Night working agreed to break the back of EDF roadworks chaos
EDF’s roadwork chaos on Taunton road/Broadway could be over by summer following agreement at the latest in a series of round table meetings at Bridgwater Town Hall between Town Council leaders , EDF reps, SCC and SDC.
Stephen Gardner , the site manager for the contractors Aggregate Industries , offered a solution that focused on a programme of night work for the next phase which principally involved resurfacing – the most potentially disruptive part of the operation. If agreed this could start within 3 weeks and the whole project could be finished by the end of June .
Mr Gardner said “This will involve splitting the junction works north/south with road closures, but the works, which will be largely ‘planing’, will be undertaken between 7pm and 7am with the noisier aspects before 11pm. There will be a series of diversions in place for the duration but this approach will bring the timescale down from massively. “ Continue reading “Town Hall Agreement on Early Finish for EDF Roadworks”
Blake Gardens – now a priority site for tackling anti social behaviour
Following representations by Bridgwater Town Council and members of the general public backed up by ward councillors, the Avon & Somerset Police alongside Sedgemoor District Council have issued a statement saying they regard combating anti-social behaviour in the Town’s prestige ‘Blake Gardens’ as a priority and outlining measures to reassure the public.
The statement reads-Blake Gardens continues to be a priority for Avon and Somerset Police and Sedgemoor District Council. To help combat anti-social behaviour (ASB) in the gardens we are launching a fortnightly beat surgery in the library for locals to raise their concerns starting on Wednesday 27th May between and 10:00am and 12noon.
‘Tagging’ epidemic around the town. Police to introduce a zero-tolerance policy
Following complaints about Anti-Social behaviour at Brownes Pond which were highlighted recently following the death of a swan there in suspicious circumstances the Police have conducted extensive enquiries in relation to the incident and have also looked into the ASB claims by residents. At the same time Sedgemoor District Council has responded to other ASB issues generally by relaunching a survey to encourage people to log statistics into incidents in order to build up an evidence base.
A Police spokesman said “Following the recent information about the ongoing issues, Brownes Pond features on our ASB list and as a result, is given extra patrols by Neighbourhood PCs and PCSOs during the affected times. The Bridgwater Neighbourhood Team takes all reports of ASB seriously and all reports are followed up. CCTV would provide benefit to the ASB issues – this would be a matter led by Sedgemoor District Council, and supported by us. “
We want to hear your views
Recent claims of ASB in the Brownes Pond area have prompted Police and SDC to take action
A statement from Sedgemoor District Council said “Sedgemoor District Council is committed to making Sedgemoor a safe place in which to live, work and visit. In order to understand the issues that matter most to you, we want to hear your views on crime and anti-social behaviour, so that we can work together with local partners to address these problems.”
To this end SDC have revived a survey which was last distributed in 2013 and say they will continue to gather the information every two years to help to understand our community’s perceptions of crime and anti-social behaviour.
They continue “We would be most grateful if you could spare a few moments to complete the survey by following the link below. This consultation will be open until 31st May 2015.”
OH NO, not more promises about doing something about noise nuisance….
At the same time SDC are raising awareness of ‘Noise Nuisance and have put out a statement as follows;-
In the last 12 months Sedgemoor District Council has received 370 complaints about noise – everything from the playing loud music, excessive dog barking, DIY at unreasonable times through to people shouting.
From those complaints the Council served 7 statutory noise abatement notices on those people who continued to impose their unreasonable noisy behaviour on their neighbours. The Council also prosecuted three people for causing noise nuisance to their neighbours and also seized speakers, HI FI equipment, mixing decks and instruments belonging to those people. Thankfully the vast majority of cases are resolved through more informal channels as often neighbours may not realise the noise they generate is causing upset to others.
As a whole local authorities receive more complaints about noise every year than on any other subject. The most recently published government research showed:
· the number of people bothered by neighbour noise rose by 17% between 2002 and 2012
· one in five reported their sleep has been disturbed by noise.
As well as councils housing providers, mediation services and the police are also frequently involved in resolving noise disputes – so this represents a huge amount of time and money. Preventing noise problems is much cheaper than curing them – and better for everyone. Noise is also a public health indicator and therefore a Government target to measure and address due to the negative health effects of noise nuisance.
How to make complaints
“I heard that! Pardon?”
