Haydon Wick Parish Council Newsletter
(Formerly the Haydon Wick Community Association Newsletter)

Borough Councillors' Reports

Over 7000 households in Haydon Wick Parish receive a copy of this thrice yearly publication (if you have not received one, a copy can be obtained from the Parish Council offices or the Haydon Centre). Here we publish the articles that we have submitted to this publication.

Spring 2010 Edition

One Place: The latest report from the Audit Commission has praised the performance of Swindon Council and its partners with particular reference to strong leadership. Full details can be found at the One Place web site http://oneplace.direct.gov.uk . We are delighted to have been part of the huge transformation that has taken place in Swindon in recent years but we are also aware of how much more there is still to do.

Budget: Setting the Borough Council’s budget is always difficult but in an environment of falling income, increased demand for services and the expected decline in Government funding, the 2010/11 budget has been incredibly challenging. The fact that interest rates are historically low and residents’ income restricted or reduced, we have also been aware that delivering the lowest possible Council Tax has also been a priority. Consequently, as your elected councillors, we have had to make some very difficult choices. By the time this article hits door mats, those decisions will have been taken by Full Council but we would like to reassure residents that we have sought to protect front line services and deliver good value-for-money. As always, we are happy to discuss any issues residents wish to raise.

Flooding Works: The Thames Water works should have been completed by 31 March 2010 and we expect that those residents affected by foul water flooding will see the benefit. We are currently waiting to hear what works the Environment Agency (EA) will deliver following their various consultations with residents near the Haydon Brook. We will continue to press for them to do the works we believe are required. Residents told us they wanted the Council to replace two of the bridges with larger capacity culverts and, with money now secured for the works, we are pushing to get it done subject to the result of the EA’s flood evaluation modelling.

Allotments: We are pressing forward and working hand-in-glove with the Parish Council to deliver new allotments for the area given the huge demand for plots. At the time of writing, the Parish has submitted a planning application and we are awaiting approval from Persimmon Homes who originally developed the area.

Thames Avenue: By the time residents receive this, we expect that the must hated chicane by the Parish offices will have been removed and new crossing installed adjacent to the Pharmacy with new road markings and the bus stops relocated. This has been achieved with the support of the Parish Council for which we thank them. We are continuing to work to deliver the other adjustments that residents asked for further along Thames Avenue.

Deputy Mayor: Rex continues to report on his engagements in his role as Deputy Mayor of the Borough of Swindon for the Municipal Year 2009/10. His Blog can be seen at www.haydonwickintouch.com/page/119/. Can we remind residents that all requests for his services as Deputy Mayor this year or as Mayor from 21 May 2010 must be routed through the Mayor’s office on 463599 or cdeamer@swindon.gov.uk . Any resident wishing to see the Mayor Making ceremony should be at the Civic Offices on 21 May at 1430.

Recycling: We often get complaints from residents about how the Haydon Centre recycling centre has been left. Therefore, we would like to encourage all users not leave their recyclables around the bins. Leaving it on the floor creates three problems: 1. It costs the council money to clear it. 2. It all goes as land fill, again an added cost, instead of being recylced and generating possible income. 3. It looks a mess.

Street Smart: Lots of good work has been done by the Council to make the area look tidy but if residents spot are any issues that need attention either contact one of us or StreetSmart on 445501 or online at www.swindon.gov.uk/streetsmart. We are occasionally contacted about drivers who insist on parking on grass verges and churn up the grass making it an eye sore. We do not like this any more than residents do but the Council’s and Police’s powers are limited. If you are affected, do contact us and we will explain what can and can’t be done.

Adoption of Land on the Abbey Meads Estate: All remaining queries from the Borough's perspective are now answered and the Council is awaiting a response from the Developers solicitor. Therefore, we hope that it will not be too long now before all these issues are resolved.

Talk to us Face-to-Face:

• Monthly advice surgeries with the local Neighbourhood Police Team - Second Saturday of each month from 9am to 10am in the Parish Council offices. No appointment is necessary and all ward residents are welcome.
• Surgeries in sheltered schemes about every 6 months
• We are happy to meet residents on a ‘one-to-one’ basis by mutual agreement
• Door-to-door canvassing

Interact with us Online:

Web site: www.haydonwickintouch.com

FaceBook: Haydon Wick Conservatives

Twitter: @CllrDavidRenard

Skype: david_renard

Autumn 2009 / Winter 2010 Edition

Tribute - We were saddened to learn that former ward councillor Brenda Craven passed away in early September. Brenda served the residents of Haydon Wick between 2000 and 2004 having lived and worked in the area for many years. On behalf of all residents, we would like to acknowledge her contribution to our community and our condolences go to her husband and children.

