Hospital Parking Consultation

I received this information about an NHS consultation on hospital parking. I know that many local residents have strong views on the cost of parking at St Helier Hospital. I would therefore urge you to follow the link to feed in your views.

Have your say on hospital parking

The Department of Health with the NHS has launched a consultation on NHS car parking and improving access for people using NHS services.

This is an important issue that can affect all public, patients and staff. While the vast majority of people who use the NHS are happy with the clinical service they receive, many are unhappy about the principle of being charged to park when using services.

The Health Secretary would like to see car parking charges for inpatients phased out over the next three years, as savings from back-office costs allow.  A full range of views from public, patient and staff will help develop a more consistent approach to NHS car parking.

 Some of the issues to consider include:

 What would be a fair charging system? Should longer-stay patients or those who have to visit the hospital a lot have a discount?

• Many hospitals rely on the income generated through their car parks.
• What about the impact on the environment?
• Some hospitals in busy urban areas are concerned that a free service would be open to abuse by commuters. 

The consultation runs until 23^rd February 2010. Find out more and take part in the consultation at: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/2NX7Q75

Wallington South Safer Neighbourhoods Team Drop-in Events

The Wallington South Safer Neighbourhoods Team hold street surgeries throughout the ward to give residents the opportunity to drop in and have a chat about any crime or safety issues they may have.

 In February the street surgeries will take place in the following locations:

Street briefing
Wednesday 10th February 1pm - 3pm
at Sainsbury’s entrance

Wallington North and South Joint Surgery

Friday 12th 7pm at Trinity Centre, Maldon Road

Have a say day
Thursday 25th 2pm – 4pm
at Wallington library

Feel free to drop in and meet your local team. You may even come across a stray ward councillor at the same time!

Volunteers wanted

Your local team is looking for residents to help with an exercise monitoring drivers using mobile phones. If you have a few hours available this spring and would like to get involved call the Wallington South team on 020 8721 2730 or email Peter.LeShirley2@met.pnn.police.uk.

You can find out more about your local Safer Neighbourhood Team on their website. You can also find out about crime rates in your area by following the link to the interactive map.

Thursday 3rd December 7.30pm

Health & Wellbeing Scrutiny Committee

This meeting looked at the Care Quality Commission’s inspection report on adult social care services in Sutton. The inspection concluded that overall the service performance in Sutton is strong. However with regard to the criteria of ‘maintaining personal dignity & respect’ the grading was ‘performing adequately’. An action plan had already been submitted by Adult Social Services to address the issues raised with the aim of raising performance in this area. Adi Cooper, Strategic Head of Adult Social Services was congratulated on her department’s improved performance.

A report was submitted looking into the background to the closure of wards at Sutton Hospital as a result of the risk of Legionella. The committee asked questions about how the risk had been assessed and what control measures were being put in place to address the issue.

The committee also received an update on the Decent Homes funding decision and a report on the review of the Sutton & Merton Primary Care Trust Strategic Plan.

Wallington Square gets planning approval

I am pleased to report that the application for Wallington Square received planning permission at last night’s Development Control Committee.

The application proposed to convert the derelict offices at the front of the square into flats and to make improvements to the entrance of the square making it a much more attractive retail space.

 Colin, Richard & I, as your Wallington South Ward Councillors, welcomed this application as the square is badly in need of a facelift and its improvement will have a beneficial effect on Wallington town centre.

I attended the committee meeting to speak in support of the application.

Mr Rowland, the owner of Richard Marks, a shop within the square, attended the meeting and spoke on behalf of local traders. He spoke eloquently of the desperate need to improve the square to encourage new business to the area and make Wallington the community hub it has the potential to be. He felt that this was the last opportunity to see investment in the square as he had experienced previous owners try and fail to come up with an acceptable scheme.

