Suzanne Fletcher's Blog

a welcome change from Party politics and preparation for John becoming Mayor (gosh it happens on April 2^nd - not long now!).  I was accompanying him for a discussion, training and information gathering session on diversity issues.  How he can best work with, promote and assist the disability and faith and ethnic diversity issues.  Some interesting and exciting ideas.

Along with ward mate Julia I had put in a request under the new "system" for the Clarence Street Surgery (January 24^th) to be dealt with at planning committee, so a decision was made by Councillors not just officers, and made in public too.  Depressing to get a message telling me that the request has been refused as it didn't fit the policy.  So a huge decision is going to be made with no reference to members.  It has not been scrutinised by the scrutiny committee, and will not get any scrutiny at planning committee.  Thankfully I do trust that the planning officers will do their very best, it is not that they are not trusted, but there are some principles here.  However principle is not an "in" word.  "Strategies and polices" rule the day.

Unlike yesterday, a day when you lose the will to be a Councillor.  "Members Advisory Panel" was depressing - I hope the culprits are not reading this, I don't want them to have the satisfaction of knowing.

Just less than a year ago the same panel looked at a request for a way of commemorating Stockton born Brass Crosby.  They (meaning the Labour representatives) thought of every reason not to (after all this was research I had done, and the man opened up democratic proceedings for the public!).  They came up with the wheeze that we needed a "strategy" and told officers to go away and do one, obviously hoping it would disappear, and after all officers of the Council do have better things to do.

I was pleasantly surprised that a report had been done, a "strategy" worked out.  However the Labour members fought against it and deferred it yet again sending it to the filing tray behind the filing cabinet.  Local people proud of their heritage will not be pleased.

Then we had a decision about "extra" Council meetings.  They want them at 4.30 p.m. instead of 7.00 p.m. "to give more time to consider".  What they really mean is so they can watch the football I'm sure.  Just think how difficult 4.30 p.m. is for anyone with children to feed and put to bed; a meal to cook for the family; who needs to eat a meal at a normal time.  People at work coming straight to a meeting and then having an evening meeting could go 9 hours without food.  Find a doctor who will say that is good for you!

there is nothing like getting down to grass roots.  A difficult footpath to mend, a cycleway in need of repair and an unadopted path that people actually use.  Tree branches down, litter in the beck, grass growing through the difficult path.  E-mail is great, digital photos are useful, but there is no real alternative to wrapping up well, getting out there and meeting with the Council "man" and local residents to have a good look and walk round.  We have some good cost effective solutions - but will they pass the bureaucratic hurdles ?  we will see.

RSPB birdwatch today.  A good excuse to go and sit in the garden room and watch and record the birds.  Last year there was a solitary blackbird - someone else must have been putting out better food! However we had just installed a cat deterrent gadget, and put up a new birdseed holder.  Lo and behold - 6 times as many, but we generally do see more.  Nothing exotic, sparrows, tits, blackbirds, robin and sometimes a wren, but I just love seeing them come and make themselves at home in the garden.

The wind was enough to blow you sideways, literally, so it wasn't a good journey up the A1 to the Angel of the North Inn for the North East Housing Board Voluntary Sector Advisory Board.  Needless to say I got lost and only arrived at the right place after numerous mobile phone calls - the best reason for printing off the google map was that it had the phone number on.  Amazing that with all of that buffeting the Angel stood there firm and strong.  Only one photo came out properly, my arm was being blown around!

The purpose of the meeting was to go through a number of housing related items with other people from the voluntary sector (I represent Housing Action North East, or HANE).  It is all interesting, but of course the test is - do we make a difference ?  I am appalled that the "Single Housing Investment Pot" which is the main source of money for housing projects for the north east has been drastically reduced.  We should know our place, the south east has problems.  But I note they are wanting to copy our Angel of the North.  Some things are priceless.

looking at the wewbiste for the Angel I see that it is the 10th anniversary of its installation on February 14th and they are looking for children born on 14/02/1998 - if you know anyone, do get them to look at the website.

