Let's Slow Down The Traffic In Freemantle

As local councillors for Freemantle Ward, speeding traffic is one of the top issues raised with me and my colleague Brian Parnell, by local people.

Being close to the city centre many of the roads are used as rat runs to get into town and to the station and they can get very busy indeed.

Also the local schools have grown enormously. When I first became a school governor at Freemantle school it was a small infant school. Today it is a primary with 500 children. Similarly St Marks School has expanded considerably and Banister has been completely rebuilt with both schools now all through primaries. This means a lot more cars and children walking, cycling or scooting to school. Speeding traffic and dangerous parking is a big concern from parents that I talk to. 

Brian Parnell and I have surveyed hundreds of residents over the past year and the overwhelming majority favour slowing down the traffic in residential roads. The view is not universal but from the feedback we have had, about 80 per cent are in favour. 

We have been talking about this issue with the council for years and people keeping asking us when will it happen. Introducing 20mph limits is a fairly simple and cheap process. Department of Transport rules changed a few years ago to make the process much easier for councils. All that is required are the signs, the introduction of a legal order - a traffic regulation order, and a formal survey to seek residents' views. We know council budgets are very tight these days but we also know the city council is making a huge amount of money from parking charges and fines, including the new 1st permit charges which hundreds of people in Freemantle Ward now pay. It is quite proper that some of this money is spent on improving the local roads and road safety measures like 20mph limits. 

We have been talking for years about the problem and it is now time for the council to act and with so many more children now at local schools this has to be made a priority.

St Marks School Community Forum Dates

The date for the next St Marks School Community Forum will be on Tuesday 26th March, with a Bike It presentation at 6:30pm and Community Forum at 7:00pm.

The one after this will be on Wednesday 3rd July. All meetings will be in the school hall and begin for coffee at 6:30 with a presentation of some sort and the meeting beginning at 7pm.

All are welcome!

Plans for the Civil Service Sports Ground

How the field might be laid out for community and school use

The emerging plans for the former Civil Service Sports Ground are very exciting indeed. The field will be opened up to schools and the community next year and I am hopeful that we can achieve this by the spring or the summer at the latest. The sooner we can get the site tidied up and into use the better. I think the field will very soon become the heart of the local community in Freemantle.

The City Council has £550,000 allocated to bring the field back into use. The money was set to be spent over 2 years. Year one was to get the site back into use and year 2 funding was earmarked for possible match funding for future bids for grants (such as from Sport England or the Lottery) to go for a much more impressive scheme along the lines of St James Park.Over the last few months the Council has been working on possible plans and associated costings as well as carrying out site surveys.

Initial costings show that the funding set aside for year 1 funding would be sufficient to put about 60% of the site back into use - leaving some land at the Charlton Road end still closed off. To put the whole site back into use would require the full budget.

M general feeling is that it would be best to bring all the site back into use and utilise the full budget in one go. A second phase would have to be subject to future funding.

All the options that the Council is working on include a new entrance off of Malmesbury Road, plus some appropriate fencing and place for a play park as well as various marked up sports pitches.

I do hope to that the scheme can be completed by the Spring of next year although it is very possible that the date will move back if complications occur. Surveys have been carried out and there are various protected animals on the site and there is also Japanese Knotweed which needs dealing with.

There is a friends of St Marks School and local community meeting on Tuesday 17th July at 7pm – 8pm at St Marks school. 

The school holds these meetings regularly but this will be special one to show the designs that the Council has been working on and will an opportunity for local residents to come along and and give their views.

Hopefully I will see quite a few people there but if you want to email me your thoughts or give me a call, please do.

Thank You to the Friends of the Field

Last night the Mayor of Southampton, Terry Matthews, hosted an event in the Mayor's Parlour at the Civic Centre to say thank you to everyone who has been involved in the 10 year campaign to save the Civil Service Sports Ground. It was great to bring together local residents, local headteachers, school governors and councillors to formally recognise all the work that has been put in over the years and a chance to plan for the future for this fantastic open space in the middle of Freemantle Ward.

Half A Million Pound Boost For Civil Service Sports Ground

At today's Council meeting I was very pleased to approve £550,000 for improvements to the former Civil Service Sports Ground and to bring it back into use for the benefit of local schools and the wider community.

