroBus will be delayed until the viaduct work isfinished.Planning and transport lead member Cllr Colin Hunttold last Wednesday's meeting of the council'sEnvironment & Communities Committee that it“looks hopeful” that extra cash will be found toaccelerate the works, easing the impact onmotorists, communities and businesses.He said the coming years would see significantdevelopment across the area, so it was vital that themajor road network was able to cope with thisincrease in growth. The A4174 carries more than50,000 vehicles per day (forecast to increase toaround 60,000 by 2020). More than 500 cyclists usethe southern viaduct each day each way,The southern viaduct was built in the 1960s and hasreceived little major maintenance since it wasimproved in the late 1980s, when it was modified to

provide the shared footway and cycleway. Wear andtear has weakened it and the path does not meetcurrent design standards for safety.Funding for the £5.9m project, which includeswidening the foot and cycle path, is coming fromDepartment for Transport grants.Cllr Hunt told the meeting that this section of theA474 was the busiest in the south of Englandoutside London and the cost of people sitting intraffic jams amounted to “a fortune”.Labour councillor Ian Boulton said it was vital thatthe extra funding should be provided to get theworks done in half the time, calling SouthGloucestershire “the powerhouse of the West ofEngland and the ring road the spine”.The council's head of Streetcare and transport, MarkKing said: “We understand that this will causesignificant delays and inconvenience and weapologise in advance. We will be doing everythingwe can to keep the public regularly informed aboutthe viaduct work and how to plan their journeysaccordingly.“We are also looking at the scheduling of currentand future transport schemes, utility work and otherroadworks to ensure disruption to road users andcommunities is kept to a minimum, whereverpossible.”Cllr Jon Hunt, who represents Downend, hasorganised a public meeting for Wednesday 8thFebruary at 6.30pm at Bromley Heath Infant Schoolto keep people updated. He said any ideas peoplehave to ease the congestion would be welcomed.


Minister lobbied for extra cashto speed up viaduct works

Soundwell

'Welcoming andinclusive school'praised by OfstedA “welcoming, inclusive school” where pupils make goodprogress and behave well. That's Ofsted's verdict of StStephen's Infant School following a recent inspection.The 266-pupil school is rated as Good in all key areas byinspectors.They said the achievement of pupils since the lastinspection, and prior to the introduction of the newcurriculum and assessment arrangements, wasconsistently strong. Attendance is said to be improving, provision in the earlyyears is good, and staff have strong, supportiverelationships with parents and the local community.Other areas highlighted in the report, which waspublished last week, include the effective use of additionalfunding to provide strong pastoral support fordisadvantaged pupils. The inspectors did however flag up that some of the mostable pupils are not being pushed to achieve the progress ofwhich they are capable. They also said that not all staff arefully familiar with the system of assessment used tomonitor pupils' progress and that leaders do not have asharp enough grasp of the impact of additional funding onthe academic progress of disadvantaged pupils.

Hanham

A little TLCThe TLC (Talk, Listen, Care) service in Hanham is holding itsnext session at Hanham Library on 31st January between 1pmand 3pm.

The confidential listening service is run by trained volunteerswho can signpost you to help.


Wellsway's best inthe South WestWellsway School in Keynsham iscelebrating after officialGovernment GCSE figurespublished last Friday confirm it isthe best-performing secondary inthe South West for English andmaths.Out of a year group of more than 200who took the exams last summer, 91per cent achieved at least a C grade inboth core subjects. The nationalaverage for all schools is 59.3 percent.The school also tops the nationalaverage in the English Baccalaureatetables and in the new Attainment 8and Progress 8 measures. These new performance tables can beconfusing so here is a quick guidebefore you read on. Attainment 8measures a student's average gradeacross eight subjects - the samesubjects that count for Progress 8. AProgress 8 score above zero meansthat pupils made more progress thanthose across England who got similar

test results at the end of primaryschool. A secondary school isconsidered to be underperforming ifits Progress 8 score falls below -0.5.Meanwhile the English Baccalaureate(EBacc for short) is a performancemeasure for schools, awarded whenstudents secure a grade C or above atGCSE level across a core of fiveacademic subjects - English, maths,history or geography, the sciences anda language.At top-achieving Wellsway 47%achieved the English Baccalaureate(compared with 23.1% nationally). Inthe Attainment 8 category the schoolscores 57.9 points (48.5 nationally)while the Progress 8 result is 0.3 (0nationally).Wellsway's headteacher MatthewWoodville said: “These amazingresults - even higher than theprovisional figures - are thanks to thetireless work of our staff, thecommitment of the students and thesupport they receive from their

families. Our results have gone upevery year for five years and wecontinue to provide the best educationwe can for the young people in ourcare.”The average figures across B&NESare also impressive with 69.7%achieving a C or above in the coresubjects of English and maths and33.4% getting the EnglishBaccalaureate. The Progress 8 score is-0.02 and for Attainment 8 it's 52.The Wellsway Multi-Academy Trustalso runs The Sir Bernard LovellAcademy in Oldland Common butresults and scores there fall belowboth national and local levels. AcrossSouth Gloucestershire as a whole, thenumber of pupils getting C or above inEnglish and maths is just above thenational average at 60.1% but theProgress 8 score falls below averageat -0.23. The Attainment 8 score isalso below average at 47.9 as is thenumber achieving the EBacc (17.8%).The highest performing school in

South Glos for Progress 8 and Englishand maths is The Ridings' Federation'sWinterbourne International Academy(despite Ofsted saying at a recentmonitoring visit that the school is stillin need of improvement). Topping theEBacc list in the district isThornbury's Castle School with 43%.Across Bristol, the number of pupilsgetting C or above in English andmaths is slightly above the nationalaverage at 59.5%. The Progress 8score is below the national average at-0.19, as is the Attainment 8 score at47.7 and the 18% achieving theEBacc. Topping the table for Progress 8 is theBristol Metropolitan Academy inFishponds, run by the Cabot LearningFederation, while Redland Greencomes top for both English and maths,Attainment 8 and EBacc results.Find the full list of how schools -including private schools - performedsee https://www.compare-school-performance.service.gov.uk/


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Speedwell

Permission grantedfor overhaul ofcommunity centre

Ministers back closure ofBath Community Academy

Meadow Vale Community Association's plans for a majorrenovation and extension of the community centre havebeen approved by the city council. The current building hosts a range of community activitiesbut its size limits what can be held there. The work will be carried out in two phases. Phase I isrefurbishing the existing building with a simple extensionwhich will roughly double the area of the building. Phase II is a further extension to form a hall with anattached store and two showers. Toilets and changingrooms will also be built in the space next to the main hall.The community association will be applying for fundingfrom sources including the lottery.

