Cllr Alex Foster

1st October 7pm, Salutation Army, Aspley Lane
Beechdale Local Area Group

Come and meet local police officers and discuss the problems that need fixing in the Beechdale Beat

9th-12th October Nottingham Beer Festival, Nottingham Castle
More info on that here.

13th-19th October
Local Democracy Week

The Council will be doing extra things to help engage the public.

13th October - Full Council
The ideal end to the Beer Festival.  We will be discussing Nottingham’s 2030 vision with workshops in the morning for the public.

13th October, 6.30pm
Friends of King George V park meeting to discuss progress on the park

16th October, 7.30pm
Beechdale Mews Residents Assoc general meeting

A general meeting to discuss problems and plans for the area around Beechdale Road, Beechdale Mews, Robins Wood Road and the new Creamery Estate.

17th October, 5.30pm-6.30pm
Cllr Surgery, Western Bvd Library (opposite Beechdale Baths)

21 October, 6pm
KAMRA general meeting

A general meeting to discuss problems and plans for the area around Kennington and Marchwood. All residents welcome!

This is the casework we ran in our September edition of FOCUS - which we are still delivering!

Coming soon to a junction near you…
The Council promised that it would start work on painting extra double-yellow lines further into junctions in order to protect cars and make the area safer.  It hasn’t started yet, but should be starting soon.  The Council will first write to everyone who lives near the junction to check what they think - so if you have views, make sure you let them know.  This year, Staindale Drive, Chalfont Drive, Newlyn Drive (both ends), Westholme Gardens and Franklyn Gardens are on the list.
STOP PRESS: Following requests from residents nearby, we have asked the Council to look at doing the junction of Bobbersmill Road with Nuthall Road. They have agreed it needs doing and will look for the money next year.

Darley Avenue empty garages
The empty garages on Darley Avenue are getting messy again so Alex has got the Council to get the owner to tidy them up.  He has also asked the Council to find a better use for the land in the long term.

Pothole, Staindale Drive
A resident complained to Alex that the Council came back to fix the same pothole on Nuthall Road near the junction with Staindale Drive year after year.  Alex has asked for a permanent repair.

State of Kennington Road Park
Residents raised the state of the park at a recent KAMRA meeting.  People have been writing on the new equipment only months after it was installed. The Council has agreed to come out and sort the damage.

Waste bin,  Whitemoor pub
The waste bin was taken away from the bus stop outside the Whitemoor pub. Gary asked the Council, who have agreed to put it back

Exit from Homfield Road – Action at Last
At long last the Council are consulting about putting double yellow lines on the junction of Homefield Road and Aspley Lane.  Residents have been complaining about the difficulty of exiting here for years. Gary said “I have been pressing for action for a long time.  I am pleased that something will happen soon.”

Blocked drain Northdown
Following complaints from local residents some blocked drains on Northdown Road have been cleared.

Tree pruning work, Cheslyn
The Spinney at Cheslyn Drive will get some much needed major pruning work this autumn - but the Council have to wait until nesting season is over.

St Margaret’s Avenue
After local residents complained Gary got the council to repair some potholes on St Margaret’s Avenue.  It is on the list for full resurfacing – but not in near future.

These are the casework stories we published in Focus 189

Robinswood Road and Newlyn Drive pavements

The pavements on Robins Wood Road and Newlyn Drive are not in a good state - and the Council admits they need thousands of pounds worth of repair work to be done to bring them back up to scratch.  And there are many other pavements in a similar condition. Unfortunately, there isn’t the budget to do all the necessary work this year. The Council does, however, have a pothole budget for doing urgent repairs in places where the pavement has a big hole or is dangerous to pedestrians.  It is always worth letting us know if there are patches that are particularly bad, as those patches can be repaired from the pothole budget.

Parked car problem on Aspley Park Drive

Residents raised the problem of householders selling a large number of cars from their homes at a local police meeting. Parked cars were often blocking the road. Although you can sell your own car from your own home, if you sell lots, you need planning permission, because you’re effectively turning your home into a car sales business. Alex asked the planning enforcement team along with the beat police officer to take action on the problem. It now seems that it has been sorted out and traffic is moving freely again.  But if the problem recurs, do please get in touch.

Flooding on  Hollington Road

A local resident asked Gary and Alex to get the gullies cleaned along Hollington Road  as there was regular flooding.  The Council said they did this but the flooding was still there. Gary has asked them to this sort out.

Beechdale Baths underpass

The Council have talked to Robert Shaw School about painting pictures in the underpass between Beechdale Baths and Ainsley Estate.  This has helped keep graffiti down in other places where it has been tried.

Dunnline  - case closed!

