School Closures - Thursday 30 June

As most people will know, there are plans for widespread industrial action on Thursday 30th June (i.e. tomorrow). This will affect a number of schools and the county council has provided a school closures page, which can be consulted for the details about local schools.

This can be found here.

Britain (including Oxfordshire) from the Air

If you are in Oxford, take the opportunity to have a look at the Britain from the Air exhibition around the Castle. This is a stunning set of aerial photographs on show until 4th September and more information can be found here.  The photos are taken from all around the UK and there are some from Oxfordshire, including the White Horse at Uffington shown above. My personal favourite? If I had to choose, it would be this spectacular view of Suilven in the north west of Scotland:

Co-ordinated Buses, Smarter Ticketing

After many years of campaigning, I am pleased to report that there will be greater flexibility over the operation of buses in Oxford. There will be a new package of co-ordinated timetables and shared, smartcard ticketing between the Oxford Bus Company,  Stagecoach and Thames Travel.

This will go live across Oxford from 24 July and further details can be found here. This should mean that it will not matter which of the two buses you catch in my photo shown on the left - you will be able to use one ticket. We should all gain from this - less bus congestion and more flexbility for travellers. 

A Tale of Two DIY Stores

As we have heard, the Focus DIY stores in Wantage and DIdcot are closing down and have been in sales mode for the last few weeks. The photo above was taken on the 4 January 2008 and shows the steel frame of the Wantage store being erected - so it has only been with us for three years. What next for this outlet? I dont know, but it strikes me that this could be a good location for a new cinema now that we have lost the previous one in Newbury Street. Any other suggestions?

Of course, in Grove we have the wonderful Smiths DIY that really does try and sell amost everything.

I understand that the present owners are moving on and they are only at the store for a few more days before new owners take over. They have really built up the business and made it one of the focal points of the village. So, good luck to them and very best wishes for the future.

Summer of a Lifetime

This is the name of a programme being run by Oxfordshire County Council for 16-year-olds (16 by the 31st August 2011) to take part in a summer-long programme of events which will give them the chance to develop vital skills such as team-working, leadership, communication, negotiation and decision-making. 

There are just 60 places available. The 6 week programme starts in July so you need to sign up now!  See further details here.

Help for Carers Available

I have been asked to publicise an event on Thursday 23rd June 2 - 4.30pm at Richmond Villages, Letcombe Regis which is being organised by Oxfordshire Carers' Forum.  Confidence 2 Care is a programme for carers which is entirely free of charge so if there is anyone reading this who wishes to express an interest they should book now on 01235 520463.  As I reported last week it was National Carers' Week and we were signing a wall at County Hall with our messages of support.  Anything we can do to help our carers in the job they do has to be welcome.

Armed Forces Community Covenant

Oxfordshire has become the first area in the country to launch the Armed Forces Community Covenant scheme.  Read the press release here.  I was in attendance this morning at the ceremony and signed the covenant along with other councillors and officials who came along to the event.  

Then, this afternoon, it was the 'Raising of the Flag' ceremony which takes place every year in the run up to Armed Forces Day.  I am pleased to see the support given to our armed forces in Oxfordshire with £100K being given in our budget this year - we must show our appreciation for all they do on our behalf.

Wilts and Berks Canal

As it was a fine evening, I took a walk along the Wilts and Berks Canal between Grove and East Challow. I had forgotten quite how peaceful  this walk is and how easy it is to escape into the countryside. Along the way, I observed the antics of a Red Kite (pictured above).

When I returned home, I realised that I had missed a "Guided Summer Canal Walk" earlier today, which was organised as part of the Wantage Summer Festival and followed much the same route. However, I note that a different tour (of the Grove flight of 6 locks) is planned for this Thursday 23rd June at 7.30pm and there is another longer walk (to Sparsholt) on Saturday 25th June at 10.30am. Further details about supporting the restoration of the canal and the walks can be found here.

Education Matters Meeting

I attended this meeting last night at King Alfred's 6th form and there was quite a good attendance.  County Officers were there to give us a presentation regarding pupil numbers and projections for primary school places in Wantage.  There were a number of parents who were clearly unhappy with the situation, especially those who had not got their first preference, and there were some whose children were being bussed out to village schools.   There was quite a heated discussion about the supervision of primary school children on school buses.  There was also some unhappiness expressed regarding the late notification of places (May) - this was blamed on central government.

However, what did come out of the meeting is that now Charlton Primary School will potentially have a 2 form intake of 60 children with its proposed expansion, and Grove CofE school will potentially take 30 children there should be capacity in the system this coming year (September).  However, what is clear is that this is a moving feast as you can never predict how many people with children will move into an area (or move out)  and what choices parents will make regarding the local schools.  At the moment, Grove CofE school does have spare places for local children, so I do advise any parents looking for a place for their child go along to take a look round the school - they will be made very welcome I am sure.

We also had an update from the head of King Alfred's Community College about their admissions too and parents were assured that at the present time there is still room in the school for local children to attend.   However, with the school's recent 'outstanding' Ofsted report, the school is enjoying increased popularity.   The situation will be continually monitored both by the school and the Local Authority.