The Department for Education has now backedthe Cabot Learning Federation's decision toclose Bath Community Academy at the end ofthe summer term in 2018. There are currently 241 pupils attending BathCommunity Academy, out of a capacity of 720.The number has not risen over 300 since theKingswood-based Cabot Learning Federationbegan supporting the school in 2012. As a result, the school's budget is reducing to thepoint where the school is no longer able to coverthe costs of teaching and other resources requiredto provide a high quality education for its pupils. Last week Conservative councillor Michael Evans,Cabinet Member for Children's Services atB&NES Council, said: “We understand this will bedifficult news for many of the current pupils,parents and staff at Bath Community Academy, aswell as members of the local community who havelinks with the school. “Our first priority now is to provide full support tothe children and families at BCA to ensure asmooth transition of pupils to other local schools.We will provide further information to parents assoon as possible about how the process oftransferring pupils will work. “The school will remain open for another 17months so there is time to ensure the transition iswell planned and of course the current Year 10 and11 pupils will have the chance to complete theirGCSE courses at BCA before looking at sixth formor other options. “Going forward, the council will be seeking toengage with all stakeholders and the communityon the most appropriate future for the BCA site.The council has already made it clear that we

would like for the site to continue to be used foreducational purposes, as well as the continuationof the sport and leisure facilities on the site.” Cabot Learning Federation (CLF) has agreed tomake a contribution towards new school uniformcosts for those affected and the council will fundhome to school transport for those eligible,depending on the distance needed to travel. Labour councillor Joe Rayment said: “It has beenclear for some time that the Regional SchoolsCommissioner had made up her mind and that herso-called consultation was merely a tick boxexercise. This decision, while not unexpected, willcause considerable distress to pupils, parents andthe wider community. It is really regrettable thatsuch a significant decision has been taken behindclosed doors by Government ministers with acomplete absence of democratic accountability. “However, at a time of huge upheaval I do thinkit's important to put politics to one side for themoment. “My immediate concern is to ensure that parentsand young people are properly supported as theyseek to find alternative school places. I want to seeB&NES Council working in partnership with localsecondary schools to ensure a smooth transitionfor these young people so that their education doesnot suffer. “I hope that all secondary schools in Bathunderstand that they have a responsibility not onlyto their current pupils but also to the widercommunity and I anticipate that they will worktogether and engage positively with B&NES toensure that places at alternative schools can bemade available for children currently at BCA.”

Do you remember thePrice family?Dear SirI am doing some research for a lady inAustralia whose family emigratedthere in the early 1970s. She is hopingto visit Bristol later this year.She is particularly interested in tracingany living relatives of her mother'sfamily whose surname was Price. Hermother Yvonne was married to TerrySalisbury and the various familymembers lived in the Mangotsfieldand Kingswood areas.Her mother had a brother Ken who webelieve was married to a Margaret;they had two children thought to havebeen Steve and Marie.If anyone knows of this family or thewhereabouts of any descendantsperhaps they would be kind enough toget in touch with me so that I can passon any relevant details to Australia. Geoff [email protected]

We need unbiasedinformationDear StephenFirstly, congratulations on the newformat of The Week In - it makes agood read.In edition 456 the South West YoungGreens drew our attention to theproblems that we all know exists inthe NHS, and concluded it isunderfunded and is the exclusive faultof the current Government. We doneed to understand that every tier ofgovernment, whether it be KeynshamTown Council, B&NES, the national

Government or the EuropeanParliament, has no money of its own.They all survive on cash they takefrom us by way of taxes they imposeon us. The problems of the NHS are notexclusively down to funding. WhenNHS England provided its five-yearfinancial plan, the Government gave itthe funding it requested but the NHSis now treating more patients than itbudgeted for, and in many casestreating them increasinglysuccessfully. It can be argued that the NHS is avictim of its own success! But there is,of course, much wrong that needsaction. During the period 24thDecember 2016 to 1st January 2017,the A&E department at the RUH inBath dealt with 75 alcohol-relatedincidents, a situation that occursregularly particularly at weekends.This is a terrible waste of resourcesand is one of many areas of concernthat needs addressing.Theresa May has recently asked GPsto provide a 12-hour day, seven-day aweek service in line with the fundingthey have apparently been given. Thishas incurred the wrath of GPs and theBritish Medical Association. If whatthe PM is saying is true, it isscandalous, as it means that some GPpractices are not doing what they arepaid to be doing from OUR money.Either these practices need to benamed or the PM has to admit she waswrong. The lack of truth comes fromall sides. During the junior doctors'dispute last year the BMA advised usthat 98% of junior doctors supportedindustrial action and this was repeated

by much of the national media, eventhough it was not true. In Englandthere are 54,000 junior doctors ofwhom 17,000 do not belong to theBMA, i.e. they do not want the BMAto represent them. Ballot papers weresent to 37,000, of whom 9,000 did notvote. Of the 28,000 who voted, 98%were in favour of industrial action.The accurate figure therefore was that52% of the total number of juniordoctors were in favour and not 98% aswe were told.The NHS belongs to us and I guess thevast majority of us want it sorted. Allareas of operation need looking at, notexclusively finance. But moreimportantly we need to be told thetruth! We want information that isunbiased and not slanted in favour ofthe Government, organisations whorepresent the workforce e.g. the BMA,or individuals whose involvement isnot driven by creating a successfulNHS but only their personal politicalbigotry. Mike Barrow

An orbital road is notthe answerDear StephenThe 2015 traffic counts by B&NESCouncil for the A4 Bath Road Saltfordshows a '5-day' average of 27,747vehicles a day (both directionscombined) in 2015. This is a 12%DROP on the peak of 31,075 in 2002. The latest figures for 2016 await theinclusion of the December counts butthey are expected to be asencouraging. Mr Ashton in his letter(Issue 457) was wrong to state that

there has been a significant increase inthe amount of traffic. This is simplynot the case. There remainscongestion at peak times but overallfigures are DOWN.Mr Ashton talks about theconcentration of nitrogen dioxidebeing above the Government'smaximum limit. There is no suchthing. One measure of one pollutantexceeds an EU TARGET level on onestretch of Bath Road. B&NESCouncil's own action plan states that,according to DEFRA methodology,that target is expected to be met by2019 without additional intervention.Finally, decisions about transportinfrastructure, whether it be thelocation of a bus stop or a thirdrunway at Heathrow, are not made bylocal parish polls as Mr Ashton calledfor. These decisions are madeaccording to the policies ofgovernment, local and national. There are more effective, greener andcheaper ways to reduce congestion onthe A4 at peak times than an orbitalroad at Saltford.Duncan Hounsell(In a personal capacity)Saltford


