Vale Publishes Flood Review

The Vale of White Horse District Council has now published its internal review on the July floods. Do check this out on the website link below

http://www.whitehorsedc.gov.uk/council_and_democracy/council_news/DetailPage12191.asp

This will also link to the large amounts of reports and documents which have now been published in the public domain. Anyone who was listening to Radio Oxford last night or saw the local news on BBC South Today would have heard Tim Sadler, Strategic Director at the Vale, talking about this live. Everyone who sent me their questionnaire should be assured that all comments were fed into this process. Messages coming back about future preparation, in particular, regarding stocks of local sandbags are consistent with some of the areas of my report which I submitted.

There has also been a joint letter written on behalf of all district councils and the County Council to government ministers. Read the full story here

Grove Primary School Celebrates

This afternoon I had the pleasure of presenting Grove Church of England Primary School with an Inclusion Quality Mark award from the County Council. This was given to the school after an enormous amount of hard work on behalf of staff and children, led by the previous head of the school, Julie Carr, who came back today to join in the celebrations.

We all enjoyed seeing the children take part in a special assembly and hearing about the activities they have been involved with. Apparently, there are only about 20 schools in Oxfordshire who have achieved this prestigious award so congratulations to our local primary school for being amongst them.

Sunset flypast at Grove Airfield

This evening I witnessed an unforgetful ceremony at Grove Technology Park. Many local residents turned up to see the official installation of a De Havilland Venom fighter at the entrance to the former Grove airfield. Although set up last week ahead of this evening's event, we watched enthralled as this plane held aloft on a plinth was surrounded with light, fireworks and music. During the sunset, we saw a Spitfire flypast and watched its breathtaking display above.

The RAF were there along with representatives of the community, who like myself, had been invited to witness and share in this memorable occasion. This was all put together and hosted by Robert Lamplough, Chairman of Grove 2000 and will be a reminder for many years to come of how Grove played such an important part in our war history.

Grove Station back on track

The prospect of a new railway station for Grove is one step nearer after the Vale of White Horse District Council granted planning permission at the Development Control Committee meeting last night. I was there along with my District colleague Cllr. Sue Marchant, to give our support to this application.

It has been an aspiration of many residents for a long time to re-open the station after it was closed during the 60's under the Beeching cuts. Since then we have been given various reasons why the station may not be feasible, one of these reasons was that the prospects of having a rail service to serve the station are not likely in the short term. But surely what is really needed is the political will?

We need firm action from national government and the County Council to press for rail services here in the future. This needs both commitment and investment. If we are really serious about climate change then we need to provide good public transport, and this is desperately needed if Grove is expected to take any further housing development. Who will rise to the challenge?

Oxford Prison Re-visited

Last night I visited the Malmaison Hotel in Oxford for the re-opening night of the 'Visitors Room' at the previous prison. It was an eye-opener to see the huge refurbishment this hotel has undergone as part of the Castle Heritage site redevelopment some years ago with funding from SEEDA. Read the story here of the history and some of the awards they have won. It is amazing to think that this was once used for scenes from 'Porridge' and other TV series. All the hotel rooms have been converted from previous prison cells and it has all been very tastfully done. I did attend the official opening ceremony by the Queen last year.

This whole complex is a real asset to Oxford city centre and an excellent stop for visitors, especially if they also take a look inside the Unlocked musuem nearby. It is also now registered as an official site for wedding ceremonies and other civic functions as you can read here

However, last night was a precursor for Christmas so although it was nice to sample some offerings from their Christmas fare, it was a wake-up call to think that the festive season is not that far off and another year will have come and gone.

Letcombe Brook Project Meeting on Flooding

Last night there was an excellent turnout to this special meeting which was called in response to the recent flooding. The Letcombe Brook Project Partnership is funded by the Environment Agency, Grove and Wantage Joint Environmental Trusts, Letcombe Regis Parish Council and the Vale of White Horse District Council. This enables us to fund our Project Officer, Sally Wallington, who works to improve the environment of the brook and organised this event.