The Central Area Partnership Board was the only public forum for Stockton people to hear about the proposals about the new Clarence Street Surgery today (more about this on the 10^th January entry).  There is always a sense of relief when you make a fuss about something, nobody takes much notice, and then the penny drops and others join in saying "I  cannot believe it is that bad, why didn't anyone tell me!".

Community Representatives were most disturbed to find out what was planned with no, absolutely no, planning about people getting to this new super duper surgery on foot.  People who make such plans don't have to walk quite a way when in pain or discomfort; don't have to worry about catching 4 buses; don't even realise it will cost £3.75 for a return trip to the Doctor's when they used to just walk there.

A lot of work is going to have to be done, especially having a pedestrian crossing over a busy by pass, and just who is going to pay for it all ?  The only thing I am certain of is that the Council will get the blame!  Not that they are completely blameless - it should have been properly scrutinised by the Health Scrutiny Committee.

More tests to go.  It seems from my hospital visit that I do not have psoriasis after all, despite being treated for it for 4 years.  No wonder the treatment was not working.  However more tests are needed to establish what it is, but in the meantime I can get a nights sleep if I am prepared to stay sleepy for the morning too!

Council meeting was a testing time for some too.  I had 2 formal questions and John had 3.  It was looked at rather askance - it delayed some people getting home to the TV, but there needs to be public accountability and questioning, it is what we are there for.  I am rather pleased to have established that Council vehicles must be told that they cannot park on pavements now, thus setting a good example, unless they really must for health and safety reasons.  A bit more care from pavement parkers, and there are less "trips" to be made by pedestrians.

Our Group Leader, Maureen Rigg made an excellent job of putting forward a proposal supported by all parties to support the Fire Authority in it's fight against funding cuts.  They have enough to do without that - the test will be - will the Government take notice ?

The Housing and Neighbourhood partnership does not sound like a very exciting meeting - but it was!  I have long been concerned about the situation that an increasing number of people find themselves in, where they are buying a house on a mortgage, financial circumstances change, so they can no longer afford to pay.  There are few lines of help.  If someone is on income support they can qualify for getting the interest (not capital) payments made, but only after being on income support for one year - a long time to wait.  Some people have insurance that covers it, but not many have, and those that do the insurance often finds a loophole not to pay up.  So the spiral downhill begins of repossession, people having to find somewhere else to live or being re housed by the Council as homeless.  I had asked for this issue to be put on the agenda, and not only did we talk about it, but someone from the Joseph Rowntree Housing Trust came along to talk about "reverse staircasing".  This is a way that people can remain in their own homes in such situations and pay rent or part rent for which they can get housing benefit for if income is low enough.  Obviously they do not own all of the home then - but they haven't lost it either.

A brilliant idea that I hope we can take up locally and elsewhere.

There has to be payback for having the day off.  The Council minute book is to be read in advance of the Council meeting next week.  As usual it induced a couple of snoozes, but some interesting questions to ask came to the surface!

Gosh - the sun is shining!  Could I resist leaving the filing, the Council minute book, the reading pile, and so on .... Yes, I could.  The hills beckoned and we had a lovely if painful walk on Carlton Bank, not far away.  Splendid views over Teesside, and the hills around.  However I am worried about global warming yet again. 

It is still winter, but we have two snowdrops in the garden and our neighbours still have a beautiful single rose bloom.  You couldn't not enjoy the beauty of all these, but addressing climate change is a must.  At least the electricity bill is from "Good Energy" which uses 100% renewable energy sources.

I am getting rather fed up of hearing about the woes of retailers because people hadn't spent as much money as they would have liked us to over Christmas.  There must be a limit as to how much people actually need.  Maybe, by now, people have got all of the TV screens, and other such entertainment paraphernalia.  Maybe they have all the jewellery they can wear, and all the other expensive things that retailers are disappointed not to have sold.  There is talk of lowering interest rates to encourage people to buy.  Fair enough, reducing mortgage payments will free up some money to spend, but surely they are not wanting people to take out credit to buy ? or are they ?