Debates at County Hall

Today I have been at the County Council all day where we have debated a whole range of motions.  Firstly, we had a debate on the future of BBC Oxford because I am sure many of you will have heard that our local radio and television is under threat due to £89M of cuts to be made from the national BBC Journalism budget.  I put forward an amendment to ensure that radio was included because this is such a vital local service.  I remember during the July 2007 floods many people found BBC Radio Oxford a lifeline as it brought up to date news whether you were stranded in your car or at home.  The Council will write to the Chairman of the BBC Trust and Director General of the BBC.  I must admit I have already emailed the BBC Trust with my concerns.

We debated National Carers week (13th - 19th June) and all councillors including myself were signing on the 'Carers Wall' which was hung in the foyer.  I think the NHS and social services would collapse without dedicated carers looking after their families and friends, and a special tribute was paid to young carers.   My message was 'A big thank you to you all!"

We also debated the adverse Care Quality Commission report which made press headlines about a private care home in Oxfordshire some weeks ago.  It was agreed unaminously to make sure proper monitoring takes place in future.

We then welcomed the Coalition Government's announcement to replace the Educational Maintenance Allowance and called on the council to urge take up of this support for our young people in school, especially those from disadvantaged backgrounds.  This was voted through despite Labour voting against.

It was then the turn of libraries where I put forward an amendment calling on the Cabinet to quantify the savings it is proposing to make from the library service.  This includes the staff reorganisation and reduction (using more volunteers), more efficient procurement of book stock and developing existing library buildings for mixed use and by charges for services provided by libraries.  Much as we all welcome the reprieve, we need to clarify the position for the future and ensure that we do not end up in a similar position again.  This was voted down by the ruling group.

And finally, we debated the restructure of the youth service and called for the Cabinet to ensure there are trained youth workers at the new 'hubs' which are being set up under the recent service redesign.  This was also voted down.  So I suppose the message here is that you win some and you lose some - but that's democracy at its best.  Shame there are no webcams or you could have watched it all for yourself!

Oh I nearly forgot - we rounded off the day with a seminar on adult safeguarding.  This is a very serious matter, but there is a dedicated service at the County Council for anyone who has concerns.

Local Meeting on Educational Issues

A public meeting has been arranged to take place this Thursday 16th June at 7pm at King Alfred's 6th Form at Centre site in Wantage.  It will be of interest to all parents of children from ages 0 -11 because it will include topics such as the local authority's admissions policy and secondary education needs.  There will be an officer from the County Council and the Cabinet member for Education to answer questions and listen to any concerns.  I shall be there as well as Cllr. Hannaby as your local county councillors. 

Oxfordshire Youth Arts Partnership - Concert and Auction

Tonight, I went to Asthall Manor for a summer concert and fundraising auction for the OYAP Trust (Oxfordshire Youth Arts Partnership). OYAP became an independent charity in 2005 and works with young people, espcially those most isolated, vulnerable and at risk, to give them the opportunity to improve through artistic expression and to participate in the arts. 

The concert performance was donated by the classical guitarist Craig Ogden and his wife opera singer (mezzo soprano) Claire Bradshaw - both pictured above. Craig was nominated for the 2011 Classic FM Album of the Year and Claire has played a number of principal roles with major opera companies. Asthall Manor was an excellent venue for this event and provided an opportunity to explore its gardens.   The concert was perfomed in the ballroom.  The manor has quite a bit of history - not least as the childhood home of the Mitford sisters.

Hopefully, the evening provided a good funding boost for OYAP and - oh yes - I came home with a case of wine from the silent auction.

Consultation on Free Bus Passes

The management of the concessionary bus pass scheme now falls on the County Council and they are currently consulting on the application process.   The proposed scheme offers the statutory requirements plus two enhancements - 9:00am (rather than 09:30 am) weekday start time and the availability of companion passes to enable disabled pass-holders who are unable to travel unaccompanied to bring a carer or companion with them free of charge.  Not included in the scheme are travel tokens as an alternative. 

In order to develop plans for this service from 1 April 2012, the County Council are looking at ways to standardise the application and card-issuing process across the county. Any changes would mainly affect those applying after 1 April 2012 rather than existing bus pass holders. To ascertain public opinion on any potential changes there is a consultation on the application process for Concessionary Fares between 6 June 2011 and 10 July 2011. The scope of this consultation is only around the application process and does not cover the operation of the scheme which has been previously consulted on.

Let There Be Light

This morning, I was in London to attend a meeting with Eric Pickles at Eland House, the Department of Communities and Local Government to discuss local government issues.

On a local matter, I and other residents have noticed that some of the street lights along Oxford Lane have failed yet again. I have reported this and it is apparently due to another cable fault.   This problem seems to have been ongoing for years.  As you will see from my previous post, it was supposedly fixed in 2009 only to recur yet again. 

Salisbury - Science and Inspiration

Over to Salisbury this evening where they have a fantastic Cafe Scientifique - all run by volunteers interested in science and helping the local community. An example of the "Big Society" before it became a political catchphrase. The pictures above show Salisbury Cathedral during a very quick visit, and the stunning font designed by William Pye and installed in 2008. In the photo, the font looks like it is made of solid black marble, but what you see, in fact, is the reflection from the surface of the water. A truly inspirational cathedral - well worth a much longer visit.

Tales From King James in Oxford

Tonight, I went to see the Creation Theatre production Tales From King James in St Barnabas Church in Jericho, Oxford.This was an excellent backdrop for the play (see above), which had just two actors -Tom Peters and Raewyn Lippert - performing the stories. It is, of course, the 400th anniverary of the King James Bible, which was completed in 1611. The show is running until 11 June and tickets can be booked here.