We had presentations from the Environment Agency which explained the incidents which led to the flash flooding on 20th July, and we also had various myths expelled like 'opening sluice gates caused the flooding' and 'we were flooded to save others downstream'. This was followed by a question and answer session with the county and district councils, Thames Water and Environment Agency. Some questions were answered more satisfactorily than others. However, the general feeling was that the meeting was well organised and that everyone had a chance to have their say.

I do hope that those residents who were flooded are now getting their lives back to some sort of normality again. We did hear from the Vale's Emergency Planning Officer that there are some really good flood prevention measures on the market now which can be used to protect one's home from serious flooding, so it is worth investigating these products if you live near the brook. However hard we try to plan, you can never predict when these freak events will happen.

If anyone has any queries regarding the Letcombe Brook, do email:

letcombebrook@hotmail.com

Local Bus Services

Today I attended the Transport Decisions Committee at the County Council to argue the case for ensuring local bus services in the Wantage, Grove and Faringdon area are continued.

Much of my casework is involved with dealing with residents' concerns about the local buses, and it is always a passion of mine to try to improve public transport. In an ideal world, people would choose to leave their cars at home because the experience of public transport is so much better than sitting in traffic jams.

Details of the individual services and any changes to those currently running will be available shortly, but I just wanted to make people aware that there are some improvements on the way. One of the possible new services will be a through service at peak times from Wantage, Grove & Hanney to Didcot and Milton Park. This is something I have been pushing for over a number of years ever since a young man came to my surgery who had lost his job at Milton Park through lack of a regular, reliable bus service to get him to work on time.

Today it was also agreed to continue to award grants towards the very successful Wantage/Grove Community Car Scheme run by the Independent Advice Centre in Wantage, the Grove 'Shopperbus' Service and Stanford in the Vale's minibus. All very valuable services run locally by volunteers and which contribute greatly to improving the lives of elderly and frail people within our community.

I had spent a long time preparing my report for submission to this committee and was very pleased that my comments were listened to and was particularly grateful for the hard work which has gone into these individual contracts by our Public Transport Team at the County. Watch this space for further details.

Lessons to be Learned from July Floods

Please see the latest news from the Oxfordshire County Council website link here where Emergency Planners from Oxfordshire County Council have passed on their views to an independently set up inquiry that is investigating the floods that struck England in July.

Let us hope that more lessons will be learnt from this and ensure we do plan and co-ordinate better in the future.

A Tour of Italian Cities

I have been away from my computer for the last two weeks on holiday in Italy. It has been a long-standing wish to visit Venice, Florence and Rome and we managed to be able to spend a few days in each. Venice is a city where people live with the regular winter floods and have to try to plan for the sinking of the city each year, made worse by the river traffic. Public transport in Venice is by water taxi and it was a joy to walk around without worrying about cars. Our hotel on the Lido had a beautiful view across the water to the city and the basillica of St Mark's.

At the other extreme is Rome where the traffic is chaos and around 2 million people travel into the city each day to work. Finding a parking space can take up to an hour. Crossing the street can be taking your life into your hands. All noisy and chaos which fitted well with the Colosseum which still holds its atmosphere after hundreds of years. We had a guided tour of the Vatican, and the Sistine Chapel did live up to its expectations.

Florence on the other hand was a mixture of both, with quiet streets and large squares in which to wander within the historic centre. Many wonderful art treasures including Michaelangelo's David were awe-inspiring and it was quite exhausting to try to fit it all in. We shall have to go back!

The only fly in the ointment were the Italian baggage handlers' strike which meant we couldn't land in Venice and had to detour to Verona which made us late on arrival. Then on our return, their decision to leave everyone's luggage on the runway in Rome in a thunderstorm. Emptying a wet suitcase is not much fun -unpacking is depressing enough without that!