LETTERS

Post Office closureconcernsDear EditorAs B&NES councillors for Paultonwe have been made very aware overthe last few weeks of the importanceof the local Post Office to Paulton andthe hardship that its closure in Marchwill cause, particularly to elderly andless mobile residents. We have metwith regional representatives of thePost Office and have explored withthem a number of options for housingthe service elsewhere in the village.Unfortunately, we have had nosuccess so far because none of theexisting shops in Paulton feel able totake on this service. Another meeting with the Post Officeis planned soon, together withrepresentatives of the parish council,and we will be pursuing at least onefurther possibility.We are also concerned that if there isno immediate replacement for theexisting building that at least there isan interim arrangement - maybe for alimited number of hours - to bridgethe gap after March. We will continue to work as hard aswe can to find a solution for thismatter, which is so vital to the well-being of local people.John Bull & Liz Hardman(Labour, Paulton)

Join the litter pickDear EditorSouth Glos Council are holding theirannual Spring Litter Pick in the nextfew months. As in previous years I amasking for volunteers to join me in

tidying up the area most affected bylitter in Rodway ward - this in themain will be the green spaces. Allequipment will be provided. If you would like to help pleasecontact me. Cllr Michael Bell Mobile:.0787 563 [email protected]

Preserve our cricketpitchDear EditorSo the spectre of the loss yet anotherHanham green space looms again. The beautiful amenity that is thecricket ground is an asset to all wholive in the parish. Too much greenspace is being eaten up as it is. If, as they will argue, the trustees needmoney, would it not be a moresensible (and a cheaper and morallyacceptable) solution to sell theexisting High Street site rather thanconcrete over green fields? This isbrownfield land, surrounded alreadyby housing development. Doubleaccess to the site already exists. The Folk Centre could then relocate toa new state-of the-art building on theexisting cricket ground. Money from the sale could build anew architect-designed-pavilion,possibly two-storey similar to theexcellent structure that exists atKnowle Golf Club. This could be usedas the Folk Centre is now, i.e. all thetime, not just on match days. Siting it in front of the existing tenniscourt would free up the existingpavilion site to expand the car park. Itwould also face south. A lovely

balcony could allow spectators towatch the games in comfort and in thesun. Licensing for the many socialevents already exists, unlike at anynew Green Belt site. Seweragefacilities already exist, unlike at anynew site Re-establishing a new pitch adjacentto the ring road would be extremelycostly. Draining the site would requirecolossal machinery to break throughthe solid rock that is all too obviouslyjust below the surface. Any trip alongthe ring road reveals cliffs rising to afew centimetres below soil level.There is the additional problem ofdanger to traffic from balls. How many years would it also needfor the ground to become playable toanything like that of the enviablestandard of the existing pitch? Restrictions as to what can be built onGreen Belt land exist. I don't thinklicensed premises are allowed? Thereare limits too on car parking spaces.Unless I'm mistaken, somethingsimilar to the changing rooms withshowers as exist on the Common is allthat's allowed. Access to this site isdodgy, if not virtually impossible foranyone wishing to walk. There are nopavements from Castle Farm Roadonwards. I doubt whether many wouldbother to walk past the excellent ElmTree pub either for a social evening! Think again trustees, before youdestroy something beautiful. Youknow it makes sense.Name & address supplied

Parking madnessDear SirAt 7.45 on Friday evening (20th

January) I was travelling alongTemple Street towards the HighStreet, following a car. We wereapproaching the traffic lights whichwere at green when the car in frontstopped. Strange! It waited foroncoming traffic to pass thenproceeded to turn right and park onthe loading area. It's hard to believeanyone could be so thoughtless and Iwonder what danger she put herselfand other road users in when shedecided to reverse back out onto themain road. Something really needs tobe done to stop all this casual parking. Just another thing - Carpenters Lane.What was the grass verge is nowbeing churned up by lorries parkingon it then driving off across thefootpath leaving the pavementscovered in lumps of mud. Has thecouncil not noticed this, or does itsave them having to cut the grass?Clive Haynes

Cadet vacanciesDear StephenAre you interested in the Navy and/orthe Army? We have places for youngpeople aged 11 to 18 to becomeMaritime Cadets. We cover aspects of maritime life inthe Navy and Army and are a uniformorganisation, meeting on Thursdayevenings (7pm-9pm) at Broad Plain &Riverside Youth Project, ClementStreet, Easton, Bristol, BS2 9ES. Cdr Edna Stinchcombe MBEOfficer in ChargeTS Boxer Maritime CadetsTel: 07837 871544


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Since troubled Kingswood night-club Bar Celona was shut downlast year, there has been a“significant” fall in violent crime inthe town centre, as well as a dropin associated crimes such as sexoffences, criminal damage andanti-social behaviour, says a topcop.Temporary Supt Mark Evans wasspeaking about crime across SouthGloucestershire at last week'smeeting of the Staple Hill, Rodway& Mangotsfield CommunityEngagement Forum.He said the fall in violent crimeassociated with Regent Streetnightspot Bar Celona had freed upresources as the police van which hadsat in the town centre with sixofficers inside every Friday andSaturday night could now bedeployed elsewhere.Last February the police weresuccessful in getting the RegentStreet venue stripped of its licencebecause routine drunkenness wasleading to crime, disorder and public

nuisance both inside and outside thepremises, causing a considerableamount of stress to nearby residents.During the hearing, Insp CliveSummerill said the cost of policingthe town centre on Friday andSaturday nights was £60,000 a yearand a large proportion was linked toBar Celona. From 2012-2015 there were 26assaults at or associated with BarCelona compared to four at nearby

nightclub Chasers.The owner of Bar Celona did notappeal against South Glos licensingpanel's decision and the club closed afew weeks later. The building is forsale.During his talk to the forum lastTuesday, T/S Evans also said acrackdown on crime in Staple Hillwas an upcoming priority.He said parking was a continualcomplaint across the district but it

was not an immediate concern for hisofficers. He assured people that thepolice would deal with obstructionsand inconsiderate parking but askedfor patience as officers needed to getto grips with more pressing issuessuch as assaults and burglaries.He also said officers wereencouraged to spend an hour on footpatrol every day and it was “veryreassuring” for residents to see that.


