Support First Friends Pre School

I was sorry to hear about the threat to the future of the First Friends Pre School in Great Waldingfield. It is to lose its home at the primary school in July due to the fact that higher demand for school places means that the classroom currently used by the pre-school is needed for older children.

Great Waldingfield Primary School could simply be experiencing the nationwide trend of higher demand for state school places. The birth rate has risen somewhat apparently, and the credit crunch has resulted in fewer parents being able to afford private schooling.

I don't however believe that this is the full story in this instance however. It is probably true to say that the pre-school has been the victim of the primary school's success. The primary school has not only been able to attract new children from around the district but also the pre-school itself , which started some four years ago, has acted as a constant and reliable feeder into the reception class.

I know that meetings are being held with relevant officials from the County Council Education Department to try to secure a future home for the pre-school. I also know that County Councillor, Colin Spence, will do all he can to push things forward.

The loss of the pre-school would be a great blow for Great Waldingfield as a whole, and for the primary school. I will do all I can to support the pre-school's organisers in their efforts to keep the group alive.

Goodbye to John and Jill Fieldgate

Over one hundred parishioners from Great Waldingfield and Acton gathered today in Acton Village Hall to say farewell to the Vicar and his wife, John and Jill Fieldgate who are leaving the village for retirement by the sea in West Mersea.

I am certainly sorry to see John and Jill leave and I know that this sentiment is shared by all. I have met John quite often over the past two years in the course of my perambulations around the Ward and I know that the wellbeing of all of the people in both Parishes, whether churchgoers or not, has constantly been at the forefront of his mind. John always seemed to give people and situations the benefit of the doubt and this spirit of optimism was always very refreshing.

The lunch was a very happy occasion, brilliantly organised. A fantastic spread was provided and it was great to see so many familiar faces all together in Acton’s excellent (relatively) new village hall.

Many people had contributed towards a gift for John and Jill. In addition to some lovely flowers, and other gifts, they took delivery of a Jasper Conran Breakfast set which they had indicated would be useful in their new home.

There will now be an interregnum which could last some months until more permanent pastoral arrangements are made for Great Waldingfield and Acton.

Development decisions

I went this morning to the Development Committee, with Christine Johnson, Clerk of Acton Parish Council. I am pleased to say that once again we were able to persuade the Committee that it would be a bad idea to spoil a part of the village by the overdevelopment of a site within the built up area.
Like it or hate it the ‘mid twentieth century’ estate in Acton was carefully planned when it was built. It is therefore arguable that it would be wrong to allow piecemeal development that is out of keeping with the whole, particularly when the proposed houses have to be designed in a rather unattractive way to shoe-horn them into the limited space available. It is always a bit of a heart stopper as the debate about the merits of the case goes this way and that, but on this occasion the committee was clearly on our side from the start. Only Clive Arthey (a man who reputedly takes the Babergh Local Plan to bed with him every night) sounded a note of caution in saying that he felt that such developments could not be staved off forever. He is probably right, but we will continue to try.
Our turn was well down the list and so had the opportunity to listen to other cases as they came forward. One of the most exciting and interesting was an application for a 'low impact' dwelling on the old sewage works site in Holbrook. This is basically a property which has ‘net zero carbon emissions, demonstrates the optimal use of renewable non-carbon based energy sources and which provides the basis for a sustainable low energy lifestyle’; in other words a very ‘green’ property indeed.
What was amazing about this particular dwelling was that it looked just like an ordinary house...no large sheets of sun-attracting glass or windmills to be seen at all. In fact it looked rather old fashioned, and not at all like the ‘eco home’ pictured above. I think that the Committee were rather taken aback by this, and there was a certain amount of teeth sucking, since I am not sure that this was what they had in mind when the policy with regard to special, less onerous, conditions for low impact housing was developed. The applicant looked a bit depressed while these fears were expressed, but in the end a majority of the Members voted for the scheme and we were all able to break for coffee feeling that an exciting project will shortly be underway in Babergh!

Will the Local Government Review ever happen?