I would prefer it if retailers concentrated on customer service instead.  I do want to get a small, lightweight laptop.  However what is holding me back is not knowing where to go.  Who is going to explain properly the different brands, give some proper advice on "protection" and be there to deal with problems if they occur?  If you know, let me know if it is nearby, I've been wanting to do this for nearly a year now.

A heartening story today.  Sadly some sapling Elm Trees (my ward is called Bishopsgarth and Elm Tree) are going to have to be felled as there are problems they are alleged to be causing.  However the local wildlife expert, from Tees Valley Wildlife Trust, had told me that he is going to try to make sure the trees are not chipped straight away.

Why I ask ?  The elm trees are host to eggs of the White Letter Hair Streak Butterfly, and this is a crucial season for the eggs.  They are going to be carefully moved to a living tree.  I find it quite thrilling that such tiny eggs that most of would not even see are going to be paid such attention to make sure that this rare butterfly survives and thrives.  Apparently it is now quite rare and Elm Tree is a site where they flourish.  In this brash world where targets and materialism abound, thank goodness there are people prepared to put themselves out for the conservation of our wildlife.

There was no reason not to go in to Stockton for my voluntary work this morning on the bus.  It wasn't raining, I didn't have anything heavy to carry, I didn't have a 100% strict deadline.  I had some podcasts to listen to on the new MP3 player and a bus pass in my pocket.

BUT

The bus was 20 minutes before it arrived ( and yes, there were 2), the road was so noisy I couldn't listen, there was a long crawl into Stockton (I later found there had been an accident causing traffic diversion) but of course I couldn't take any of the little diversions I know.  Result - it took minutes short of an hour to do a journey taking 12 minutes in the car.

In compensation I did spend quite a bit of time battling on the issue of the Clarence Street Surgery move that is going to mean people without cars having to take 2 buses, that will cost them nearly £4.00 for a return trip if they don't qualify for a bus pass.  It is beyond me how people can say such a move is wonderful.  They obviously travel by car.  The very thought of it puts my one bad journey into perspective.

Ward surgery tonight had no local residents but a serious problem arrived in the form of 2 serving Firemen.

There are great problems as the Government has reorganised how the funding is allocated and the Cleveland Fire Authority has been penalised.  This is because under the new formula areas that are COMAH (that means lots of high risk chemical industries) and with high deprivation, do not get funding for that anymore.

The Firefighters were understandable worried about the cuts that would have to be made because of this, and how it would affect fighting fires, being available and health and safety.

Do Ministers and civil servants down in Whitehall have any idea as to what effect on the ground there is as a result of them fiddling around with figures on their desks.  Surely the Firefighters have enough of a problem doing the job they do so well without having to worry about having the ability to do what they are trained to do.

Nuclear Power, NICE, and Northern Rock all in the news.

I am angry at the proposals to develop nuclear power, and thank goodness our Party is speaking out about it.  I note there is nothing (sensible) in Government proposals about how much it will cost and even more so - where are they going to dispose of the waste.  Before they even think of it - not under Billingham as they tried to do 25 years ago.

NICE - the body that makes decisions on which medicines can be prescribed.  Well done Lib Dem Sandra Gidley MP for speaking out on the need for NICE to be an independent organisation and not linked in to Government where decisions can be taken on the basis of cost not merit.

Northern Rock.  Much is said, the most sensible of comments coming, not surprisingly from Vince Cable.  However, please anyone reading this, don't forget that whilst everyone wrings their hands over the Rock, there are thousands of Farepak customers who were fleeced of their savings over a year ago, and still not had them restored - or even had the headline debates about it.

All national problems with a very local impact.  However this morning I thought I would just "pop round" with our ward surgery poster to 3 elderly people's accommodation's, the community centre, and look at some paths.  Guess who was very late to meet someone and spent all afternoon doing casework !

