Roger Gambba-Jones

Just a little play on the phrase ‘Anyone for tennis', get it?  Although I suppose if I have to explain it, it's not very clever to use it, but never mind I'm not very clever anyway! 

So on to today's subject:  Given all the bad press being generated around the subject of community action, I'm almost afraid to raise this subject.

At the last Spalding Towm Forum meeting, we discussed the possiblity of employing a street cleaner in the same way that some other towns and villages in South Holland do.  It quickly became apparent that spending £17k plus a year would not a good use of the Spalding taxpayers money, especially as the problem we were trying to deal with was in the non-town centre areas of the town.

I therefore proposed that we look at how we might be able to deal with the issue of local grot spots and general littering by recruiting volunteers that live in each ward and that of course brings me back to the issue of the recent bad press such volunteers have been given.

At what point does a community spirited volunteer, who is will ing to give up some of their personal time for the good of their community, become a snooper in the employ of the ‘system'?

As far as I'm concerned, if something is wrong, a mess is being made, or damage is being done, then it doesn't matter who reports it, as long as it get reported and fixed!

The town forum will need to decide if we are actually going to offer a small annual payment to those who volunteer, or if we are just going to provide the equipment required to do the job. 

I hope we are able to organise this, as looking after the place we live is not just about the council emptying the bins and sweeping the streets, it's much more about the people themselves playing an active role in looking after their community.