We were very pleased to hear in May that the Planning Inspector quashed Dunnline’s appeal and said the bus company must leave the site within a year of the judgement.  Congratulations to local residents who have worked very hard to achieve this outcome.

Grace Drive shrubbery

Local residents asked Gary to get the shrubbery in Grace Drive cleaned up.  He asked the Council to do this.  Some residents have suggested that some of the shrubbery is removed and extra parking put in – as it can sometimes be difficult to get past.  What do you think? Let us know on the form overleaf.

Darley  Avenue pavements

A resident contacted Alex to ask why the Darley Avenue pavements had been missed out of works in the area.  Alex contacted the Council who said they should be completed this month.  While he was in the area, he noticed the street sign for Plantationside was missing, so Alex has asked the Council for a replacement.

Wheatsheaves crossing

Many local residents signed a petition calling for a green man to be included in the crossing outside the Wheatsheaves pub.  The Council is working on designs but has said they can’t afford to do the job this year. We are trying to get the Council to change their minds in view of local opinion.

Loose manhole cover, Nuthall Road

The loose manhole cover on Nuthall Road has finally been sorted by BT after months.  Gary said “I am pleased it has been done, but don’t know why it took so long”

Kennington Fence
The fence at the bottom of Kennington Road has finally been mended by Network Rail.  Gary is still waiting to find out if the Council will be allowed to put anti-vandal paint along the top of the fence.

New Road - Bridge Steps
Gary is still pressing the Council to clean up the steps up to the bridge on New Road.  He is also trying to get the Council to surface the road so that wheelchair users can use it.

Kennington Drop Off Zone
The drop off zone near Southwold Primary on Kennington Road is always full of litter.  Gary has asked the Council to clear it up – and to make sure it gets a regular cleaning.

Ainsley Roundabout planning
Severn Trent Water want to replace the concrete covers on the roundabout in Ainsley Road with a much larger concrete kiosk.  Alex has got in touch with the planning department and the water board to see if a less conspicuous design can be found that doesn’t involve giant concrete blocks.

Here’s the casework we reported in FOCUS 188 - in multiple area editions.

Robins Wood Road pavement
Local residents got in touch with Alex to complain about the state of Robins Wood Road pavements. The official Council inspection says this road is fine, which is clearly not the case! While it is being re-assessed, the Council has promised to address the worst parts of the road as soon as possible.

Longer Double Yellow Lines
Last year we asked the Council to look into double yellow lines on Chalfont Drive, Newlyn Drive, Staindale Drive and Westholme and Franklyn Gardens.
The Council agrees the lines are too short and will be consulting residents over the summer about making them longer.

Flooding in Bus Lay bys – Western Boulevard
The flooding problem in two bus lay bys on Western Boulevard has now been sorted.
Gary said “ This is good news but we are still waiting for Severn Trent to deal with the problem near Beechdale Baths crossing”

New residents’ group for Aberford Rd/ Whitemoor Av

After local residents contacted Gary and Alex with a number of issues concerning the New Whitemoor area, local councillors thought a new residents’ association might be the way forward. There was an initial meeting in Naburn Court last month and a large number of issues were identified. These included the state of Orchard Court Park, flooding, cleanliness of streets, anti-social behaviour, and many others. The group will be able to press the Council for answers and solutions to these problems.

Homefield Road exit delays!
The Council have delayed dealing with the problem of getting out of Homefield Road onto Aspley Lane. They had said it would be sorted when the humps went in on Grassington Road. When it wasn’t Gary got on to them and they said it had been delayed to link with some new cycle facilities planned for Aspley Lane. They now have the funding and will be finishing the plans soon. Residents should consulted in May or June.

Trees on Newcastle Farm Drive
Residents contacted Alex when tall trees behind their homes started interfering with their TV reception. Alex has raised this with the Council’s tree department, and they have agreed to see what they can do.

Robert Shaw Playing Field – Some Hope At Last.
Gary has been chasing the Council Education Department about community use of Robert Shaw Playing Field. They have now said that they are keen to develop field but any use need to link in with any proposals for the school. Gary said “It has taken a long time to get this far, but it now looks like we are all looking to move in the same direction. I will keep pushing until something happens!”

A KAMRA open evening
Kennington and Marchwood Residents Association (KAMRA) are holding an open coffee evening on 8th July at Southwold Primary School between 6 and 7.30 pm. Come along to meet and chat with KAMRA members, local councillors, council officers, the local beat bobby.

Yesterday a tenants and residents association in my ward, KAMRA, had a big gala launch of their new children’s play area. Most of the work raising the money and preparing for the park was done before I was a councillor for Leen Valley so the credit goes to the TRA themselves, community development worker Susan Ward Rice, Simon Hunter from the Parks Department and my colleague Cllr Gary Long.