Crossword ACROSS7 To make possible (6)8 Metallic element, symbol In (6)9 Course or vehicle route (4)10 System to evacuate water from a surface (8)11 Sleep (7)13 No money (5)15 Fleshy mass of tissue (5)17 Ambiguous (7)20 Subatomic particle with a negative charge (8)21 Injured or offended (4)23 Arbitrates in cricket or tennis (6)24 Sufficient (6)

DOWN1Preposition used with verbs of movement (4)2 In the same place. Used in footnotes. (6)3 Mammal with antlers (3,4)4 Light purple colour (5)5 Port in Poland (6)6 19th century Russian writer (8)12 Iconic home decoration from 1960s (4,4)14 Agressive retaliator (7)16 Relating to milk (6)18 Place of education (6)19 Short (5)22 Extreme anger (4)

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Across

To make possible (6)7Metallic element, symbol In (6)8Course or vehicle route (4)9System to evacuate water from a surface (8)

10

Sleep (7)11No money (5)13Fleshy mass of tissue (5)15Ambiguous (7)17Subatomic particle with a negative charge (8)

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Injured or offended (4)21Arbitrates in cricket or tennis (6)23Sufficient (6)24

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Preposition used with verbs of movement (4)

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In the same place. Used in footnotes. (6)2Mammal with antlers (3,4)3Light purple colour (5)4Port in Poland (6)519th century Russian writer (8)6Iconic home decoration from 1960s (4,4)12Agressive retaliator (7)14Relating to milk (6)16Place of education (6)18Short (5)19Extreme anger (4)22

Keynsham Teenagersraise moneyfor children'swardTeenage cousins MollyHale and Leah Gould areaiming to raise money forthe children's ward at Bath'sRoyal United Hospital witha 'new to you' table-top andjumble sale on Saturday 4thFebruary at St Francis'Church Hall in WarwickRoad, Keynsham.Over the last month, theKeynsham cousins haveaccumulated an enormousstock of toys and clothesand are hoping the eventwill surpass their efforts lastyear when, along withMolly's brother Harry, theyraised £250 through asponsored run in aid of ahouse extension for adisabled child locally.

'Significant' drop in night-time crime in Kingswood



Tourists to Bath could pay a tax towards council costsCould B&NES Council balance thebooks by charging a bed tax onvisitors to Bath? That's a questionwhich has generated a lot of interestin the national media in the lastcouple of weeks. It all began with an interview thatCharles Gerrish, Keynsham councillorand B&NES Cabinet Member forFinance and Efficiencies, gave toBBC Radio Bristol on 6th January. Itwas subsequently picked up by manyof the national newspapers andarticles featured in the Guardian, theTelegraph, Times, Express and evenas far away as the New ZealandHerald. The coverage varieddepending on the particularnewspaper's view on taxation in

general but despite some of theapocalyptic headlines, what CharlesGerrish has made clear is that a touristtax is just one idea which is underconsideration as the council comes toterms with the financial challengeswhich lie in store for the future.So what is a tourist tax - or bed tax asit is often known? Quite simply,anybody staying in a hotel or guesthouse in Bath would see an additionalcharge on their bill calculated by thenumber of people and number ofnights they stay. This is normally asmall amount compared to the actualcost of staying at the hotel, especiallyin places like Bath, probably around£1 per person per night. The system is common across

mainland Europe. The Mayor ofRome was one of the first to introducea tourist tax because of the sheer costof 'managing tourism' in the city.Compared to the number of residents,tourist numbers often place adisproportionate strain on localauthority resources such as cleaning,waste disposal or traffic management.It is now commonplace throughoutItaly, France and Spain and usuallybetween 1€ and 2€ a night.Currently, no towns or resorts in theUK levy tourist taxes, quite simplybecause local councils do not have theright to raise taxation in this way. In2007 the Lyons Inquiry into localgovernment suggested that councilsshould be able to raise funds through

taxes like this and B&NES Councildid in fact consider tourist tax revenuein its budget planning that year. Nowaccording to Cllr Gerrish the councilis talking to Government once againabout the legislation which wouldneed to be changed but even if thathappened, he told The Week In thatnothing would be imposed beforethorough consultation had beencompleted.He also told us that even if the law waschanged to allow councils to raise thetax, other issues such as how much andwhether it would apply to all hotels orexclude small guest houses would allhave to be confronted. However, giventhat as we reported in Issue 456 (11thJanuary), B&NES is currently looking


s council coststo trim £49m from expenditure by 2020and that the Government wants localauthorities to be self-supporting beyond that, a tourist tax certainly has its attractions. First and foremost, it wouldprovide a source of income for thecouncil which, unlike the council tax,does not come from residents. Eventaking the unknowns in the previousparagraph into account, when thecouncil did look seriously at it in 2007 itwas estimating income of around£700,000 a year. In 2014, there were969,000 overnight tourist visits to Bathand discounting some of the fancifulfigures quoted in the national pressrecently, it is probably fair to assumethat a tourist tax would generate thesame as a council tax rise of between1% and 2%. With 85,000 residents and over onemillion tourists, Bath nevertheless doeshave to manage its tourism and this isnot without cost to the ratepayer at themoment. There is no reason either thattourist tax receipts could not be used infuture to improve facilities for touristsand enhance the city's reputation as aplace to visit. Let's not forget either thatit is a UNESCO World Heritage Cityand that listing comes with its ownobligations.Of course, not everyone is or will be infavour of the idea. There are those whowill just see it as another form oftaxation or taxation by stealth. Otherspoint out that VAT on hotel bills is 20%which is much higher than in countrieswhere tourist tax is charged, like Italy

and France. But as Cllr Gerrish pointsout, all of the VAT that tourists pay ontheir hotel goes directly to theChancellor and none is spent locally. Not surprisingly, many hoteliers don't

like the idea because it is they who willhave to collect it on behalf of thecouncil while the argument that touristsalready bring income into the areawithout taxing them further also has itsmerits.Hotels in Bath are not cheap though anddespite this, the attraction of Bath doesnot seem to have diminished over theyears. The key question is whether atourist tax on top would deter visitorsand there is absolutely no evidence fromacross Europe to suggest that it does.Charles Gerrish is keen to stress that thecouncil is and will consider the proposalthoroughly before coming to anydecision over a tourist tax. No doubt,stakeholders will have their input intothe debate. It would be interesting toknow what people living in B&NESitself think. We'll stand by for yourcomments.

Charles Gerrish


SITUATIONS VACANT

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Tickets are now on sale for Avon Valley Railway's annual family fun weekend withPaddington Bear on 13th and 14th May - and if you book before the end of February,you will receive a 20% discount.As well as steam train rides, there will be appearances from the bear himself,children's fairground rides, craft activities, story-telling, face painting, Punch &Judy, balloon modelling plus a 'sticky paws' adventure hunt.

