New role for ex-councillor
Local exec committee member Vilnis Vesma has been elected chairman of Newent doctors' Patient Participation Group which acts as a "critical friend" helping the Practice to improve its performance.
Local exec committee member Vilnis Vesma has been elected chairman of Newent doctors' Patient Participation Group which acts as a "critical friend" helping the Practice to improve its performance.
Members and supporters met at the iconic Speech House on 21 July
I was chatting to someone in Newent's historic Market Square when someone walked past with a traffic cone he had "borrowed" from nearby. "You're the council chap" he said: "OK if I borrow this? there's a hole in the pavement in Church Street".
When a resident reported a children's slide that was in a dirty state I needed to find out who was responsible for maintenance so that I could get it cleaned. The District Council offices didn't know who was responsible so I went to check for a phone number on the play area itself (small play areas are often maintained privately on behalf of developers).
Potholes can cause life changing injuries to cyclists, while for car drivers whose vehicles are damaged, the repair costs can run into thousands of pounds. Pothole damage is costing motorists more than £1million a month, according to Which, but other estimates are much higher.
A resident of Clifford's Mesne raised an interesting question with her town councillor. She pointed out that when the District Council issues information about planning applications, the accompanying maps don't show neighbouring properties where consent has been granted but the development has not yet started. This is a good question because an application needs to be considered in the light of what else is going to happen nearby, not just what's there at the moment.