Boost to Pupil Premium will mean more funding for local schools

The government’s Pupil Premium to support disadvantaged children will mean a big boost to the funding of local schools. Next year the pupil premium is set to rise to £600 for each Free School Meals eligible pupil.

Taking pupil numbers for January 2011 this means that Freemantle schools will receive the following Pupil Premium next year, over and above their normal school budgets.

Regents Park Community College: £174,600
Banister Infant School: £21,000
Foundry Lane Primary School: £59,400
Freemantle Academy: £25,200
St Mark’s CofE Primary School: £77,400

The Pupil Premium is great news for Southampton Schools and the evidence is that many heads and governors are using this funding to support disadvantaged children, for instance by employing extra teachers.

Funding Boost for Local Children

The Coalition government is keeping its promise to spend more on schools and to target extra funding towards the most deprived parts of the country.

The details of the funding settlement for Southampton schools has now been announced. On average Southampton schools will receive an extra 3.4% in funding in this coming year and this includes more than £2.7m extra in the form of the new Pupil Premium.

The Pupil Premium means that extra funding is targeted to support children who receive Free School Meals and to children whose parents serve in the Armed Forces.

This is fantastic news for Freemantle Ward with many local schools set to benefit from the Pupil Premium:

Banister Infant School + £13,760
Foundry Lane Primary School + £32,650
Freemantle C Of E Infant School + £10,750
St Mark'S C Of E Junior School + £37,840
Regents Park Community College + £80,380

Locally Conservative Councillors are protecting funding for the city’s Sure Start Centres so that, despite the tough financial times we ensure that all these valuable facilities remain assessable for local families.

Civil Service Ground Update

Progress is being made by the City Council to acquire the former Civil Service Sports Ground, behind Malmesbury Road. The council received approval earlier this year from the Secretary of State for Education to Compulsory Purchase the land.

The Council intends that the land is used as playing fields for local schools, including neighbouring St Marks School, as well as community use.

As part of the process the council has submitted a planning application to register the land as open space. The decision will be taken by the council's planning panel early in the New Year at a panel meeting in either January or February.

As your local councillors, Brian Parnell, Michael Ball and I have written formal letters of support. I also intend to speak at the panel meeting.

Bovis Homes and Stonechat (the development arm of the Civil Service Sports Club) have both objected and are arguing that at least some of the site should be developed for housing. We have been resisting these attempts to develop the site for many years and I will arguing strongly at the panel meeting that their submissions are rejected.

I am pleased to report that we have gained the formal support of Sport England who have unequivocally stated that in their view the whole site should be regarded as open space. I am very confident that the council will approve the application and that this will be an important step towards finally acquiring the land next year.

Southampton Welcomes Home Local Heroes

Thousands of local people, young and old, turned out on Tuesday to welcome home the troops of the Princess of Wales' Royal Regiment.

The support from local people was fantastic. Over 500 school children, including children from St Marks in Freemantle joined in, enthusiastically waving flags. A 40ft Union Jack blew in the wind over the parade, suspended from a crane.

It was a proud day for those soldiers receiving their service medals. It was also very emotional given the recent escalation of casualties in Afghanistan as the fighting there intensifies.

The important thing is that Southampton showed unequivocally that we are behind our men and women serving in the forces at a time of war and that we value enormously the personal sacrifices that they are making for freedom.

Cash Boost for Freemantle Schools

Local Schools such as St Marks, Freemantle, Foundry Lane and Banister will gain a share of new funding set aside for Primary Schools by the new Conservative Council. £5.8m has been allocated to provide extra facilities for expanding local schools and to improve standards. The decision to allocate the extra funds was taken today following an extensive review of primary school provision in the Freemantle and Central areas of the city.

A Great Time At The Freemantle Festival!

My family and I had a great time at the Freemantle Festival today. Despite the weather being a bit patchy it was a big success. I especially enjoyed the climbing wall - which was a new addition this year! Well done to Rebecca, Cevn and Anne and the Friends Of The Field for all their hard work in organising the day.

Your Views On Regents Park Community College Move

Plans to relocate Regents Park Community College in Regents Park to the St Marks School site in Shirley Road have taken a step forward with the launch of a formal public consultation on the proposed move.