 Mr Billin, self-appointed leader of the Heathdene Residents Group, spoke against the application. I was surprised at this as Mr Billin has long complained that nothing is being done to help improve Wallington as a shopping district. He objected to the additional floor and the conversion of the empty offices into flats. His claim to speak on behalf of over one thousand residents who objected to the flats was discredited by the committee when it turned out that he was referring to objections to a previous application to erect a tower block at the rear of the square, at an exhibition held two years before the current application was submitted. He was also unable to distinguish between the drawing showing the proposed plans and the existing building which undermined his claim that the additional floor would be overbearing.

 I talked of how, ever since becoming councillor for Wallington South, I have had residents and local businesses complain about the state of the square. In its current state it puts off customers and drags down the whole town centre. The conversion of the offices into flats would not only improve the look of the front of the square but would also provide flats in the town centre, helping to reduce the pressure for flats in the surrounding areas of Wallington. Together with the improvements to the retail space this seemed to be an acceptable proposal that would have a very favourable impact on the town centre.

 After the meeting I learned that this application should be considered as phase one of the refurbishment of the square as with the acceptance of this application we can expect future proposals to improve the rear of the square. I shall look forward to seeing these plans in due course.

Parking Guidance for London

London Councils has recently published a number of useful leaflets about parking in London, which obviously will also apply in Sutton. The leaflets can be downloaded from their website. There are leaflets covering loading restrictions, footway parking and paying to park. I would particularly recommend the leaflet: Parking your car in London.

The rest of the page devoted to transport matters is also very helpful and includes information about the Freedom Pass and how to renew it.

Tuesday 24th November 2009 11.30am

Carers Partnership Board

Ken Fish the vice-chair of the board took the chair for this meeting as due to a diary mix up I had missed the agenda planning meeting.

Julie Wilson updated the board on the work being done to refresh the Carers Strategy. As a major problem with providing services for carers is getting carers to identify themselves as carers in the first place it was felt to be very important to include this question in the 2011 Census once again. Other priorities for the strategy were discussed.

The topic got sidetracked into a discussion about the current consultation on the local PCT’s Commissioning Strategy. The Board was made aware of the lack of time given for any meaningful consultation with LINKS or carers, and the lack of meaningful involvement with carers at the planning stage in accordance with good practice guidance. This contrasted with the work done on the Mental Health strategy which had involved carers specifically in consultation. The Board expressed it’s dissatisfaction with this state of affairs.

The revised Terms of Reference of the Carers Partnership Board was presented and some further changes were suggested.

Under the monitoring of Carers Breaks discussions looked at the implications of the introduction of personal budgets for carers. It was agreed to invite Andrew Clark, Transforming Lives Programme Manager to the next meeting to discuss this issue further.

Chance to view St Helier Hospital Plans

An opportunity is being provided to view the redevelopment plans for St Helier Hospital under Better Healthcare Closer to Home.

The plans include replacing Ferguson House with a more modern, fit-for-purpose building containing 346 beds of which at least 50% will be single rooms, as well as housing most of the hospital’s clinics, outpatients and a pharmacy.

It is also intended to build additional car parking facilities on the site.

An exhibition of the plans will take place between Tuesday 19 January and Thursday 21 January in the Re:treat Restaurant at St Helier Hospital which is on the ground floor of C block in the main building.

For more information visit the Epsom & St Helier website.

Community spirit alive and well in Bandon Rise

After witnessing a car skidding round the bend in Bandon Rise yesterday, I arranged with some neighbours to see if we could do something to clear the snow here. After a futile search for salt in the local grit bins this morning we found we had to tackle the job the hard way.

Armed with shovels, a hoe and a brush, me and my three boys set to work scraping the corner free of ice. It wasn’t long before the neighbours arrived to help. We made better progress than we expected and as time went on more neighbours came out to join the workforce. One man had managed to find some grit which he duly sprinkled where necesary and then went off in search of more. He returned later having been unable to find any more grit supplies but he did bring a shovel & set to work with us. When they saw what we were doing other Bandon Hill residents came and joined the team and within three hours the corner was clear of snow and ice and proved much safer for vehicles to turn.