If you want a real refreshing read have a look at Lord Greaves's entry for 10^th January in "They Work For You".  He was speaking on the Government's Community Empowerment Bill.  Anyone who has to read all of the nonsense we are bombarded with as Councillors will just love his take off of "going to the pub", will enjoy the tonic.

All who write such documents should read it too - they may see it as others do, and have a re-think!

A whole day to catch up!  Having been out most of the week (out of the house 51 hours) it was much needed, although there are still papers to sort from all of the meetings I have been to.  It makes me think about how much are we worth, as Councillors ?  Councillors allowances are about to be debated and decided on at Stockton, and it is difficult.  There are still those who think Councillors do nothing but "line their pockets".  There are also those who think we are there to do whatever needs doing 24/7, and have secretarial and other support to do so.  I am in the lucky position that I don't have to have my Councillors allowance to live on from day to day, but others do, and it is difficult to get a job if a prospective employer knows you are going to need a lot of time off.  I haven't spent time analysing it but I am sure that I am paid less than the minimum wage if our present allowance (less than many other Councils of the same size and around £6,150 a year).

Bringing this into perspective, I find out today that asylum seekers in the Country who have been refused and are waiting for appeals to be heard are given vouchers, not money to live on.  The vouchers are for £35 a week and have to be spent in a named big supermarket.  Imagine that every single thing you buy has to be from that one shop.  Nothing to spend in the market, in a bargain shop or charity shop, or a bus fare. Imagine that you do not spend the full amount of the voucher all at once at the supermarket and so they get the profit.  Imagine having to carry everything at once.

And that is how we value people who have fled their own Country fearing their lives.

Makes you think, doesn't it.

Another meeting about Fair Trade, and the plans for February 22^nd.  The Council are planning to hire a large "snakes and ladders" board to have outside the Town Hall with Fair Trade messages to direct you up the ladder or down the snake.  Should be fun.

However a funeral followed.  Carolyn Crean had worked for the Community for many years and sadly died suddenly aged only 44.  I first knew her as the key employee of the Teesside Rent Guarantee scheme that I had helped to set up.  She then worked for the Anti Social Behaviour Team, and before she died the Domestic Violence project.  I visited this much needed project on 9^th May when I was Mayor, and excellent and pioneering work was being done under Carolyn's guidance.  Not only will the work she did live on, it must do, but it said on the service sheet that 8 people had benefited from organs she had donated.  8 people. 

If only everyone made it clear that they were willing for their organs to be used, and those close to them understood that.  A friend I visited over Christmas is waiting for a kidney transplant, and having to undergo gruelling dialysis till she gets one.  Please do what you can to encourage others to register, it can be done on-line.

I should know by now, but I find it difficult to believe that a new doctors surgery can be planned with no regard for people who can now just walk to the surgery, or catch one bus.  The plan is to put the existing Doctor's surgery in Elm Tree into a wonderful new practise at the bottom of the Durham by pass.  I have no doubt that this will lead to better medical care and better facilities for these patients.  However on meeting up with some of those responsible for the planning of the move I am horrified how little has been understood.

No, there isn't a dedicated Patient Transport Unit in Stockton to whiz people to appointments.  No, the bus service will not adapt to take people a different way round.  No, the Council cannot arrange that they do.  No, it is not reasonable for one person under pension age to pay nearly £4.00 to go to the doctors.  No people do not get free bus passes because they are ill.  No not everyone will qualify for Dial a Ride.  No Dial a Ride does not have limitless capacity.  Yes, they can manage with just one bus which is cheaper, but it is a walk that can take 10 minutes on a route without dropped kerbs.  Yes it is going to be very difficult for many people.

If I had time I would go through all our plans and strategies and see how many this arrangement is going to contradict.  I would make the time if I thought it would help anyone, but this has, apparently, been planned for years.  It would have been good if those people on the ground that represent people (they are called councillors) had been involved earlier.

Another non stop day, this time 13 hours out of the house, yesterday 11 hours.  Voluntary work (definitely feet on the ground there!) followed by deep massage on my legs.  Painful, but oh, wonderful - I couldn't even feel my knees as I walked out.  Sadly it doesn't last forever, but I am thankful for some relief.

