Anstey Village Update - March 2021
Website Launch
We are delighted to launch our Bradgate Conservatives website. As the world is heading more and more into the digital world, we wanted to develop a presence online for you to interact with us more should you wish to do so. We have our social media accounts where we share information, but a website is more accessible and versatile for most people. We will still be continuing with our normal communications and cannot wait to be able to be out and about again in person. The website address is here:
https://www.bradgateconservatives.org.uk/
It is at present a work in progress and we are adding information on there on a regular basis. The website is for the three local councillors that support the Bradgate area, so includes Cllr David Snartt, as well as both Paul and Deborah. This is a website very much for our residents, and we are keen to hear your feedback. We will be posting more detailed information on current matters on the website. We want this website to be helpful and provide our residents with all the information they want and need. If you have any suggestions or requests, please get in touch, and let us know. There is also up to date information on the website on the Covid-19 pandemic. You can use the website to contact us if you wish outside the above addresses and also at: [email protected]
Groby Road, Planning Applications
Two planning applications have been submitted to Charnwood Borough Council for development on Groby Road. All the details can be found online on CBC’s planning portal:
https://portal.charnwood.gov.uk/Northgate/PlanningExplorerAA/ApplicationSearch.aspx
The reference numbers are; P/20/2252/2 and P/20/2251/2. One application is for outline planning permission for 120 houses, next to Peartree Close (South) and the second application is for 100 houses, next to the St James Gate Davidsons development (North). We have sent in comprehensive objections to both applications and have called both the applications into the Plans Committee, so they are not decided by officers, and so we have a chance to raise the many objections we’ve received from residents. Our comprehensive responses can be found on our new website: https://www.bradgateconservatives.org.uk/news.
We also requested an extension to the date by which comments need to be submitted. This is so we can make sure as many residents as possible are aware of the development and are able to submit any comments they might have. We heard, just as the printing deadline for ‘Your Local’ approached, that our request for an extension for comments was agreed. You now have until 19th March to submit your comments on the two applications. You can send them directly to Charnwood at this email address: [email protected] You can also send to either of us and we can forward to the planning team on your behalf. You can also send in your comments in the post at the address below, but email will be quicker if you have access.
Planning Services,
Charnwood Borough Council,
Southfield Road,
Loughborough,
Leicestershire,
LE11 2TN
Our main reasons for objecting to these applications are in the following areas:
- Public Transport – bus services have been reduced and more people creates a demand for more of these yet there are no suggestions about provision of the same
- Highways – objections are around the extra traffic introduced onto the various A and B roads and whether they offer sufficient access to Groby Road at present
- Capacity of Existing Junction at The Nook and A50 – as above but recognising that there is a lot of traffic on these roads already
- Services – for example, banking, which we know is currently limited and with the proposed closure of Nationwide likely to be extremely limited
- Green space – not originally proposed but now in an amended proposal there is some provision for this but is it enough and is building on existing green space detrimental to existing householders
- Council Section 106 money – how this is used to improve local amenities (e.g. children’s play areas, schools).
Budget/Council Tax
Charnwood Borough Council is proposing to raise its share of council tax by 9p a week for a Band D property. The proposed increase would see the annual charge for an average Band D property rise by £4.45 to £131.08 per month from 1st April 2021.
The Council’s Cabinet considered the proposed budget plans on Thursday 11th February with its recommendation to go before Full Council on Monday 22nd February 2021. The proposed final budget for 2021/22 is around £19 million. This includes making £1.5m of proposed savings and generating income of around £600,000, largely through investments in commercial properties. Income from council tax, business rates and Government grants is expected to be around £18 million and therefore there is still a gap of £1 million, which the Council will use reserves to cover.
The Covid-19 pandemic has added significant costs and reduced income from various areas including car parks, leisure centres and Loughborough Town Hall. The impact is still expected to be felt in 2021/22, accounting for an expected £900,000 loss of income. Charnwood Borough Council currently has the 23rd lowest council tax charge out of 188 district councils in the country. Council tax pays for a range of services provided by Charnwood Borough Council, Leicestershire County Council, Leicestershire Police and Leicestershire Fire and Rescue and the parish council where you live (or Charnwood Borough Council for people in Loughborough).