But it is nice to be back! I now have a mountain of post to deal with which is always one of the joys of going away. So now I need a holiday...

Positive Action in Millbrook Square

I was delighted to receive an email communication today from the owners of Millbrook Square to confirm the following:

1. All the gullies and drains in both Millbrook Square car park and in the access road behind the shops have now been emptied and cleaned.

2. A regular maintenance programme for their cleaning is to be set up.

3. The application for the 8 flats has been withdrawn and will only be re-submitted once the Environment Agency (EA) are happy with the Flood Risk Assessment (FRA)

4. The revised FRA will be submitted next week and hopefully it will address the issues raised by the rain on 20th July. If not, then it will be amended until the EA are satisfied.

This is excellent news for the residents of Grove and I am pleased that our concerns have been taken seriously by the management of the shopping centre. This bodes well for good community relations in the future and I welcome such a proactive approach.

Council Debate on Flooding in the Vale

This evening the Vale of White Horse District Council had an extraordinary Council meeting to deal with the events surrounding the July flooding. A number of issues were discussed not least the Council's response to the recent flooding and how improvements could be made to emergency planning for the future. I certainly welcome the emergency plan's priority to put in place a robust communications strategy, because one of the main themes which emerged from the situation in Grove was the confusion of where people went for help. We need clear advice on this to pass on to residents.
Many councillors, including myself, shared experiences across the Vale, and many people suffered like ourselves and it was helpful to listen to this and from speakers who came to the meeting to address us.
We passed a cross-party motion to urgently review the Operational Flood Plan in light of the recent flooding. To bring a report to the October Executive. To consider funding for flood defences in its budget setting process. To call on responsible land owners, Oxfordshire County Council, Thames Water, Environment Agency and Network Rail to

• Carry out a major clearance of water weeds, to remove silt and remove blockages of culverts and bridges in selective areas in the Vale where urban flooding occurred
• Clear and repair any controlling outlets to the existing storage ponds where there are flooding problems
• Ensure that all sewerage pumping stations are regularly maintained in good order so as to avoid breakdown in critical flooding periods when there is a potential for overspill of sewage

So what a contrast to yesterday where at the County Council we were told that our motion on flooding was 'not urgent' and would not be discussed, yet the Vale Council were willing to give this important topic such priority that a special meeting was called to deal with it.

I look forward to reporting back on more action as it happens.

Weeds and Pavements

Numerous residents have complained to me this year about weeds and the state of many pavements in Grove and Wantage. I discovered early this summer, when I made my first enquiries, that the budget for routine weedkilling has been curtailed at the County Council and no money was being delegated to parish councils to do it either. Basically, the work wasn't being done. I had therefore prepared a motion for debate at today's Council meeting to call for the re-instatement of this budget for next year.

We have had some success with overhanging brambles being tackled in our worse areas, but as evidence in the photograph shows, our pavements are cracking up with this lack of maintenance and it will lead to more costly repairs in the future. Hardly efficient use of our money if we think about it. Urgent action is still needed.

Today was the full meeting of Council and it was an unusual day. Standing orders were suspended to allow the Leader of the Council to put forward his ideas about developing a sustainable community strategy for Oxfordshire. .... so our pavements were yet again put on the back burner. However, I live in hope and we will bring it back to the Council in November. Watch this space!

Inauguration Ceremony at Oxford Brookes University

Today I attended the inauguration ceremony of Professor Janet Beer as the new Vice-Chancellor of Oxford Brookes University. This position was previously held by Professor Graham Upton, who had played a key role on Oxfordshire County Council's Strategic Partnership. Please follow this link for details of Professor Beer's career to date:

http://www.brookes.ac.uk/about/structure/management/janet_beer

After the official ceremony, we were invited back to the gardens of Headington Hill House where we had the opportunity of meeting many of the key players in Oxfordshire's community.