Bitton

Family fun with Paddington Bear

Avon & Somerset police will be taking mobile speed cameras tolocations including these in our area this week.In B&NES they will monitoring speeds in Park Road, Charlton Road andCoronation Avenue in Keynsham, on the A39 at Corston, the A4 Bath Roadand Manor Road in Saltford and on the A431 Kelston Road.In Bristol roads being targeted include the A4174 Callington Road,Broomhill Road and West Town Lane in Brislington, as well as SturminsterRoad in Stockwood, Feeder Road and Whitchurch Lane. There will also bespeed checks in St George at Bell Hill Road, Two Mile Hill Road and NagsHead Hill.In South Gloucestershire the cameras will be out and about including on theA4174 ring road at Bromley Heath, the A432 Badminton Road south of thering road, on the A420 through Wick and the A431 through Bitton.Oldland Common's High Street and Mill Lane, Abbots Road in Hanham,Westerleigh Road in Pucklechurch and Blackhorse Road in Mangotsfieldare also on the hitlist along with Court Farm Road, Long Beach Road andCalifornia Road in Longwell Green, Parkwall Road in Cadbury Heath andVictoria Road, North Common.

Speed camera locations

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The Week in • Wednesday 25th January 2017

SITUATIONS VACANT

With the Government announcing plans totransform attitudes to mental health thismonth, Home-Start Bristol has alreadybeen preparing a new project aiming toimprove the emotional health of parentsand children. Home-Start Bristol (HSB) supports strugglingfamilies, with at least one child under five,living in Bristol and South Gloucestershire.Volunteers visit homes for a few hours everyweek, providing practical help and emotionalsupport which is 'tailor-made' to the fulfil theneeds of each family.Last year, 83% of the isolated parents helpedby the charity said they were experiencingmental health problems.With over 30 years' experience of supportingfamilies, the charity understands the impact ofdepression and anxiety, especially if coupledwith isolation.

Home-Start Bristol's approach is simple andeffective - families are visited weekly bytrained volunteers, who are parentsthemselves, and understand the challenges offamily life. Of 182 Bristol families supported recentlyover 94% felt better able to cope as a result ofthis support.The new project will be further enhanced byemploying a family support worker andproviding additional training to staff andvolunteers on mental health.If you would like to find out more about thecharity, make a donation or become a Home-Start Bristol volunteer, visitwww.homestartbristol.org.uk or phone 01179501170.The charity needs around 85 to 90 volunteersat any one time. In the last 12 months it hassupported over 130 struggling families.

Charity ahead of Governmentthinking on mental health

Swineford Nurserywins praiseLeaping Lambs Nursery onBath Road has retained itsGood rating following aninspection by Ofsted.There are 70 children on theroll at the nursery which isbased in a converted church.The inspection found thatleaders and staff monitorchildren's achievementscarefully to identify anyweaknesses in learning.They complete regularassessments and plan forchildren's future learning,and the youngsters are saidto make good progress.The report, published thismonth following theinspection in December,says that staff are positiverole models and overallbehaviour is good.Children settle quickly, arehappy and confident, andfeel safe and secure in acaring environment.

Beverley Symonds of Home-Start


Bristol City Council has adopted a motionopposing Government cuts to NHS spendingin the area. The motion, stating: “That the cuts demanded bycentral government of £305m are unfeasible andthat there is no safe way of implementing suchreductions in spending,” was brought by Labourcouncillor Gill Kirk and Fi Hance, from theGreens. The Lib Dems also gave their support and thevote was greeted with cheers in the publicgallery.Cllr Kirk, who has spent all her working lifeworking as a nurse, said the Governmentsustainability and transformation plans “wouldinvolve a reduction in staff, reduction in hospitalbeds, closure of some services, and disposal ofNHS assets”.She also asked the question: “Why is it that otherEuropean countries spend 10.1% of GDP on

health care, while here we spend 7.3%”. Thesustainability and transformation plans, she said,has been drawn up without any publicconsultation and were unrealistic, with over£100m savings still unidentified.Cllr Hance, Bristol's Cabinet member for healthand wellbeing, described the underlying premiseof further cuts across the Bristol, North Somersetand South Gloucestershire region as“unsupported, unrealistic and frankly absurd”. Members of the local campaign group ProtectOur NHS, who have been campaigning long andhard about the plans, were delighted at theoutcome.Mavis Zutshi, spokesperson for the group, said:“The NHS is already being starved to death bythe Government and cannot survive the spendingcuts of £305m locally and £23bn which are thebasis for these so-called sustainability andtransformation plans.”


NHS spendingcuts condemned

End of theblackoutSouth Glos councillors have voted to end the authority'spolicy of part-night street lighting which began in 2008Cllr Heather Goddard, Chair of the Environment &Community Services Committee, which took the decisionlast week, said: “As part of an efficiency drive, the previouscross-party administration took the decision to switch offstreet lights for part of the night.“This was controversial in some areas, particularly wherethere were concerns over road safety and crime, and I knowmost councillors have been contacted with concerns aboutstreet lighting. “As such I am pleased to say that advancing technologyallows us to reinstate whole-night lighting by dimminglights after a period of time, rather than switching them off.This will still save us money.”

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Protect Our NHS campaigners applaud the motion


The earliest date for completion of theGreat Western Railway electrificationis 2024, some seven years after thefirst trains commence operating onthe line.When the West of England JointTransport Board met in Keynshamearlier this month, the transport chiefs ofthe four local councils (B&NES, Bristol,South Gloucestershire and NorthSomerset) considered a report in whichNetwork Rail had indicated the workwould be completed towards the end ofthe Government's next spending round(Control Period 6) between 2019-24. In Issue 456 (11th January) we coveredreports in the railway industry mediawhich suggested the scheme mightnever even be completed. However,when we contacted Network Rail, theyconfirmed that the work was definitelyincluded in the next Governmentspending round. A spokesperson told us:“The electric wires will be deliveredbetween Bristol Temple Meads and BathSpa between 2019-2024. However, thebenefits of electrification will come intoservice for passengers in Bath andBristol from later this year. Theintroduction of brand new IntercityExpress Trains will provide passengerswith more seats, extra comfort and onboard wi-fi with station upgrades, suchas the one at Bath Spa in Easter,providing the capacity for the largertrains.”Last November Rail Minister PaulMaynard announced the deferral ofcertain parts of the electrification projectin order to save money which could beused on other parts of the network.Trains between London and Bristol

Temple Meads will switch fromoverhead electric power to diesel shortlyafter leaving Chippenham. The linefrom London to Bristol Parkway will befully electric but the track between thetwo Bristol stations was also included inthe list of projects deferred. The fourcouncil transport leaders were, however,reassured that the four tracking of thatsection will be completed under existingbudgets and this will allow for thedevelopment of the MetroWestsuburban network without interferingwith the operation of through expresstrains.The meeting was also told that one ofthe projects which will benefit from theestimated £165m saving from theelectrification deferral is the TempleMeads East junction - another vital cogin the region's delivery of MetroWest.£15m has now been allocated in thecurrent spending round towards theoverall cost of the junction upgradewhich is £60m.First Great Western also provided moreinformation to the Joint Transport Boardregarding the planned upgrade to rollingstock which was also potentiallyaffected by the electrification delay. Ithad been assumed that diesel turbotrains from the Thames Valley would be'cascaded' down once electrification wascomplete there. With vital sectorsaround Didcot, Henley and Windsor alsodeferred, there was concern that this partof the operation would no longer bepossible.Despite a National Audit Office report(Issue 451 - 1st December) claimingthere will be a two-year delay, the railcompany expects to introduce the first

