I am pleased to report that a new acting Beat Manager has been appointed to Twerton & Westmoreland area . Pc 1609 Adrian Secker will work with the existing PCSO’s in the Twerton & Westmoreland  area.

Pc 1609 Secker has a wealth of experience and has been patrolling the streets of Bath since 1992 and is already known to many Westmoreland residents.

Adrian describes himself as an old school Police officer that offers fairness with a no messing approach.

Local residents can contact PC Secker on 08454567000 or email him at Adrian.secker@avonandsomerset.police.uk.

I look forward to working with Adrian and feel that his no messing approach will go down well with Westmoreland residents.

The Zero Waste Week challenge is to see how little residents can throw away in their rubbish bins over the course of one week by aiming to recycle and compost as much as possible as well as trying to reuse things, like shopping bags, and avoid or reduce disposable items when possible.  This year the Zero Waste Week is taking place from Monday 29^th September to Sunday 5^th October To find out more information and register residents can visit the Council website: LINK or call Council Connect 01225 394041.

This year the four former Avon authorities have joined together to promote Zero Waste Week, making it the biggest yet. The four authorities are organising a range of events including activities with schools and community groups, displays, talks and road shows.

Film and television fans can discover more about productions, including the forthcoming blockbuster The Duchess, that were filmed in and around Bath and North East Somerset - thanks to a brand new Movie Map being launched this week.   The map has been developed by Bath & North East Somerset Council's Film Office and Bath Tourism Plus following the recent filming of two major productions in the area - ‘The Duchess', which will be released on 5 September, and BBC's ‘Bonekickers'.  

It features almost 40 films and TV series filmed in the area since 1931 including Ghost Train (1931); The Titfield Thunderbolt (1952); The Music Lovers (1969); Remains of the Day (1993); Vanity Fair (2003) and Persuasion (2006).  Locations featured include Bath's Royal Crescent, The Circus, The Assembly Rooms and The Pump Rooms, but also many in the surrounding countryside such as Midford, Monkton Combe, Norton St. Philip and Freshford, as well as well-visited ones further afield such as Lacock, Castle Combe and Marshfield.  

The map has been designed to allow visitors to Bath undertake independent walking tours. The map will complement the Clapperboard Tours' (guided tours of Bath city centre) organised by the Council's Heritage Services team which began in July.   

The map has been put together by Jan Hull, a Blue Badge Guide who is very knowledgeable about the area, using records compiled by Bath Film Office over the years.   Movie Maps have already proven successful with tourists and locals alike in other parts of the country - for example Torquay has a Miss Marple map and the Lake District a Beatrix Potter map.   The leaflet is now available from Bath's Tourist Information Centre.

 A downloadable version will soon be available on Bath Tourism Plus' website - this will be updated as more productions are filmed in the area.

It is always good to be able to bring you the latest news as to what our local MP Don Foster has been up to so I have enclosed below a link to Don’s latest E:news letter.

DON FOSTER E:NEWS

As some one who has returned to the gym to get fit after many years of not taking regular physical exercise I am keen to promote this new initiative from Bath & North East Somerset Council.

 Women and girls who would like to improve their fitness are being invited to take part in the next “Running with the Girls” course, organised by Bath & North East Somerset Council.

 The Council’s Sport & Active Leisure team is offering the perfect way to improve health and fitness with more beginners’ running courses for females who have done no previous, or very little, running. 

 The courses are led by qualified running coaches who can guide groups of beginners through from low levels of fitness and lack of running experience to five kilometres (three miles), of gentle jogging.  The leaders also offer advice around suitable footwear and clothing, and running technique, alongside promoting a safe and social environment with an element of fun at each session.

 This autumn’s courses will be offered in the Bath, Paulton and Keynsham areas, starting in the first week of September.  They will last for eight weeks, starting with an information session, followed by seven active running sessions.  Each course costs £30 per person and must be booked in advance by contacting Sport & Active Leisure on 01225 396429 or emailing getactive@bathnes.gov.uk.  Booking is essential for the information sessions which launch the courses in Bath at Odd Down Playing Fields on Monday, 1 September; Keynsham on Wednesday, 3 September, at Keynsham Leisure Centre; and Paulton on Thursday, 4 September at the Village Hall.

Sport & Active Leisure will also be offering ‘Kick Start’ courses to those wishing to improve their running distance from five Kilometres to 10 Kilometres (around six miles) from November. 

 I will certainly be joining the Half marathon training courses that will begin in the New Year as I hope that by then I will be fit enough to meet the minimum  requirement for  women to be able to complete six miles upon entry, before building up to the half marathon distance of 13.1 miles.

 I encourage all ladies if possible to come and join us.

On Saturday 16^th August tune into BBC1 at 6.15pm and watch the last Choir standing. Watch the boys from Bath sing and record the voting phone number of The Bath Male Choir on a piece of Paper and at the end of the Show vote for the boys from Bath.

Come on Bath Male Choir the whole City is behind you

Liberal Democrats in Bath & North East Somerset are continuing their call for 20mph speed limits to apply on residential roads within the authority. As part of this campaign Councillors Neil Butters (Bathavon South), Paul Crossley (Southdown) and Caroline Roberts (Newbridge) recently visited the City of Portsmouth, where 20mph limits have been introduced on almost all of the residential roads.

They found that the 20mph scheme is popular and appreciated by the vast majority of residents – the Council said they had received only 7 objections to the policy. It is improving road safety; cycling and walking are increasing; and the environment has improved.

The safety aspect is crucial and is supported by the British Medical Association (BMA). A child hit at 30mph has an almost 50% chance of dying, at 20mph this drops to just 5%.

You can join the Liberal Democrats calling on the Council to implement 20mph limits on our most residential roads by signing the on-line petition at http://ourcampaign.org.uk/twentyisplenty

Commenting, Don said, “It is absurd that the Southgate redevelopment is about to take place and Post Office Ltd have no plans to maintain a service in this area of the city. 

“With all the new shops and homes, an office here would be a real money spinner for them.  I urge Post Office Ltd to re-consider their decision to close this branch while making a decision on opening a new office as part of the new development. 

“The main city centre post office is already very busy at peak times, and I cannot see how it could possibly cope with the extra demand placed on it, not just by this development, but also by residents who were re-directed to Southgate following the previous closures of Charles Street and Widcombe.”