Congratulations: Rex and Ian would like to congratulate David on achieving a BTEC Level 4 award in Local Governance making him one of only two Swindon councillors to hold an accredited qualification to carry out the role.

Deputy Mayor: Rex is reporting regularly on his engagements in his role as Deputy Mayor of the Borough of Swindon for the Municipal Year 2009/10. His Blog can be seen at www.haydonwickintouch.com/page/119/. Can we remind residents that all requests for his services as Deputy Mayor this year or as Mayor from 21 May 2010 must be routed through the Mayor’s office on 463599 or cdeamer@swindon.gov.uk .

Flooding Works: Extensive works being carried out by Thames Water are well advanced and on target to complete by 31 March 2010. There are and will be road closures and diversions that will result in significant disruption to both residents and those passing through and we ask everyone to be patient whilst these important works continue. We are continuing to put pressure on the Environment Agency and, at the time of writing, they are consulting with local residents on the options for the Haydon Brook. As requested by residents, we have now got agreement with the Council to replace the two of the bridges with larger capacity culverts adjacent to Cloudberry Road and Primrose Close. We have secured the funds to cover the anticipated costs and hope the works can begin soon.

Allotments: Given the shortage or allotments in Haydon Wick and the long waiting list, a resident suggested that we look at converting the Murphy’s compound into allotments when they depart in the Spring of 2010. Initially, we asked the Parish Council whether they would take on the management of them, if we could make this happen and if there was support from residents, and they agreed. We checked with the Planning department at the Council and they confirmed they had no objection to the change of use. We then ran a Poll on our web site and hand delivered letters to all residents living nearby. At the time of writing, there is overwhelming support (83%) for the proposal. Therefore, we will be working with all relevant parties including Highways officers, to discuss how the scheme can become a reality whilst addressing as many of the issues raised as possible.

Thames Avenue Review: We have agreed a plan with Highways officers to address the concerns raised by residents. Significant funds will be required to address all of these issues and we will not be able to secure all the resources in one year. Therefore, we will work with officers to deliver the changes over a period. At the time of writing, we are expecting work to begin on the chicane and crossing adjacent to the Pharmacy and Doctors’ surgery imminently. Once this is underway, we will be working to deliver a junction improvement at one of the locations identified.

Speed Survey: Residents crossing Haydonleigh Drive with their children contacted David with their concerns about the speed of the traffic. David arranged for a traffic survey. The day time average speed was just over 30mph. A summary is on our web site or the full recorded data can be emailed on request. David has also requested a speed survey for Severn Avenue following a resident’s request.

Recycling: We are delighted that residents are supporting the newly extended plastics recycling kerb side service which we hope will enable the Borough to meet its commitment to deliver 50% recycling by 2010. Many requests are also coming in for additional free recycling boxes and bulk waste collections which all help to improve recycling rates and reduce fly-tipping. Due to the success of the kerb side scheme, usage of the bins at the Greenmeadow shops is now so low that it is not viable to continue with them. Although they will be removed, the Haydon Centre facility which is still very well used will continue.

Grounds Maintenance: We have responded to issues raised by residents around grass cutting, cutting back trees and bushes or even getting new trees planted. If there are any cases where maintenance does not appear to be taking place either contact one of us or StreetSmart on 445501 or online at www.swindon.gov.uk/streetsmart.

Adoption of Land on the Abbey Meads Estate: We continue to make progress on this issue and nearly all the roads have now been handed over to the Council. There are also some areas of open space that need to be adopted and we will keep pursuing these too. Residents should be aware that, just because the Council is maintaining the land, the land has not necessarily been handed over as it may be a condition of the original development agreement.

Talk to us Face-to-Face:

• Monthly residents’ advice surgeries with the local Neighbourhood Police Team - Second Saturday of each month from 9am to 10am in the Parish Council offices. Forthcoming dates are: 12 December, 9 January, 13 February, 13 March and 10 April. No appointment is necessary and all ward residents are welcome.

