I am one of the three Tamworth Borough Councillors for the Mercian Ward, elected in May 2011. Do you have an issue I or any of my colleagues on Tamworth Borough Council and Staffordshire County Council can help with?
Contact me by phone, e-mail or post
mobile: 07958 155 863
e-mail: Andrew-James@tamworth.gov.uk
post: c/o T.C.A., 23 Albert Road, Tamworth, Staffordshire, B79 7JS
The latest drive to tackle domestic abuse in Tamworth saw police and domestic abuse advisors visiting victims and perpetrators in their own homes.
Operation Bluebell is a Tamworth Community Safety Partnership project, which has been running in Tamworth since February, targeting operations at times when domestic abuse incidents tend to increase.
Under Operation Bluebell, police and domestic abuse advisors made carefully chosen home visits to victims and perpetrators, to check on the safety of victims and send a strong message to perpetrators
During the project, 65 visits were made and feedback from domestic abuse victims visited showed positive support for the initiative.
Cllr Jeremy Oates, Cabinet member for Community Development, praised the work of Operation Bluebell. He said, “Initiatives like this help to support and reassure the victims of domestic abuse, while reminding the perpetrators that it is never acceptable to commit abuse.
“This is another example of the value of working together to improve the lives of people living in Tamworth and to make the borough a better and safer place to live.”
The Respect Helpline is a confidential service for perpetrators of domestic abuse, which offers information and support to help perpetrators change their behaviour. It can be contacted on 0808 802 4040. Anyone suffering domestic abuse can contact Pathways on 01543 676800.
new councillors Alex Farrell and Doug Pullen
Christopher Pincher, Member of Parliament for Tamworth and Fazeley, has congratulated the two new councillors for Fazeley ward – Cllr Doug Pullen of Lichfield District Council and Cllr Alex Farrell of Fazeley Town Council who won election last Thursday.
Christopher Pincher said, “Congratulations to both Doug and Alex for all their efforts. This is a clear demonstration that hard work on local issues and a commitment to Conservative policies on welfare reform, immigration and rebuilding the economy are paying off.
“I am sure that both Doug and Alex will work hard in representing the people of Fazeley, Bonehill and Mile Oak.”
Doug Pullen won with 53% of the votes whilst Alex Farrell secured victory at the Town Council with 51% of the votes.
A long list of 12 options for the future of Tamworth Golf Course has been drawn up by Tamworth Borough Council.
And the authority has emphasised that each of the 12 options is being given equal weight and consideration, with no preferred choice at this point in the process.
The golf course reopened at Easter, after Tamworth Borough Council agreed to take it on and run it for a two-year period. Since reopening under council management, membership numbers at Tamworth Golf Course have continued to rise. The course currently has 211 members paying for annual green fees and numbers of pay and play rounds is on the increase.
A number of improvements to the course have been carried out, including work to improve the quality of the fairways and bunkers. The greens are to be renovated and improved in the autumn and the locker room and toilets will soon be open in the clubhouse. These improvements have generated a lot of positive feedback from course users.
The council is completing the unfinished tipping and landscaping work on the course, which is being done to a high standard and is on schedule. The authority has now drawn up a long list of options for the future of the course at the end of the two-year period. The options are based on a number of criteria, including regeneration, growth, open space provision, sports provision and financial considerations.
The long list currently has 12 practical options, covering a wide range of possibilities. These will be reduced to a shortlist over the summer, as part of the Golf Course Future Options Project. This will see a number of surveys being carried out, involving borough residents, golf club users and other groups.
Cllr Steve Claymore, Cabinet member for Economy & Education, said, “We are looking at every practical option at this stage. All options are on the table and we are assessing them to see which is the best way forward for the future of the golf course site.
“We are trying to make the consideration of these options as open and transparent as possible, and there is no hidden agenda.
“We have a responsibility to the taxpayer in these times of austerity to look at all options and we would not be doing our job properly if we did not do that. Nothing is set in stone – we are just looking for the best possible option for the people of Tamworth.”
The 12 options under consideration are:
The options appraisal is expected to be completed by January next year.
TIC manager Deb Lewis, Tamworth Borough Council Deputy Leader Cllr Rob Pritchard and Janet Browning from the TIC celebrate the awarding of the Staffordshire Environmental Quality Mark
Tamworth’s Information Centre has received a special award for all its work on helping people fall in love with Staffordshire by helping to conserve the area’s natural beauty, wildlife and cultural heritage.