Oxford Brookes University began life as the Oxford School of Art in 1865, and then expanded to become a technical college. When it moved to Headington, it became a Polytechnic and finally in 1992 it became the University that we have today. It honoured John Brookes' memory by choosing the name Oxford Brookes University. Read the full history here:

http://www.brookes.ac.uk/about/history/timeline

Now the university enjoys an excellent reputation within the academic world, so long may its success continue.

Health Walks

Today I led the health walk in Abingdon, leaving the White Horse Leisure Centre at 2.30pm on the first Sunday of every month (except Bank Holiday weekends). Walks take place every Wednesday mornings too leaving the Leisure Centre at 10.30am. We walked around the River Thames over the lock and back through Abbey Meadows. The river is still very full, but the meadow has completely dried out after the floods. Health walks take place all over the county and indeed all over the country and were set up and funded by the Countryside Agency (now renamed Natural England). Visit their website at: http://www.whi.org.uk/

to find out where walks are taking place in your area.

I helped to set up health walks in Wantage too, which take place every Thursday at 10am at the Vale and Downland Museum in Church Street, Wantage. If you wish to come along, please do just turn up, there is a small health assessment form to fill in, but otherwise you can just join in as and when you wish to. It is all completely free and run by volunteer walk leaders.

Walks are usually just about 1-3 miles long, and take up to an hour. It is a great way to keep fit if you don't get much exercise and a way of meeting new faces with similar interests.

The Big Housing Debate

Yesterday the South East Regional Assembly (SEERA) published the Independent Inspector's Report on the Draft South East Housing Plan. This looks at how much housing should be built in Oxfordshire and the rest of south east England .

For Oxfordshire, the Draft South East Plan proposed building 2,360 homes each year in Oxfordshire over the 20 year period. The inspectors’ report proposes a slightly higher figure of 2,730 but endorses Oxfordshire County Council's call for sufficient investment in infrastructure to support those new houses in terms of schools, health services, road and rail improvements, water and sewerage. So although this has effectively slashed the government's expectations for new housing, we shall have to wait to hear from the Government Minister, Hazel Blears, who will have the final say. A summary of the report can be found at this link:
http://www.southeast-ra.gov.uk/southeastplan/plan/inspectors_report.html

What may cause some concern for Oxfordshire County Council's planners is the Panel's recommendation for a strategic urban extension of 4,000 dwellings on the southern edge of Oxford which will require a "highly focused selective" review of the Green Belt. Considering the County Council have advocated housing growth at Bicester, Didcot and Wantage/Grove, will this mean there will be a change in direction now or not? It would be interesting to hear your views on this debate.

Latest Information on Flood Recovery Relief Fund

I now have the latest information from the Vale of White Horse District Council which says that householders affected by the July floods will each receive a £250 grant as stated in my previous post.

The Government has announced that the Vale will receive a total of £250,000 in emergency recovery grant to help flood-hit members of the community.
Any remaining capital will be invested in capital schemes to protect against future flooding.
The Council will be using the Government's definition of flooded properties to determine eligibility, which is floodwater inside homes.

So far, the Vale has recorded more than 600 flooded homes and this figure could increase.
Each household recorded as being affected will be sent an application form for the grant and payment will be made to the bank account of the person responsible for paying the Council Tax. Any householder who believes that they may be entitled to this grant who has not received a letter inviting them to apply within the next week or so should contact the council on 01235 520202 or visit the website at:

http://www.whitehorsedc.gov.uk/

The Red Cross Relief Fund should also soon start to distribute awards, so the application form includes a section for those people who believe they are in particular hardship. This information will be passed on to the Red Cross for consideration.