I have been lobbying for money from the government to rebuild the school as part of a new learning campus with the civil service sports ground in Stafford Road serving as playing fields, for the schools and for the local community.

For further information click HERE and select the report labelled: Regents Park Community College: Relocation.

After School Sports Launch

Southampton's new after school sports programme was officially launched today at Upper Shirley High School on Friday.

This unique scheme is a partnership between Southampton schools, Southampton Solent University (SSU) and Southampton City Council.
5 schools are taking part in the pilot programme which will see SSU sports undergraduates running after school sports for local children.

Tailored sports programmes are now up and running in Redbridge Secondary School, Upper Shirley High, Highfield Primary School, St Marks CofE Junior School and Bevois Town Primary School. 9 more schools are ready to join the scheme in a second wave next year.

It is hoped that the scheme will then be rolled out across Southampton. This could see over 1000 university students volunteering to help in the city.

On Friday I met with SSU students and lecturers and pupils at Upper Shirley High and spoke with headteacher Cassie Ellins and her staff about the new scheme. At Upper Shirley High pupils will be taking up basketball, cricket and football classes. This scheme will be school led and tailored to meet the needs of pupils.

I believe that this scheme is going to be tremendous. It is fantastic timing – the start of a new term, off the back of the Beijing Olympics and preparing for 2012 in London.

We are lucky for to be teaming up with the premier sporting institution in the south. The scheme is not just about sport. Its about health, fitness, team work, it gives children plenty to do, and will help university students with their development. I am also confident that it will be a catalyst to boost sports clubs in the city.

Click HERE for more information.

A Week In Politics

It has been a busy and eventful week in Southampton Politics. My casework post bag gone up considerably since the start of the year and there is lots going on in the city.


Council Tax

On Wednesday the BBC ran a story on how across the country council tax is set to rocket again this year as local councils continue to face cut backs in funding from the government. I did an interview on the Ten O'clock News and was able to highlight how Southampton, being in the South of England, is suffering in particular from government underfunding.

One area where Southampton is under severe financial pressure is over the issue of the national concessionary bus fares scheme due to come in on 1st April. This was announced by Gordon Brown as a pre election sweetener just before the 2005 General Election. The government promised the fund the free travel scheme but has since gone back on its pledge and is trying to shift the costs to the local council tax payer. In Southampton the shortfall in funding could be up to £1m or more (about 1.5% on council tax!)


Hill Lane Toucan Crossing

I went along to the public meeting regarding the possible Toucan crossing at Raymond Road / Hill Lane. From the conversations that I had people seemed to be broadly in favour. One issue that lots of people raised was the need to improve cycle paths around the city. If the Hill Lane crossing is popular and goes ahead then there is the opportunity to link up a cycle path through the common to the Avenue, and then up to Wilton Road and King Edwards School.


St Mark's School

I went along to the St Mark's school governors meeting on Tuesday evening to talk with them about the the council's plans to purchase the Civil Service Sports Ground in Stafford Road and also about the primary school review which is about to start in the city.


Promoting the City's Art

On Thursday I went to a reception at the civic centre art gallery, organised by Business Southampton. The new Conservative administration is looking to expand the council's art lease scheme, where works of art are loaned out to offices, private collectors and other galleries. The art gallery has far more paintings than it can hope to display and so this is an opportunity to display the art and also generate some income which can be used to meet the costs of the gallery and promote art and local artists in the city.

Green Light for New Learning Campus

Southampton Conservatives are pushing ahead with plans for investment and modernisation of secondary education in the city.

Later this month the Council's Conservative Cabinet are meeting to approve the next steps for the eventual development of 4 new secondary schools in Southampton:

• The Lord's Hill Oasis Academy which is to be built on the 5 acre field site on the northern boundary of the city.
• The Mayfield Oasis Academy which will be developed on the Grove Park School site.
• The relocation of Regents Park Community College to the St Mark’s CE Junior/ former Civil Service Sports Ground site in Freemantle.
• The relocation of the Sholing Technology College to the Itchen College building.

I am delighted that such excellent progress is being made and I am particularly pleased with the work that is going on secure the former Civil Service Sports Ground as school and community playing fields.

