Katesgrove Lib Dems

Happy Christmas!

After a traumatic week for anyone experiencing the roads or pavements, a quick note to wish our reader a Happy Christmas, whether you celebrate or not.

One thought; if you have neighbours who are vulnerable and/or live alone, do pop round and check to see they're doing OK.  Christmas can be a tough time for them, and they will welcome the company.

Now off to face the ice rinks for one last time in 2009...

True Grit

Each year winter sneaks up and catches up catches everyone unawares. I mean who ever would have thought that during the coldest season of the year that it might geta bit chilly and snow.

February's response was pretty poor but we would be forgiven for thinking that that was as bad as it could ever get. How wrong we were!

Icy pavements kept eldery people trapped in their houses, roads became treacherous - I helped push a car up Mount Pleasant, buses were off the roads and it took two hours to get to Caversham Bridge.

This is not the lot of a town that likes to behaves as though it was a city.

We will be calling for a review of winter weather planning as it would appear to the unitiated that RBC has been taking advantage of a run of exceptonally mild winters to run down provision to a dangerously low level. If the Royal Berks Hospital could cross charge for treatment of broken limbs maybe that would concentrate a few minds?

My colleague Daisy Benson has blogged on the subject and it is well worth a read,

Beating the Burglars

From time to time Katesgrove gets unwanted problems with burglary.  Reading has always seemed to attract more crime than many other places, and Katesgrove is no exception (though problems are no worse here than in other parts of town, despite the occasional press article).

So here's some seasonal good news.  The Safer Reading Partnership has just attracted £30,000 of funding for basic measures such as door chains, spy holes and window/door locks.  You may be eligible for help if:

- You or someone in your road has been a victim of burglary over the last 18 months
- You are over 60
- You are a student
- You live in a house of multiple-occupation

Contact John McNicholas, at Thames Valley Police on 0118 953 6171 if you would like further information and to see if you qualify for this free scheme. The scheme runs until the end of March 2010 so don't hesitate in applying.

Reading University's London Road Campus

Big news this week that the University of Reading is to invest £30 million into refurbishing its London Road campus, much of which falls within the ward.

This is long-overdue; much of the campus has been near-derelict or in a state of some neglect for a long time, with a chequered modern history.

However, the announcement of the refurbishment/redevelopment will go down less well in some quarters.  Local residents are still seething about the plans for the massive redevelopment of a 700-bed new private Halls of Residence at Mansfield Hall (in and very much affecting Katesgrove) by the company Unite - overwhelmingly rejected by Borough Councillors on firm grounds for officers by, staggeringly, an unelected official in Bristol who didn't appear to know what he was doing - with very little that can be done about it.  (Unite are clearly onto a good thing - for them at least; the Halls have no social facilities and can cost upwards of £150 per week!).  University staff and students might also question the spending given the recent cuts to PCSO funding on and around campus, and to staff numbers among other things.

I have written to the University on a number of these points and have pointed out that they will need to repair their relationship with local residents with as much care as they need to take on the numerous listed buildings on-site. 

Saturday 5 December - A Big Day for the Planet!

This Saturday is a big, big day for the future of the planet.

As world leaders gather in Copenhagen, many of us will be converging on central London for 'The Wave', to show that the damage caused by man-made climate change must be stopped by a tough agreement at that summit this month.

But Katesgrove residents who don't fancy the journey to London can play their part too.

Longbarn Lane Rec - long-neglected by Reading Borough Council - has been the subject of a lot of work by the Parks team, and is undergoing a real facelift.  Earlier in the year, an avenue of trees were planted across the Rec.  After pressure from me, the hedge is being repaired and new barriers installed to end the menace of mini-motos and quad bikes on the Rec.  This has followed years of pressure by Liberal Democrats in Katesgrove and an extensive survey conducted in the area - it's a real success - and there is plenty more to come, including much-needed facilities for young people (far too few of those in South Reading).

From 11am to 12 noon on Saturday Longbarn Lane Rec will be the scene of a world record attempt as part of the BBC's 'Breathing Places' initiative.  The Council has donated 1,000 trees for the Rec alone, and local schools are encouraged to take part.  I'll be there and hope lots of local people will be too - to do our bit for the local environment and for the planet (before I get the train to The Wave!).