A meeting of the Renaissance Partnership was less exhilarating.  It was wonderful to see so many people there from the voluntary and community sector and all the movers and shakers in the Borough.  However I confess to being completely uninspired by lengthy presentations on how wonderful everything was, distracted somewhat from such achievements by needing to spend over an hour on the blackberry dealing with many things that had gone wrong.

A party meeting followed.  Was I glad to get home and eat some proper food that night!

It is always good to have a meeting about something real that you can see, touch and feel!  Even smell.  We spend so much of our times on strategies and policies it is important that we keep our feet on the ground.   Very much on the ground in this case as we deal with Elm Tree Wood, The Meadow and Hardwick Dene.  I still marvel that we have such a wonderful natural resource in the midst of our urban area.  Long may it remain so.

A meeting with other group members makes me think about time spent on Council work.  What do we do, where do we go, what makes a difference and what do we enjoy ?  All food for thought as we make plans ahead - but wherever we go it needs to be feet on the ground!

Things are looking up at Elm Tree Community Centre with a new committee getting settled in, and a manager starting on Monday morning, so I didn't leave feeling fraught for a change.  However keeping feet on the ground was difficult as we came out into a terrible storm with horizontal driving hail (no, I am not exaggerating!).  Just walking was difficult, and I was drenched.  Just a reminder we haven't had much of a winter yet, and those snowdrops peeping through in the garden are a wee bit early.

Back to the fray!  I am way behind writing the blog, partly due to sharing the computer with John because of his loss of the hard drive, so I am just making a few notes.

I enjoyed our first meeting.  It was with John, planning activities and sharing thoughts with Council officers for his year that begins on April 2^nd - doesn't seem far away now.

At the Fair Trade meeting that followed we also had an enjoyable time planning for Fair Trade fortnight, which is 25th February to 9th March.  Stockton Town Centre events will be on Friday 22^nd February, during half term.

Sadly a funeral followed.  Joan Hodgson had been a very longstanding member of the Liberal Democrats, being a founder member of the SDP, and joining the new party on merger.  Joan had delivered umpteen leaflets, stood for Council elections each time, contributed to our discussions and policy events, to say nothing of fund raising.  She had also served on the School Governing body of Frederick Nattrass School, and some Council education panels.  Most of all she was always there to give moral support.  There was a lot of other voluntary work that she did too.  A huge contribution that was unsung and mostly unrecorded.  It is people like her that make the society we live in so much better.  Thank you Joan, and may she Rest in Peace.

A service of thanksgiving for the work of our local Hospice, The Butterwick Hospice, was the first Deputy Mayoral engagement of the year.  They do sterling work and it always good to say Thank You, not just to those who care, but those many unseen people who work tirelessly behind the scenes raising funds and supporting the front  line.  I have huge admiration for the work that they all do, and the outreach service of the Butterwick which was something of a trailblazer, was one of my charities when Mayor.  It does annoy me though that such huge amounts of money have to be raised for the hospice services to run day in and day out.  I feel that the Government should fund the basic services and fund raising should only need to be done for the crucial "extras" that the hospice provides that make such a difference.

A wonderful break, but back to reality.  For those who haven't made a New Year's resolution - here is a practical one to get on with now!  When John switched his computer back on he found the hard drive had collapsed (whatever that means), and yes, you've guessed it - it wasn't backed up, so a lot of information has been lost. One of the nice things about Christmas is the time that there is to catch up with family and friends, as well as get news from those further away.  One thing that I have realised by putting a number of stories together is that there are some great people on the front line, "doing the doing".  However the bureaucracy and target obsessed structures of the NHS, Education system, Prison Service, local government and other organisations means that services delivered are just not what they could be.

Looking at my own targets - yes, I've got everything backed up on my computers! Also, regular, home cooked meals have meant that I must the only person in the Country who has lost weight over Christmas.