• Surgeries in sheltered schemes about every 6 months

• We are happy to meet residents on a ‘one-to-one’ basis by mutual agreement

• Door-to-door canvassing

Interact with us Online:

Web site:http://www.haydonwickintouch.com/ – All the latest news and information
FaceBook: Haydon Wick Conservatives – Become a fan and exchange views
Twitter: @CllrDavidRenard – Follow David’s Council and Ward activities
Skype: david_renard - isurgeries available for residents

We are always looking for new ways to engage with local residents so would welcome any suggestions you may have for alternative venues or methods.

Summer 2009 Edition

Deputy Mayor: Ian and David are delighted to announce that our ward colleague Rex has been chosen for the honour of being the Deputy Mayor of the Borough of Swindon for the Municipal Year 2009/10. This means that he is also Mayor Elect for the Year 2010/11. We believe that this is the first time that anyone representing Haydon Wick has had the privilege and we wish him well over the coming two years. Whilst Rex will be representing the whole of the Borough, he is obviously very keen to support and promote any groups, events and organisations within Haydon Wick. All requests for his services must be routed through the Mayor’s office on 463599 or cdeamer@swindon.gov.uk .

Flooding Works: Extensive works being carried out by Thames Water are now underway with a completion date of 31 March 2010. There are and will be road closures and diversions that will result in significant disruption to both residents and those passing through and we ask everyone to be patient whilst these important works continue. Further information can be found on our web site. We are continuing our dialogue with the Environment Agency and the Council around further works we would like to see to the Brook but cannot report anything definite at the time of writing. Again, updates will be post on the web site.

Haydon Recycling Centre: We ran a residents’ survey on our web site and those who took part marginally favoured the option of leaving the containers where they are although the Morrisons option was a very close second.

Residents’ Survey: We delivered a residents’ survey form and pre-paid envelope to every resident during the Spring and the best part of 1000 have been returned. We would like to thank those who have returned them with their comments. We are working though the forms and will address the issues raised or refer them to the relevant authority; the most common being dog mess and policing. We are responding directly to residents on issues where appropriate and we should have completed this by the time this article appears on door mats. However, in the unlikely event that a response was expected but not received, we would ask that residents chase us up.

Grounds Maintenance: If there are any cases where maintenance does not appear to be taking place either contact one of us or StreetSmart on 445501 or online at www.swindon.gov.uk/streetsmart.

Adoption of Land on the Abbey Meads Estate:We continue to make progress on this issue and nearly all the roads have now been handed over to the Council. There are also some areas of open space that need to be adopted and we will keep pursuing these too. Residents should be aware that, just because the Council is maintaining the land, the land has not necessarily been handed over as it may be a condition of the original development agreement.

Contact with Residents: Our residents’ advice surgeries with a representative from the local Neighbourhood Police Team continue to be held on the second Saturday of each month from 9am to 10am at the Parish Council offices. The forthcoming dates are: 8 August, 12 September, 10 October, 14 November and 12 December. No appointment is necessary and all ward residents are welcome. We are also happy to meet residents on a ‘one-to-one’ basis by mutual agreement. We are always looking for new ways to engage with local residents so would welcome any suggestions you may have for alternative venues or methods.

Online: Details on these, other news items and a range of useful information can be found on our increasingly popular community web site http://www.haydonwickintouch.com/ so please do pay us a visit. Also, David has become the first Swindon Councillor on Twitter. If you want to follow him visit www.twitter.com/CllrDavidRenard

We all continue to deal with individual residents’ concerns on a range of matters and, as a general rule, the sooner a resident contacts us about an issue the easier it is to resolve.

Tribute: We would like to begin this edition’s report by paying tribute to former Borough and Parish Councillor John Archer who sadly passed away in January of this year. John was a colourful local character who devoted many years to serving the people of Haydon Wick, Penhill and the wider Swindon community. He possessed a great deal of local knowledge and was always entertaining with his many and varied anecdotes. He will be missed.

April Surgery cancelled: The second Saturday of April which is the regular slot for our advice surgeries falls on the Easter weekend this year. Therefore, we have decided to not hold it. This is the first surgery in four years that has not been held as planned. We are, of course, still available through the other communication routes if residents have any issues they wish to raise with us.

Flooding Works: Extensive works will be carried out by Thames Water, the Environment Agency and the Council between now and 31 March 2010 which we all hope and expect will alleviate further flooding problems in the area. Residents need to be aware that these works will require road closures and diversions that will result in significant disruption to both residents and those passing through. General information can be found at www.haydonwickintouch.com/news/1543 and we will provide further reports as we receive the details. We would ask all residents to be patient during this period.