Together with Cllr Brian Parnell and Cllr Michael Ball we have represented residents' wishes to protect the Civil Service Sports Ground from housing development and protect one of the last green playing fields in the city centre, and we have sought to secure central government funding (Building Schools for the Future Programme) to build a new school on the St Mark's site to serve the needs of the local community.

In January we will be formally authorising the Council's Director of Resources to take steps to acquire the former Civil Service Sports Association playing fields at the rear of the St Mark’s site from its current owner, Bovis Homes so that it can be developed as a playing field for St Mark’s CE Junior School and Regents Park Community College, and made available for community use.

The Council will work with the governing body of Regents Park Community College, the governing body of St Mark’s CE Junior School and the Board of Education of the Winchester Diocese of the Church of England with the aim of creating a learning campus on the St Mark’s CE Junior School site including both primary and secondary education.

As the newly selected Parliamentary Candidate for Southampton Test, top of my agenda will be pressing government to provide funds for these and other schools in the city.

MP Whitehead Finally falls off the Fence...and lands on the right side!

I was delighted to learn that Southampton Test Labour MP Alan Whitehead has finally decided to back the Conservative Campaign for the Council to buy the former Civil Service Sports Ground so that it can be used by local people, by neighbouring St Marks School and nearby Regents Park School.

Conservative Councillors have been pushing for this as it will be a huge boost for local children and the community as well as the best and most practical solution for saving the land from flats being built on it by its owners Bovis Homes.

In a survey of 300 local people conducted by Mr Whitehead over 80% supported the Conservative campaign.

My colleagues and I are now pushing hard for the negotiations to buy the land to start.

Whilst being really pleased that the MP has chosen to support the campaign I would like to take the opportunity to correct some inaccuracies being peddled by Mr Whitehead.

Alan says:

“The City Council must guarantee that other groups and clubs will be allowed to use the playing fields out of school time, in a similar way that people can currently use the pool at Oaklands and Millbrook’s playing fields."


In fact...

This guarantee has been repeatedly given by all parties on the City Council. Of course we want community access and want any new school to be a community school in its truest sense. There is search facility on this website so anyone in any doubt of the Conservative position on this need only look any of dozens of earlier postings stretching back over recent years.

Labour plan to close Oaklands swimming pool! In their budget proposals for the next year published last week they have identified the closure of the pool as means of savings £160,000.

Alan says:

“The proposal to buy the sports ground is a fantastic opportunity- something I and the Labour group have been calling for since 2004. At that time the Conservative Councillors voted against the purchase. I’m delighted they have changed their policy and are supporting our campaign to preserve a vital green space in Freemantle.”

In fact...

The Conservatives did vote against Labour budget proposals in 2004. This included a proposal to allocate a small sum of money to compulsorily purchase the land from its then owners the Civil Service Sports Association. The vote was over the issue of all Council expenditure for the year which amounted to about a quarter of a billion pounds. We had our own budget proposals which we put forward which we felt were much better. Despite supporting the Council buying the land we did not support the route of compulsory purchase. A compulsory purchase is like using a hammer to crack a nut. It is also like writing a blank cheque. It is a legal process where the land is independently valued by a land tribunal. Once you have entered into the process you must pay whatever the land is deemed to be worth. Given that the land was in danger of being built on and that this was cited as the reason for the purchase, the sum of money could have been huge. Also there is no backing out of you don't like the price. The Conservative Group have always argued that negotiation and discussion is a better way of achieving a positive outcome. In the end it turned out the the money allocated by Labour was woefully inadequate and a fraction of the value Bovis Homes paid the Civil Service Sports Association.

Alan Says:

"Autumn 2006: the revised Learning Futures proposals are published, this time including a proposal to buy the former Civil Service sports ground for use as playing fields for a joint Regents Park – St Mark’s campus. Money is again allocated by the city council to purchase the sports ground; this time the Conservatives vote with Labour for the purchase."

In fact...

Conservatives successfully gained agreement to add the idea of a new school on the St Marks site into the Consultation. this was not one of the Council's original proposals. Additional money was then put aside in the Autumn following a Conservative motion. This then gained Labour support.

In December 2006 Alan Whitehead decided to back the campaign for a new school. As recently as November he was still considering whether the proposal was worthy of his support.

Anyway regardless of who said what I think its great news for Freemantle!!!