'cascaded' train onto the Severn Beachline this summer with a further eight ornine due at the end of the year. First doesnot actually own the trains but operatesthem as the franchisee on behalf of theGovernment. Final confirmation of both these movesis subject to confirmation from theDepartment of Transport. However,sources have told The Week In thatsome rolling stock is already in Bristol,albeit carriages which are already 30years old. There was no mention in thereport of plans to retain some of the 125express trains which will be redundantwhen the new bi-mode Intercity trainsarrive. Industry reports have claimedthese will be used in shorter forms onregional routes and that the cost ofconverting and operating them will be asmuch as the Government is savingthrough the deferral of the electrificationwork.

In Issue 456 (11th January) we alsotouched on industry reports that the newbi-mode trains cannot perform as well aseither a full electric unit or a diesel 125train. While there will be timetable gainsin acceleration from stations and the useof automatic rather than slam doors, weunderstand that the maximum speedachievable under diesel power is nomore than 95mph. While servicesbetween Bristol Parkway and Londonwill see faster journey times and morefrequency, services from Temple Meadsand Bath are unlikely to notice anydifference. This concurs with commentswe reported earlier this month aboutpassengers receiving 'almost' all thebenefits of full electrification but likealmost any other major capital projectyou can think of locally or nationally,the outcome is the same - delays(including 'deferrals') always ending upcosting more.

2024 for rail electrification?


South Glos

PublicTransport The next meeting of theSouth GloucestershirePublic Transport Forumis next Monday (30thJanuary) at 7.30pm atKingswood Civic Centre.It is a chance for people toraise any issues about busor rail services.

On 27th January 2013, Rossand Clare Simons fromHillfields were out for anafternoon ride on theirtandem bike in Hanhamwhen they were struck andkilled by a driver fleeing fromthe police. Nicholas Lovell, 38, fromOldland Common, had ashocking list of previousmotoring offences - 11convictions for disqualifieddriving and four for dangerousdriving. He received the maximumpossible sentence for killing theyoung couple but thisamounted to just 10 years andsix months. At the time, thejudge said he wanted to give alonger sentence, but his handswere tied.Since then, the grieving familyof 34-year-old Ross and his 30-year-old wife - supported byKingswood MP ChrisSkidmore - have worked hardto secure changes in the law toget tougher sentences. Theyhave already campaignedsuccessfully for an increasedpunishment for drivers who killwhile disqualified, withsentences rising from aminimum of two years to 10years.

And earlier this month MrSkidmore, Ross's parents Dawnand Edwin Simons, and hissister Kelly Woodruff metJustice Secretary Liz Truss inParliament to discuss thecurrent consultation which isseeking the public's views onwhether to increase themaximum sentence fordangerous driving to lifeimprisonment. The currentmaximum is 14 years. The group, who had alreadymet with the previous JusticeSecretary Chris Grayling andformer Prime Minister DavidCameron, are urging localresidents to contribute to theconsultation before thedeadline on 1st February. Kelly said the Justice Secretarywas “quite horrified” by thecase of Ross and Clare. Shesaid: “We asked her ifsomething would be done bythe close of this year and shesaid she thought it would besooner than that. She was verycommitted and we have theoutcome we wanted.“A lot of people in acommunity are affected bydeath by dangerous driving,such as the people whose houseRoss and Clare were killedoutside. This is the time for

everyone to look at theconsultation and decide whatthey want to see in any futurelegislation and to be listenedto.” Mr Skidmore said: "The thingwe principally havecampaigned on is for themaximum sentence to go from14 years to life. The JusticeSecretary said she realised thatand that they would look into it.There is a consultation goingon but it was interesting to hearthat there will be somemovement. “She was shocked by the caseand Kelly was able to show herthe physical copy of the judge'scomments in court. In it thejudge said he wanted to give alonger sentence but that hishands were tied. “I would urge all of those thathave followed our campaign to

add their comments to theconsultation so that we candeliver life sentences to thosethat carelessly wreck the livesof innocent people." Liz Truss said: “Killer driversruin lives. Their actions causeimmeasurable pain to families,who must endure tragic,unnecessary losses. Whileimpossible to compensate forthe death of a loved one, we are

determined to make sure thepunishment fits the crime. “My message is clear - if youdrive dangerously and kill onour roads, you could face a lifesentence.”To have your say go online tohttp://tinyurl.com/h9nr6j2 orcontact the team handling thesubmissions on 0758 070 1239or email [email protected]

Show yoursupport forRoss and Clare

From left, Kelly Woodruff, Chris Skidmore, Liz Truss, Dawn & Edwin Simons


Avon & Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership will be movinginto Kingswood Civic Centre later this year, it was revealed lastFriday.The health trust's HQ is in Chippenham and the organisation servespeople across B&NES, South Gloucestershire, Bristol, NorthSomerset and Wiltshire.The Partnership - AWP for short - has not yet confirmed how manystaff will be coming to Kingswood but has agreed a 20-year lease.The majority of staff currently working at the SouthGloucestershire Council-owned Civic Centre - around 220 - willrelocate to the council's building in Badminton Road, Yate, whilearound 100 others, including those who need to be based inKingswood to deliver locality-based services, will remain at theCivic Centre.The council is working on plans to extend the car park atBadminton Road which, if possible, would add a further 100+

spaces.The move is part of the council's plans to save around £400,000 inrunning costs and keep ownership of the Civic Centre, using it forcivic and training facilities, including the council chamber.The One Stop Shop will remain in the building and ultimately thelibrary will relocate to the Civic Centre to create a community hubfor Kingswood. The police facilities will be unaffected.Councillors endorsed the approach to keep the building and leaseout office space after public consultation confirmed support for thecouncil to prioritise reducing unnecessary office costs over cuttingservices last year. The council will now engage further with allstaff on the details of the plans, but expect the affected Kingswoodstaff to move to Yate from late April to July, ahead of AWP movingin some time during September. Cllr Matthew Riddle, leader ofSouth Gloucestershire Council, said: “I am pleased we have beenable to deliver our preferred option, to keep important services inKingswood and at the same time save money that we wouldotherwise be spending on underused office space.“The centre of Kingswood will benefit from having a new group ofworkers coming to the area who will use local businesses and as acouncil we will be making better use of our building in Yate.“We have been able to make the savings we needed to, whileremaining fully committed to the Kingswood community andwithout reducing services.”Among those staying in the building are the registrars, contactcentre and staff who work directly with people in Kingswood andthe surrounding areas. Some works will be undertaken to preparethe building for AWP. Separately, the council is in discussions withother organisations about potentially leasing out space in otherareas of the Civic Centre. Should these discussions be successfulthen this could generate additional income that would reducepressure on other budgets.