Grants up to £2500 will be made available to businesses affected by the floods to help them to develop recovery plans. The South East England Development Agency (SEEDA) is making this funding available as part of an initial package to help businesses to make as swift as possible a recovery from flooding. Full information at this link:

http://www.seeda.co.uk/news_&_events/press_releases/2007/20070724.asp

Flood Recovery Grants

Yesterday I attended the first Flood Recovery Advisory Group at the Vale of White Horse District Council. This is a cross-party group set up under authority delegated by the Leader of the Council to consider lessons to be learnt from the flooding events in July 2007 and to advise the Executive on how the Recovery Grant should be spent.

We all shared experiences right across the Vale. We also heard about some interesting good practice happening in Kennington where flooding did not occur due to the pro-active approach taken by their local community with setting up flood defence groups by using volunteers.
It was decided that all households which were flooded would be offered a grant of £250 to help them to get back on their feet and advice would also be given to help to protect themselves in future.

There is now an extra-ordinary Council meeting on 12th September to discuss the following:
1. The Council's response to the recent flooding
2. Improvements to emergency planning and response
3. Development policies and responses to consultation on major infrastructure - influence on future flooding incidents
4. Flood recovery grant allocation

I have now received 60 replies to my questionnaire on flooding in Grove and have sent my report to the County, the Vale and Grove Parish Council. I have also sent a copy to our Letcombe Brook Officer who is looking into some of the issues relating to the brook.

More flood feedback

Today I met residents of Vale Avenue along with the County highways drainage engineer so that we could discuss what happened to this area during the floods on 20th July. We followed the line of Pill ditch from Mary Green at the back of Millbrook Square right up Vale Avenue, over Kingcup Green to where the original line of the ditch goes out onto the A338.

It was useful to share views and concerns and learn about the history of this area in the past, where the brook regularly flooded the water meadows (by Bosleys' Orchard). This meant the silt fertilised the grass to make it ideal grazing land for the cattle and the old Saxon Pill Ditch used to carry the excess water away. It seemed that the water decided to follow its old route during the flood and consequently used the road to find its way. We are hoping that improved drainage will alleviate this problem in the future.

Flood walkabout in the rain

Today I met the emergency planning officer from the Vale and we went on a walkabout in Grove visiting the flood-affected areas around the Letcombe Brook. We started on The Green, where the new footbridge has been repaired and on through Bosley's Orchard, Membury Way, Kingfishers, Cane Lane and Sharland Close. We met some residents along the way and finally ended up back at the parish council. It started pouring with rain on our way back, so we got pretty drenched.

I have passed over a preliminary copy of the report I am compiling on the flood in Grove on 20th July (see previous blog) so that issues raised by residents can be dealt with. Questionnaires are still coming back and so it needs constantly updating, but hopefully we shall get there in the end!

We are preparing to have a meeting for all residents in the Grove and Wantage area on Friday 5th October. More details on this will be made available nearer the time, but we are looking to have representatives from a number of the relevant authorities to be able to answer some questions and give advice. Do watch this space.

Litter picking in Grove

This morning, I joined local volunteers in the village for a litter pick. We began at 9am and were joined by the Vale of White Horse District Council's new Environmental Wardens, Colin Marshall and Sadie Broadbridge. The wardens can arrange for litter picking kits to be deliverd to local communities to use in cleaning up their own areas, and it can make a really big difference.

Some of us went to Millbrook Square and others went to Grovelands Shopping Centre by the Co-op and we hoped that by the end of the morning, Grove would be a cleaner place. It was amazing how quickly you can fill a black rubbish sack (all provided free). It is heartening that Grove is fortunate to have willing volunteers doing this on a regular basis and thanks to the parish council for giving their support to this scheme.

Unfortunately, too many people throwing away their crisp packets or soft drinks cans makes everywhere look untidy, but the new litter wardens should be able to put a stop to this. They can issue fixed penalty notices to those caught dropping litter or letting their dogs foul.

So this is welcome news and we hope will act as a deterrent in the future. Anyone interested in holding a litter pick do call the Vale at 01235 520202 or email:
environmental.protection@whitehorsedc.gov.uk