It was hard work but it was lovely to see the community spirit come out to deal with a local problem. Many, many thanks to everyone who helped. A big thank you too to Mr Jackson who we discovered had cleared the end of the road single-handedly earlier. I must also thank my boys who worked hard without complaining and confessed to enjoying it. Now there’s a first!

Now I can barely move my arms and it is snowing again! Hopefully our work will still help to stop the corner getting too icy and I will grab some grit to put down as soon as some becomes available.

The result of our hard work

Wintry Wallington

CONDITIONS UPDATE 7TH JANUARY 2010

With the children back at school I was able to go for a walkabout around Wallington to check on the effects of the seasonal weather locally. 

 

 

 

 

ROADS

The main roads: Stafford Road, Woodcote Road, Stanley Park Road, Boundary Road and Foresters Drive are all clear of snow and ice, and traffic is flowing smoothly. There does appear to be less traffic on the roads than usual.

Few side roads have been gritted and conditions are treacherous with compacted snow and ice.

NB The traffic lights at the entrance to the Sainsbury’s car park are now working again.

PAVEMENTS

Wallington High Street from the junction with Stafford Road down to the junction with Ross Parade has been well gritted and is safe for pedestrians. Wallington Square has a layer of compacted snow but the edges are clearer so safe walkways can be found through the square.

Stafford Road has not been gritted and has compacted snow and ice that make it slippery, especially on the rise up to St Elphege’s Church. A few businesses have cleared their frontages along Stafford Road and the pavement around Sainsbury’s has been well gritted. I will request that this street be listed as a priority for gritting as it is many residents’ main route to the shopping centre and schools.

The roads leading to Wallington Station from the South have been gritted and are reasonably clear but the approach from the North has not and caution should be taken on the paths. The station forecourt itself is clear of snow. Also watch out for a patch of ice at the corner in front of the Witherspoons pub. The manager is aware of the problem but has run out of salt.

Access to the Shotfield Health Centre currently located in Mint House is recommended from Woodcote Road via the Old Town Hall or from Shotfield past the old building. Do not use Mint House car park as it is icy. The ramp is clear. I spoke to council contractors clearing the routes to the health centre in Shotfield. They were having to clear the pavements using shovels as there was no salt available. This is obviously much slower work.

Wallington Library is accessible but paths to it do have a covering of snow. The library gardens are closed due to ice. Wallington Car Park is still covered in compacted snow so take extra care if driving or walking here.

The pavement along Boundary Road has not been gritted and is covered in compacted snow.

Pavements in front of Stanley Park High school and Bandon Hill Primary are gritted and mostly clear.

Most residential roads have not had their pavements gritted and are deep in snow. However the deeper snow is often better to walk on as it has a bit of grip rather than where the snow that has been compacted into ice.

The above ground car park for Sainsbury’s was empty and I assume closed as the ramp and the car park can be icy.

GRIT BOXES

A look on the council website shows that there are only two grit boxes currently in Wallington, one in Wordsworth Road near the junction with Lavender Vale, and one in Ruskin Road near the junction with Park Lane. Residents are welcome to use the grit from these bins to clear areas around their properties. The grit bin in Lavender Vale is still three quarters full. I consulted with our gritting team manager who advised that if grit is laid on top on snow or ice it will need to be trampled in before it starts to work. If the snow is largely cleared first and the grit is laid on the pavement then the grit will work immediately preventing a build up of ice.

I was informed that additional grit boxes are already on order and I have requested one for Brambledown Road which I have seen cars skidding down because of the hill in icy weather, and a replacement bin for Longacre Place at the corner with Beddington Gardens as this corner at the bottom of an incline is prone to ice and is used by staff and pupils of Stanley Park School as well as residents.