New employer coming to Kingswoodas council shifts 220 staff to Yate

Longwell Green

Spaces atRainbowsThere are currently spaces forgirls aged five who would like tobecome a Rainbow Guide withthe group that meets between5pm and 6pm in the UnitedChurch on Mondays during termtime. Girls move on to Brownies whenthey are seven. If you have adaughter who would like tobecome a Rainbow, phone EdnaStinchcombe on 0117 9616352. If your daughter is younger andyou would like her to join as soonas she is old enough, go to theGirlguiding website where youcan put her name on the Rainbowwaiting list.

Fishponds

Good news for surgery's12,600+ patientsThe Fishponds Family Practice in Beechwood Road has earneda Good rating from the Care Quality Commission.The industry watchdog said the surgery, which has more than12,600 registered patients, was good in all key areas it inspected- safe, caring, effective, responsive and well-led. The inspectionwas carried out in October and published earlier this month.

Christian Dior'sarchivist atFashionMuseum BathThe Fashion Museum Bath is setto welcome the chief archivistfrom Christian Dior for its nextTwilight Talk.

Soizic Pfaff has worked at Houseof Dior since 1974 and she is incharge of all the archives, fromthe original haute couturesamples to Dior's personal travelalbums.

Dior by Dior will take place inthe Panorama Room at themuseum on Thursday 16thFebruary from 6.15pm to7.15pm.

Prior to the talk, the museum'svisitor services assistants willoffer mini Dior feature tours ofthree ensembles from theFashion Museum collection bythe House of Dior, which are ondisplay in the headline exhibitionA History of Fashion in 100Objects.

Tickets cost £10 adults / £8students, including winereception, and are available tobuy at the Fashion Museum Bathor www.bathboxoffice.org.uk

Arrive at 5.30pm with a ticket tothe Twilight Talk if you wouldlike to join one of the tours.

Tickets are available on the BathBox Office website.


Saltford

Factory to forecourt - a new service forVauxhall ownersVauxhall dealer Saltford Motors is offeringcustomers a behind-the-scenes look at how their newcar order is progressing.Customers ordering a new car can now be kept informedof progress on their new Vauxhall and even get a sneak-peek of it being made, thanks to the all-new Track MyNew Vauxhall facility. The new tool is available for customers to access via theVauxhall owners' website my.vauxhall.co.uk and enablesthem to get live updates on their vehicle from when theorder is accepted, when the car is due to be built andwhen it is on the way to Saltford Motors.Mark Thomas, sales manager at Saltford Motor Services,said: “We are really excited to be launching Track MyNew Vauxhall - it's a thoughtful way to give customersvaluable insights into the process that their car goes through,making the journey from order to collection much moreexciting. “To get updates at key stages is a great way to build even furtherupon the excitement and anticipation that comes with waitingfor your new car to arrive.”The brand new service will advise customers on the progress of

their factory-ordered Vauxhall car via email as well as updateswithin the My Vauxhall website. Updates include writtennotifications as well as a video showing a customer's exact carin the factory. My Vauxhall is not just for new Vauxhallcustomers; existing customers who have yet to sign up to thewebsite can benefit from exclusive features, discounts, prizedraws and rewards, as well as accessing servicing remindersand online service history.

Downend

Murderat thelibraryThere will be a murdermystery evening entitledDeath in a Silver Mask atDownend Library onSaturday 4th February.The entertainment will beprovided by the RedHerrings Murder MysteryPlayers. A silver weddingparty goes horribly wrongwhen Virginia dies afterdrinking the punch. Peopleare invited along to guesswho poisoned her and how.Tickets are £3 to includerefreshments availablefrom any South Glouces-tershire library orwww.eventbrite.co.ukThe event starts at 7.30pm.


St Monica Trust is 'bestin healthcare sector'

Get fit for the Chew Valley 10kRegistration is open for this year's ChewValley 10k race which takes place onSunday 11th June.Now in its fifth year, the event raises moneyfor Blood Bikes NICU Support as well as theChew Valley School Society and BishopSutton Village Hall. The race, which starts and ends in BishopSutton, is open to all, from club runners tofamilies and beginners. It is aimed at bringingthe community together to get fit whilst having

fun. It starts at 9.30am and follows a scenic,rural route around the Chew Valley, with theRace HQ at Bishop Sutton Village Hall. For details of the course and to register for therace, visit www.chewvalley10k.co.ukCouch to 10k training support and details ofthe on-route running club by Ross ElliottFitness can be found on the website along withdetails of a new six-week coaching sessioncalled Run Start which begins in February inKeynsham.

VolunteersneededVolunteers are needed tohelp run St GeorgeCommunity Centre.New people are needed tojoin the managementcommittee. If you live orwork in St George andthink you have the skillscontact the centre onChurch Road by email [email protected] call 0117 9411882.

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St Monica Trust, which is developing the old Cadbury'sfactory in Keynsham into a £60m retirement village,has become the highest scorer in the UK's healthcaresector in its annual Hospitality Assured assessment.The Trust retained its Hospitality Assured Premierstatus for the ninth consecutive year with its highest-ever score of 83.7%.In their report, the Hospitality Assured assessors said:“There exists within the St Monica Trust a strong desireto achieve high levels of excellence in all that theorganisation attempts to do, but in particular incustomer service and resident care.“Everyone helps others to achieve the goals of theorganisation and a number of staff described the StMonica Trust as 'the best place I've ever worked'.”The trust improved on its previous year's score by 2%,which was acknowledged by the assessors: “Theincrease over the 2015 score is a reflection of the manychanges, improvements and enhancements that havebeen achieved in that period.”They continued: “A highlight this year was the workdone on developing a new strategic plan and the majorproject to develop the new facility at Keynsham, TheChocolate Quarter.”St Monica Trust's director of facilities Ian Joyner said:“To be recognised as a leader in customer service withinthe UK healthcare sector is an achievement thateveryone involved with the trust can be proud of.“Our commitment to excellence at all levels of theorganisation has been a long-term investment. Weexpect to see even greater improvements in ourcustomer offering with the opening of our newestretirement community, The Chocolate Quarter insummer 2017.”Hospitality Assured is the quality standard created bythe Institute of Hospitality specifically for customerfacing businesses. The process enables organisations toreach and exceed their full potential by followingworld-class processes, customer service standards andemployee engagement.