The gala launch yesterday was great fun for kids and grownups alike and was really lucky with the weather.

Cutting ribbons is harder than you think!

The clown kept adults and youngsters alike entertained

Inviting the fire brigade was my idea - the youngsters got to go on the fire engine and have an informal talk about smoke alarms with the fire fighters, who then got into a Kids v Firemen footy match.

No-one wanted the last piece of cake!

I got some lovely photos of youngsters in facepaint, and if any parent wants a copy, do please let me know.

I think Brenda had a go on everything! She also supplied the workers with much needed hot cups of tea, for which much thanks!

Useful dates for April

2 April, 7pm Bluecoat School
Beechdale Local Action Group - meeting for  residents of the Beechdale area with beat police officer PC Ash Xavier

5 April, 12noon, Kennington Road Park  
Gala opening of the new park on Kennington Road

8-10 April, Guildhall
Planning Enquiry into Dunnline

15 April, 6.30pm, St Theresa’s Church Hall
Inaugural meeting of Friends of King George V Park

16 April, 7pm, Robert Shaw School
Ainsley Local Action Group - a  chance for residents of the Ainsley beat, which includes the Ainsley estate, the Staindale estate, the Kennington Road area, to meet with their beat police officer PC Pete Chappell

23 April, 7pm, tbc
New Whitemoor tenants and residents meeting - hopefully to establish a permanent TRA

Since I joined Nottingham’s planning committee nearly three years ago, I have made sustainability a big part of all the comments I make. It’s much more cost effective to include sustainable measures in buildings during construction than to retrofit them to a building after it is completed.Since I started asking the question “how green is this building?” details of sustainability now normally get a specific paragraph in every report. And during my time on the committee, the Council took advantage of new Government powers to include a “Merton rule” in our planning policy that says that new buildings over a certain size or covering a certain amount of land now have to find 10% of their energy requirements from sustainable sources.

My next battle is about getting a wider recognition that 10% is a minimum, not a target. The helpful tool “Building for Life” has as one of its 20 questions, “Does the building out-perform statutory minima?”

This week’s planning committee on Wednesday was one of the shortest I have ever been at, with only three planning applications. The first of these was for a new FE college on Carlton Road, and had an excellent sustainability statement that covered many of the things I talk about every month. You can read the full report on the Council’s Committee Online page (opens a Word Doc) but here is the sustainability section:

Sustainable design has been key to the design of the building and it has been confirmed that a Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM) ‘Excellent’ rating will be achieved. In order to achieve energy efficiency the building will incorporate a wood-fuel boiler plant; heat recovery; exposed thermal mass; positioning of building to maximise daylight; natural ventilation; minimisation of heat loss; rainwater collection and the efficiency of plant and systems will be maximised through the use of a digital Building Energy Management System. It has also been clarified that an intranet connection will be available to allow teachers and students to view the energy that the building is utilising as a teaching resource for energy efficiency.

In addition to that, we heard that the college are considering bat and bird boxes on the trees and open spaces on the site, which helps tick a few more biodiversity boxes.

We also had three “issues reports” where people who are going to be asking for planning permission in the near future and get the chance to test the waters at committee. This is usually only for very big applications, and this week we discussed a potential private hospital in the new University Boulevard Science Park (unlikely to pass - Science Parks are not good places for hospitals); new student housing on Alfreton Road (fairly good scheme, could be improved) and a stunning scheme for a new dual use church-cum-conference centre.

Today I was at the Joint Committee for Strategic Planning and Transport.  It’s a committee where members of the City Council join together with members of Nottingham County Council to pursue planning and transport issues that are important to both councils.

We heard a lot about trains last December, including a promise that by December 2008 there would be a regular 98 minute London train; and by 2011, the journey would only take 90 minutes.  This is a big benefit, not only for people who need to go to London for business and pleasure, but also for people taking the new Eurostar service from St Pancras.  It also makes it easier for people from Paris and Brussels to visit Nottingham without having to get on a plane.

This time, we heard of advancing plans to re-organise the main railway station in Nottingham city.  Network Rail plans to completely remove all the tracks and signals from the station area, and replace them with new signals and tracks.  The new layout would mean that the platforms become much more flexible, and more trains could use the station.  Hopefully, it will also mean an end to the annoying wait that many rail users experience as trains queue for a platform in sidings outside the Inland Revenue.