LOCAL SCHOOLS

Open:

Bandon Hill Primary school is open but closing early at 3pm

Carew manor

High View open today & Friday

St Elphege’s infants & juniors

Stanley Park infants closing at 1pm

Wallington High School for Girls open

Wilsons open but finishes at 3.05pm

Wallington County Grammar open until 1.45pm, expects to be open Friday.

 Closed:

Stanley Park junior

St Philomenas

Foresters

Stanley Park High School

 Check the LBS website for closures on Friday.

BUSINESS

All the town centre shops and banks were open including the supermarkets. The Post Office is open as usual. The library is also open.

 SHOTFIELD HEALTH CENTRE

There were no reported staffing shortages and the centre is running as normal. Note my comments about accessing Mint House above.

PUBLIC TRANSPORT

Buses

151 as normal

157 as normal

154 as normal

455 as normal

463 as normal

410 severe delays due to electrical work on route

S4 as normal

127 as normal

 Trains through Wallington

Southern Services between London Bridge and Wallington are currently experiencing problems.

 South West Trains operating between Waterloo and Wallington are experiencing delays, alterations and cancellations. The service is expected to finish earlier than normal today.

A Letter from David Cameron

I received a lovely letter from David Cameron today. He very nicely tells me that although I may have a very good and effective local Liberal Democrat MP, I should still vote him out in the next election in favour of a Conservative. His rationale is that a vote for the Liberal Democrats nationally is actually a vote to retain a Labour Government.

 So effectively Mr Cameron is telling me that any MP, as long as they are a Conservative, is better than someone I have come to trust and value, and with a proven track record of working hard for his constituents.

Well I am sorry Mr Cameron but I don’t pick my representatives solely on the colours they wear, so that their party can obtain power and control. I want my MP to be honest and trustworthy; to be sensitive to the issues that matter to me; an MP who is accessible and understands my everyday life. I also want my MP to stand up for justice and be principled. My MP Tom Brake isn’t just a Liberal Democrat, he is a man of values who has shown that he cares about his constituents and will speak up on their behalf.

 We have seen what abuses take place when voters blindly elect a candidate wearing the right colours without considering whether they will actually make a good MP. The scandals committed by those MPs in safe seats attest to that. Nor do I want to be told by some central bureaucracy that a particular representative is good for me (or good enough!) What does this distant authority know about my area and my concerns. What I want is a candidate who represents me, not just the Party.

 Mr Cameron’s claim that a vote for a Liberal Democrat is a vote to keep Labour in power is disingenuous. If you put a cross in the Liberal Democrat box here in Carshalton & Wallington, then that is exactly what you will get: a Liberal Democrat MP, representing you in Parliament. And having Liberal Democrat MPs in Parliament may be more important than ever at this general election. As many Labour voters find themselves unable to trust the party they once believed in, not only will the Labour majority dwindle to the extent that they lose control of the Government, they may even retain too few MPs to form an effective opposition. And the last thing we want is a Conservative landslide at the next election. That would give the Tories a mandate to do as they please.

 Not only am I unsure as to what, exactly, the Conservative plans are, other than slash and burn cuts in the public sector, but the evidence of their members’ actions to date: undermining the NHS; bowing to their anti-European factions and embarrassing themselves on the world stage by doing so; still looking for reasons to give up on the fight to address climate change, all highlight the need for a strong opposition to challenge them. And it is likely to fall to the Liberal Democrats to provide that opposition, that check on Tory absolute power.

 It has been the Liberal Democrats who have stood out against the cosy compliance of Labour and Conservatives in the past decade:opposing the invasion of Iraq; against ID cards; calling for tougher action on climate change; our positive view of Europe.

 So Mr Cameron, don’t ask me to vote out a local MP who has served me well and proved he can be trusted. And actually it is now more than ever that we need an alternative political party – the Liberal Democrats – to ensure a substantial and effective challenge to whichever party presumes it will hold power after the next election.