B&NES Cabinet will meet next week to agree its budget for thenext financial year with an increase in council tax set at 1.5%compared to 1.9% last year. A further 2% will be levied towardsadult social care provision as per the Government's allowancefor local councils to raise a total of 6% over a 3-year period.In Issue 456 we detailed the council's proposals to achieveoverall savings of £49m by 2020. Following the Cabinetmeeting on 1st February the budget will go the full councilmeeting on 14th February for approval. See also page 14.

Sticky Fish Pre-School, based at Fishponds Baptist Church, iscelebrating a Good rating from Ofsted.The recently published report found the manager and staffknow all the children well and provide a broad range ofstimulating and challenging activities.They are also said to have extremely good partnerships withparents and children are “content” and “confident”.There are 24 youngsters on the roll at the pre-school whichoperates from the lower hall of the church on Downend Road.

There are hopes that a monthly Repair Café can be launched inSt George.Repair Cafés are places where people get together to fix theirbroken stuff such as clothes, furniture, electronics andelectrical. There is already one running in Fishponds where the next oneis taking place on 4th February from 10.30am to 1pm at AllSaints Church.To get a Repair Café going in St George will mean building upa team of volunteer fixers. Found out more by looking on the StGeorge Community Centre's Facebook page or call the centreon 0117 9411882.

Staple Hill

Future of RoyalBritish Legion Clubremains unclear

B&NES

Council tax to rise 1.5%

St George/Fishponds

Repair Cafés

Fishponds

Children 'content andconfident' at pre-school

A question mark remains over the future ofthe Royal British Legion Club after thepopular venue was unceremoniously shutdown shortly before Christmas.As we reported in Issue 455, the Royal BritishLegion HQ reportedly removed liabilityinsurance cover for the building which waswell used by local groups as well as bymembers.Allen Bills, from the Staple Hill branch of theLegion, attended last week's meeting of theStaple Hill. Rodway & MangotsfieldCommunity Engagement Forum where herevealed that less than a day's notice had beengiven by the Gloucestershire county office thatsomeone would be coming along to collect thekeys to the Kendall Road building.Having agreed to come the followingafternoon instead of the morning so that afuneral wake could go ahead as planned, therepresentative who turned up said they weresurprised to see that the building wasn'talready boarded up.

Mr Bills said that after a discussion with amember of the club who is a solicitor, theLegion representative left without the keys andthat there had been no communication sincethen.He said that members had got together andemptied the building, with the contentscurrently spread around in people's sparerooms and garages.Staple Hill councillor Ian Boulton told themeeting that he had written to Legion chiefs totell them about the impact the closure wouldhave on local members who had a real stake inthe club as they had built it in the first place.Mr Bills encouraged others to write too, sayingthe club had been used three of four timesevery day.He felt the HQ had their eyes on the club forsome time and that other clubs up and downthe country were also being closed.The Week In has contacted the Royal BritishLegion's press office to see if it wishes to makea statement.

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When it’s mid-January and coldand grey, there are limited optionsas to what one can do on a Saturdayafternoon. However, when I heardthat the popular TV programmeFlog It! was at Bristol Cathedral, itseemed a good idea to take a fewknick-knacks and have themvalued. I gathered together an old Wade jug, abowl from my grandmother's kitchenand a small hardback book which hadbeen in my family for 150 years. When I took my seat in the cathedral,in front of me were at least 200 peoplewith various size bags. I sat next to acouple from Portishead who had twoforeign gold coins they wantedvalued. The other side of me was acouple with a very unusual item whichhad been handed down from a relativewho fought in the Boer War. Thecouple estimated the item was morethan 120 years old. It was a woodencross in a bottle filled with water. Thecross had various smaller woodencarpentry implements surrounding it.Apparently the whole thing hadoriginally been put together in smallerpieces and the water had made thewood expand to the rather odd-shapedarticle it was today.After waiting for about an hour, thequeue to see the Flog It! experts hadhardly moved. The atmosphere

however was jolly and bargain huntersaround me showed off their treasureswith guarded enthusiasm. After yetanother hour the queue was still longbut now feeling entrenched in ourseats and getting to know other like-minded people, it felt impossible toleave. Paul Martin, the main presenter on theshow, passed amongst us wearing anolive green corduroy suit. We sawhow much effort goes into thepresentation of the programme whenMr Martin at one point needed four re-takes to do a very casual short piece tocamera. By now the wholeatmosphere was becoming veryentertaining and was made even moreso when another member of the FlogIt! team asked if our little group wouldbe part of a background scene. Natasha Raskin, a regular expert, wasto examine a pair of flintlock pistolsthought to be at least 200 years old.We all readily agreed to be involvedand were told the filming would beshot near the choir stalls. It wouldtake about half an hour to set up butwe could sit and wait in the choirseats. Cameramen, experts andtechnicians surrounded us. We weretold to look enthusiastic, appreciativeand smile. The scene took aboutanother half hour to film. Natashafluffed her lines a few times so more

re-takes were done. If you watch theprogramme regularly, you will see ourlittle group behind Natasha and theowner of the pistols. We tried to lookextremely attentive with smilespinned to our faces. All I canremember is that the pistols could wellhave been used by a postman or hiswife and they could sell for around£300 at the Bristol Auction Rooms atAshton, Bristol, on 2nd February.This flutter of excitement over, weretreated to our seats and waited yetanother hour to see the experts. Somepeople obviously had very collectableitems and were filming for up to anhour. Eventually at 5.45pm our timecame. We were the last row ofhopefuls and were introduced to thespecialists. Only three items were to

be valued and so it was with greatanticipation I met John Kelly. Ithought the book might be the mostvaluable so produced that first.However, to my chagrin it was of lowvalue, as were the jug and the bowl.My new friends from Portishead alsofound their gold foreign coins not asvaluable as they had expected andneither was the relic from the BoerWar. The afternoon had been long and thefinancial outcome hardly profitable.However, sitting in Bristol Cathedralsurrounded by history, humour and alarge section of humanity was nothingless than priceless. And by the way Ibelieve that episode is to be broadcastin March.

Christine Rogers


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Crossword SolutionI I R L G T

E N A B L E I N D I U MT I D L A R

R O A D D R A I N A G EE E C S E

S L U M B E R S K I N TA R A E

U V U L A E V A S I V EA A B E C

E L E C T R O N H U R TA T I G O A

U M P I R E E N O U G HP C F R L E

On location with TV's Flog It!

Paul Martin



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