A spokesperson for Sedgemoor District Council said ‘Sedgemoor District Council takes noises complaints very seriously. Once we receive a complaint we will ask the complainant to complete diary sheets for about 3 weeks so we can build up a pattern and evidence file of the noise being experienced. We will then assess if the noise is likely to be a nuisance and if so we may install noise monitoring equipment into the property. During this time, whilst holding all of the complainants details in the strictest of confidence, we also contact the alleged perpetrator so they are aware their behaviour is causing a disturbance. If monitoring equipment readings show that a statutory nuisance is being caused the Council will serve a notice and may remove the offending equipment’.
If you wish to make a complaint about noise, please contact Sedgemoor District Council’s Environmental Health Service with your name, address, and the details of the noise affecting you and the address of the property or business causing you concern.
Please call 0845 408 2540, 01278 435435 or email customer.services@sedgemoor.gov.uk. You can also visit our offices in Bridgwater House, King Square, Bridgwater, TA6 3AR between 08:45-05:00pm Monday to Friday.
Cllr Kathy Pearce joins West Street residents on the May Walkabout. James Presdee from Clean Surroundings keeps note of their issues.
The West Street development in Bridgwater was devised and built in the mid 1960’s as a kind of William Morris modernist social housing project which included open plan streets and the only skyscraper in Somerset outside of Bristol and was intended to replace the slum courts that had occupied the street for 100 years beforehand.
Residents remember the 60’s and 70’s as a positive time to live in West Street with everything in the ownership of the Borough Council, well run, well maintained and with a strong sense of community.One resident recalled “Even 25 years ago, it was lovely up here. Flowers and planters on the balconies,everyone chatting to each other. But it seems these days that everyone has lost their community spirit”
Homes in Sedgemoor
Is HiS maintenance budget adequate or have they just missed a few spots of paint here and there?
It may be that this came with the introduction of the ‘ALMO’-the ‘arms length management organisation’ that Sedgemoor brought in to replace the old system of the area being council owned and council run. For West Street residents the new supremos are ‘Homes in Sedgemoor’ and Neighbourhood officer Ashley Jamesis one man who has to take on an increased responsibility for dealing with the problems of the residents.
Ward Councillors undertake regular ‘walkabouts’ with Ashley along with other agencies who have a role in the area including the Police and Clean Surroundings. Residents join in these walks and Ashley is tasked with dealing with the issues.
The most recent walkabout was on Monday 11th May.
Some drains appear to be just for decoration….
Ashley James listed the most recent problems picked up and agreed to raise orders which should be enacted within 28 days.
• Damaged wall outside 114-116 West Street
• Blocked drain outside 83-101 West Street
• Drain blocked outside 21-31 Halswell Close
• Wall surrounding Westfield House car park is damaged & a brick is missing
• Vent in laundry door at Southborne House needs securing from inside.
• Plastic trunking damaged next to laundry door at Southborne House
• A surveyor is due to go and inspect the following next week:
• Water pools inside entrance at Southborne House when raining – next to number 1
• Concrete base from removed spinner in laundry is a trip hazard;
• Wall cracked in communal area outside 38 St Matthews Green
• Damaged wall on the canal on Albert St has been passed to SDC.
The base of the old tumbler in Southborne house. Possibly a trip hazard if left as it is?
Cllr Kathy Pearce, who Chairs the West Street Residents association, said “We work closely with Homes In Sedgemoor to make sure any issues are resolved. If you feel we have missed anything, please let us know and we will arrange to visit. We’ll be posting future West Street walkabout dates on the web, so if you live in the west street area, please feel free to join us.”
The next meeting of the West Street Residents Association will be on Tuesday 16th June at Milton House, 7pm.
Tombs of the Bridgwater dead unearthed in Friarn street
Despite attempts by Westover ward councillors to prevent the development on an ancient graveyard in Friarn street the Ministry of Justice has now granted the licences and the tombs of long dead Bridgwater people are being unearthed and the remains disinterred for removal while plans for a housing project is now back on track.
Councillor Brian Smedley visited the site today after concerns from residents that screens were being put up and no-one could see what was happening. One said “We don’t know what’s going on there , we don’t know if they’ve got the permission or what they’re hiding from us and we don’t know what they plan to do the people buried there or the ornate stone tombs they’re interred in.”Continue reading “Sion Chapel Development Proceeds as Tombs Unearthed”