For more information about the draft budget, see the reports to Cabinet on the Council website: http://bit.ly/CBCCouncilTax2021.
Nationwide Building Society
As you may know, we have been working hard for the past three months on the proposed closure of the Anstey Branch of the Nationwide Building Society. We have had numerous email exchanges with the representatives from Nationwide. We have also had a Zoom meeting with the Regional Director, to air our great disappointment at these proposals. Charnwood MP, Edward Argar, has also had a Zoom meeting and corresponded with the Nationwide’s Regional Director. We did manage to achieve a delay to the closure from 25th February 2021 until 31st March 2021. We have had two newspaper articles in the Daily Mail, which highlighted the issue in the national press. We have also launched an online petition. We currently have 483 signatures (at the time of writing) who have signed our petition. We would be grateful if as many residents as possible in Anstey and indeed any residents in other areas that use the Anstey Nationwide could support us and sign our petition on Change.org. The link to do so is here: http://chng.it/Z48XqYJR
If this branch closure is going to go ahead and will affect your ability to manage your finances, there is the option of opening a Post Office card account. A Post Office card account is a simple bank account which will allow you to collect your Pension, Benefit or Tax Credit payments. You must be in receipt of a benefit to open a Post Office card account. You will only be entitled to one card account at any one time irrespective of how many Pension, Benefit or Tax Credit payments you receive. Your payments will then be paid directly into your account. To get money out of your account, simply take your card to a Post Office branch or Post Office branded ATM. You will be able to use your Post Office card account at most Post Office branches. To apply for a Post Office card account, complete the simple card account Application Form (from the Post Office) and hand it in at a Post Office branch. You should also take some form of identification with you to the Post Office branch. The forms of identification which are acceptable are set out on the card account Application Form. If you do not have any of the acceptable forms of identification, you may not be able to open a card account. If you are unable to go to a Post Office branch to open your account in person, you can call the customer service helpline on 03457 22 33 44 or textphone 03457 22 33 55, or you can ask a trusted helper to speak to a member of staff at a Post Office branch for more information.
Rapid Covid-19 Testing
Rapid community testing for Covid-19 is now available in Loughborough for key workers and those who cannot work from home. A testing site has been set up at Gorse Covert Community Centre, Maxwell Drive, Loughborough, LE11 4RZ.
One in three people who have coronavirus show no symptoms, and rapid lateral flow testing, led by the Leicestershire County Council’s public health team, can help to quickly identify individuals, and stop them unwittingly spreading the infection.
Rapid testing is ONLY for those who are eligible, who don’t have symptoms and aren’t already isolating – if you do have symptoms, or you have been told to self-isolate, then you should not attend. It is open to key workers and anyone else in the county who cannot currently work from home.
The lateral flow tests are self-administered at an approved test site – and you can leave the site straight after you have taken your swab. Results will be sent out by text or email by the end of that day. Sites are being created around the county and will be open six days each week.
Anyone who currently cannot work from home and is eligible will be able to book a test. To book a test, please visit: https://www.leicestershire.gov.uk/coronavirus-covid-19/rapid-asymptomatic-testing
New Fleet of Refuse Vehicles
To end on a positive note, a new fleet of refuse and recycling vehicles in Charnwood have now been named. You might remember that Charnwood Borough Council put a call out to all our young residents last year to help name their new bin lorries and road sweepers. The first vehicle was named Florence, of Nightingale fame, last summer, in tribute to the NHS and all the frontline key workers who have been supporting the public during the coronavirus pandemic. The Council had planned on revealing the winners last year but unfortunately due to the ongoing pandemic, the competition was delayed. The winning names will be added to the refuse and recycling vehicles later this year.
Over 150 entries were received, and the judging panel found it tough to shortlist the final 24 names. The Council has contacted the winners and each one will receive a certificate and small goody bag containing recycling information over the next few weeks. The current fleet of bin lorries collects all refuse and recycling from the borough’s 75,000 homes as well as serving more than 30,000 customers of the Council’s garden waste service. Believe it or not, these vehicles empty household bins a staggering five million times a year!
So what are the names the public have given? Some of the excellent suggestions are:
- Binderella
- Chitty Chitty Bin Bin
- Gary Bineker
- Greta Garbage
- Trash Bandicoot
- Trash Gordon
- Truckosaurus.