The TIC has been awarded a Staffordshire Environmental Quality Mark (SEQM). This is for all its work on promoting local nature reserves, supporting local goods, showcasing the area’s heritage and museums, selling tickets for charity events and promoting local businesses.
And Tamworth’s TIC is the only information centre in the county to receive this award. As well as helping to promote local groups and events, the award was given to the TIC for working from a community building which helps to reduce its carbon footprint.
In order to win the award, organisations and businesses need to show they are passionate about Staffordshire, make sure their customers get excellent service and are likely to return while spreading the word to others. The TIC also had to prove it was helping the environment.
Cllr Rob Pritchard, Deputy Leader of Tamworth Borough Council, said, “It is great to see Tamworth TIC winning this award for its work on promoting our culture and heritage, while also playing its part in helping the environment.
“We get so much good feedback about the TIC and how helpful the staff are in promoting Tamworth, the wider area and also supporting local businesses.”
According to the Staffordshire Environmental Quality Mark website, “Tamworth TIC shows many great examples of community engagement, support of local businesses and promotion of the valued characteristics of Staffordshire. The TIC is a true community facility and will undoubtedly encourage other businesses to apply for the SEQM.”
Tamworth Rugby Club
This Saturday, 8th June, Tamworth Borough Council’s 3 Mercian ward councillors will be holding a surgery for all local residents.
The surgery will be taking place at Tamworth Rugby Club in Wigginton Park and starts at 11am.
If you have anything you want to raise with Cllr Michael Greatorex, Cllr Andrew James and Cllr Richard Kingstone, please come along.
Deputy Commissioner Sue Arnold will carry out the review
Staffordshire’s Police and Crime Commissioner, Matthew Ellis, has said support services in Staffordshire need a radical re-think to put victims first.
Commissioner Ellis has asked his deputy, Sue Arnold, to review and reform existing services “so that crime victims are treated as people, not crime numbers.”
Commissioner Ellis said, “I want criminal justice agencies working better for victims by improving the complicated ‘system’ and making sure it’s effective and more joined up”.
Since taking up her role in December, Deputy Commissioner Sue Arnold has engaged with support agencies across the county who provide services to victims, including the voluntary sector. And top of her agenda is putting the victim first in every scenario through a single gateway where one, joined-up agency, and not the police, take on the responsibility for providing a clearly mapped out support route.
Deputy Commissioner Arnold said, “Victims need a single port-of-call to provide comfort, confidence and guarantee total protection before, during and after any potential litigation process.
“My research indicates victims are often unsure of which organisation to contact. They should have a single point of contact.”
Mrs Arnold, who says her fact-finding has really opened her eyes to fresh opportunities to provide services to victims, added, “There are a minimum of 29 agencies that currently provide victim support services in the county. That’s too fragmented and victims would get better care if we joined-up services and streamlined the way they work.
“More work needs to be done urgently to improve the way victims are updated about the progress or otherwise of investigations so that they feel more informed. I’m currently working with Staffordshire Police to develop an online tracking system to improve victims’ access to updates and information they need. This is due to be rolled out in the autumn of this year.
“The new Police and Crime Plan for Staffordshire, set to be published by Commissioner Ellis for public and wider consultation next month, will drive forward a new, joined up victim strategy. It will give victims a much greater voice in the service they receive from criminal justice agencies in Staffordshire. We need to put them first in all that we do, treating them as people not as a crime number.”
From April next year, funding for victim support services in Staffordshire will, for the first time, be allocated to the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner instead of directly to services.
Control of Norfolk County Council has changed from to Conservative to an alliance lead by the Labour Party thanks to the votes of UKIP, the Greens and Independent members.
Labour, the Lib Dems, UKIP and one Independent have voted to rule jointly and restore a formal committee system and Labour leader George Nobbs has agreed to head the council for one year while the current cabinet system is replaced.
Conservative leader Bill Borrett said he was extremely concerned, as the group appeared to have no policies.
Green Party leader Richard Bearman said his party would not commit to a formal agreement but would co-operate. He said, “We’ve voted for a council leader but have not joined any alliance or coalition. We will look at things on an issue-by-issue basis.”
The three major parties proposing to take power said in a joint statement the cabinet system meant decisions were made by 10 or fewer people chosen by the council leader.
This proves beyond any doubt that a vote for UKIP, Greens and Independents brings Labour Control.