Uncertainty with regard to Babergh’s future continues. We learnt today that the Boundary Committee is once again postponing its report on Local Government Reorganisation in Suffolk, Norfolk and also in Devon where councils are suffering the same misery. Apparently not much information was given as to why this move has been made but it has something to do with the implications of the judicial review brought by a council in Devon which is opposed to the plans.

The judge who determined the review largely found in favour of the Committee but East Devon has been given leave to appeal which of course is likely to take time.

I feel sorry for the Babergh Councillors who do not know how long the council will survive, although it looks as though it will now be a full term and wind up in April 2011. Overseeing the activities of an organisation in such circumstances is very difficult and frustrating. I feel even more concerned however for the staff at Babergh whose future remains extremely uncertain. In such difficult economic times I feel that it is shameful to leave so many worried about whether they will have a job in the short to medium term.

The timetable ahead is very unclear, and one has to wonder whether the whole thing will in the end actually be scrapped. If so it will be a terrible waste of time and money.

What is clear is that the County Council elections, due in June 2009 will now go ahead, even though the County Council may not last more than a year (another shocking waste of money).

In defence of bankers.

Vicky Ford, featured in the post below, like me, used to be an investment banker, and like me she felt obliged on Thursday to express some light hearted concern about admitting it.
When I read the attack on bankers made by government minister Paul Myners last week, I felt that the current enthusiasm for blaming bankers for all our current woes has really gone too far. A failure of regulation, and yes, perhaps the ‘imprudence’ of the Government, might be seen as in part to blame too. Myners incidentally made millions himself out of the financial services industry so the ferocity of his criticism now seems a bit rich.
The vast majority of people working in the City of London are extremely hard working, not particularly overpaid for the hours that they put in, have little long term job security and are generally decent people who don’t get up in the morning intending to fleece others. They regularly raise money for charity in their spare time or generously sponsor those who do. They also support a huge raft of service industries such as sandwich bars, dry cleaners etc., providing a lot of jobs to a lot of people.
When they leave the City they often feel that they should do their bit for society. Like Vicky, some go into local government . (Vicky is currently a District Councillor in South Cambridgeshire). Others work for charities, or even in some cases go into the Church (my friend Sonia, once a Paper Analyst at UBS, now looks after several parishes near Cambridge.)

Euro Candidate speaks in Little Waldingfield

The South Suffolk Conservative Women’s Committee ( ‘organised by women but men always welcome!’) held its quarterly meeting at Little Waldingfield Parish Rooms on Thursday.

The guest of honour was prospective MEP, Vicky Ford. Vicky is number three on the ‘List’ for the East of England and so stands a good chance of making it to Brussels in the European Elections in June.

Vicky was very good value, demonstrating a wide knowledge of the relevant issues, along with a healthy dose of Euroscepticism that went down well with her audience. She certainly knows why she is going to Brussels, and it isn’t to encourage the lack of democracy and accountability that seems to be endemic there.

Vicky made us all feel that we don’t have to defect to UKIP in June to make the point that we don’t think much of the vast and intrusive bureaucracy that is the European Community. The Conservatives have seen the problems from within and aim to combat them. Indeed, if plans to align with other anti-federalists from the former eastern bloc come to fruition, the Conservatives will definitely be the people to back if you want to see law making returned to its rightful place in Westminster.

Incidentally, Little Waldingfield Parish Rooms was an excellent venue for the meeting. The kitchen is well equipped and the hall a sensible size.

A narrow escape

I can hardly believe what happened to me this morning. I was sitting having my hair cut in Sudbury when I remembered that I had failed to display a ticket on my car. Having spent a lot of time obsessing about the 'Car Parking Situation' in Sudbury I found this oversight barely credible.
The truth is of course that I have lived close to Sudbury for 25 years or so now. I have locked and left my car in Sudbury’s car parks without the need for a ticket for so long, it is simply an automatic reaction not to think about it. After all, one doesn’t go round constantly reading signs, however much improved or prominent they may be.
But guess what! When I got back to the car with a sinking heart I had not received a penalty notice! This is despite the fact that I must have been gone for well over an hour.
Of course it was blowing a gale and pouring with rain. I suppose it must be much more fun issuing penalties for the absent minded when the sun is shining.