This work is obviously a big undertaking, but would apparently take perhaps as little as a week plus a few weekends.  During this time, the station would have to close to rail traffic completely.  The plans are to do this in 2011.  The best bit is that they are working with the people who plan to redevelop the station, and the people who hope to have started building the new tram lines by then, and hopefully, the work can be done comprehensively all together.  We’ll see whether this actually happens…

Here’s the latest casework we reported in the Jan/Feb FOCUS newsletter.

Major upgrade for King George V Park

After many years of neglect, the Council has found a pot of money for major works for the King George V Park.  The first benefits should be seen fairly soon when the footpaths are to be resurfaced.

Your local councillors are adamant local people should be properly consulted on whatever happens for the park.  Some meetings to discuss the issues have already happened, and more are planned.  If you would like to be kept informed - or merely receive the minutes of the meetings, let us have your contact details using the form overleaf.

Beechdale Mews Park

Congratulations to local residents in Beechdale Mews who are well on the way to raising the funds necessary to revamp their local park. Residents recently looked at plans and voted on their favourite design.

Radford Bridge Road – resurface

The Council are planning to resurface the footways on Radford Bridge Road during the next year.

Aspley Park Drive – No resurface this year.

Local people have been asking the FOCUS Team if Aspley Park Drive can be resurfaced.  Despite being on ‘the reserve list’ it does not look like it will be done this year.

Beechdale Residents Assoc

At its recent AGM, the Beechdale Mews Residents Association decided to increase the area it covers.  It now also covers Robinswood Road and the new Willows estate

Crossing puddle: Western Bvd/ Beechdale Rd

Despite the Council putting in a new drain  near 106 Western Boulevard there is still a problem with a large puddle at the crossing on Western Boulevard near Beechdale  Road.  Gary has asked the Council to look at the problem again.

Alleyway & Car Park:  Naburn Court to Nuthall Road

The alleyway from Naburn Court to Nuthall Road has been cleaned.  NCH have cleaned up the car park.

Blocked Grates – Aberford Avenue

After being contacted by a local resident Gary asked the Council to clear some blocked grates on Aberford Avenue.  These have been done.

Rubbish at railway foot-bridge - near Cyril Avenue

Gary has asked the Council to clear the rubbish at the railway footbridge near Cyril Avenue.

Junction parking danger - Chalfont / Staindale / Newlyn / Westholme

A number of residents have been in touch with the FOCUS team lately about dangerous parking in the mouths of junctions with the ring road and Nuthall Road.  Parking too close to the junction restricts visibility.

The Council agrees there is a problem, and has gone away to look for the money to extend the double yellow lines further into the following roads: Staindale Drive, Chalfont Drive, Newlyn Drive and Westholme Gardens. We have asked them to add Franklyn Gardens to the list - but if you think your road also needs attention, do please let us know.

Before any lines can be changed, however, the Council is legally obliged to ask residents what they think - so look out for them contacting you!

Steps up to railway bridge New Road

Local people have asked the FOCUS Team to sort out the steps up to the railway bridge on New Road – on the footpath from Northdown Road.  They are in a poor state.  Gary said “There are problems over who owns the steps and this is causing delay.  I am looking to find the funding to get this sorted as soon as possible.”

Weeds breaking through the path on Ainsley Road

The Council have relayed the paths on Ainsley Road where the weeds were growing through.

Residents Parking Scheme – Marchwood Close

The residents parking scheme on Marchwood Close is finally being revised.  Some time ago the Council put in new driveways to some houses but left the parking bays across the drives!  This is now being sorted.

There has been a lot of comment in the local press recently about whether it was good value for money to spend £400,000 on a play.

It’s worth remembering that this play is actually about training Council staff.  The Council is one of the largest employers in Nottingham, with tens of thousands of members of staff.  Changing an organisation that big is really complex.  This play is one way of communicating with lots of members of staff all at once, in the hope of improving the way the Council works, and improving the way the Council delivers services to local people.

If the play can reach thousands of members of Council staff, and if it starts off a real culture of change here, then the money will be well invested.

But those are big “ifs”!

I saw the play today - all councillors have been invited and many are planning on going.  It was a really good opportunity to speak to council staff at various different levels, from the senior managers we see at committee meetings all the time, to the people who actually do the frontline work of the council.  The play itself… was… interesting.  The actors were good, and the props and staging were all competent.  It was quite clever how they took words from interviews with people here and turned it into drama.

One really striking moment for me was a story about how a team of council staff went out for a Christmas meal in a local restaurant, and during the evening the names of organisations were read out.  “Experian” - and everyone cheered.  “Capital one” - and everyone cheered.  “Boots!” - and everyone cheered.  “Nottingham City Council” - and people booed!

I don’t want to be part of a Council that local people have such a poor opinion of, so I do support measures like this training event that have a chance to change Nottingham City Council into an organisation we can actually all be proud of.