Haydon Recycling Centre: We are working with residents, Council officers, the Parish Council and Morrisons to decide how this facility should be managed in future. The facility was originally moved from its original location because Thames Water needed to carry out some work and, at the same time, the new pharmacy opened. With the increased usage of that part of the car park, it did not seem sensible to return the bins to that location. However, by locating them in the other part of the Haydon Centre car park caused other problems so an option to move them into the Morrisons car park is being explored.

Grounds Maintenance: The Winter round of hedge and tree cutting has taken place and we are not aware of any outstanding issues so the new Council initiative, StreetSmart, seems to be delivering improvements. If you believe something has been overlooked, do contact us and we will see what can be done or call StreetSmart on 445501 or go online to www.swindon.gov.uk/streetsmart.

Smoke Alarms: It has come to our attention that the Smoke Alarms fitted by the Fire Service are usually fitted with a ten year battery. One of our residents has recently had a failure although, luckily in this case the lady contacted Rex and the Fire Service changed the Smoke Alarm. Rex has spoken to the Fire Service asking if they keep in touch with the people in whose properties the alarms have been installed and the answer is no. We are advised that the Fire Service was provided with the money to give advice and supply the alarms but the responsibility for the upkeep is with the resident. Therefore, we are reminding residents to check their alarms every week whether they were supplied by the Fire Service or purchased from a retailer.

Central Library: We are delighted that the library is now complete and has been so widely welcomed and appreciated. This was our Administration’s number one objective for the Town and we now look forward to the other town centre regeneration plans being delivered.

We all continue to deal with individual residents’ concerns on a range of matters and, as a general rule, the sooner a resident contacts us about an issue the easier it is to resolve.

Advice Surgeries: Our successful residents’ surgeries with a representative from the local Neighbourhood Police Team continue to be held on the second Saturday of each month from 9am to 10am at the Parish Council offices. The forthcoming dates are: 11 April – Cancelled, 9 May, 13 June, 11 July, 8 August. No appointment is necessary and all ward residents are welcome. We are also happy to meet residents on a ‘one-to-one’ basis by mutual agreement.

Web Site: Details on these and other news items can be found on our ever popular community web site http://www.haydonwickintouch.com/ so please do pay us a visit.

Autumn 2008 / Winter 2009 Edition

At the time of writing, we are expecting the Council’s Highways department advise us on the outcome of the review of Thames Avenue. Once we have them, we will set up a meeting so that we can present the findings and consult with any interested residents. We are delighted to have secured the Vehicle Activated Signs (VASs) on Thames Avenue to remind drivers of their speed and are still pressing to get two more for the area on Westfield Way near the junction of Osterley Road.

During the peak gardening months, green waste collections are not always being made on the appointed days. The advice is to leave them out as the crews will usually catch up the following day. The Haydon recycling centre has been moved to the other end of the Haydon Centre car park whilst work is done by Thames Water at its regular spot.

Adoptions of areas of the Abbey Meads estate are still an issue. Whilst nearly all the roads are now adopted, a number of the play areas and open spaces are not. We will be meeting with the responsible Council officer soon after the time of writing to see how we can move these issues forward and we will announce details on our web site when we have them. In addition to that, a successful on site meeting took place during the early part of August with Swindon Commercial Services to look at the current planting and maintenance of shrubs and trees along the roads of Abbey Meads. Now, 12yrs on from the early house construction and occupation, it was appropriate to review the growth rate and type of planting to put in a plan for thinning, replacement if necessary or revised maintenance scheduling and the Grounds Maintenance Officers are looking at this now. We will keep you informed.

In September, the Council launched a new service which will make Swindon a safer, cleaner and smarter place. It is called StreetSmart and brings together, under one umbrella, all the services which keep the borough’s streets and open spaces looking tidy and well-tended.

It also gives residents just one contact number for those services - 445501 - which they can use to report problems or ask for information. Along with the new telephone contact number, residents can also report issues online with a new dedicated weblink– www.swindon.gov.uk/streetsmart

The services included in StreetSmart are:Waste and recycling, Street care and cleaning, Highway maintenance, Street lighting, Parks and open spaces, Parking, Highway drainage,
Winter maintenance, Environmental enforcement (graffiti, fly-tipping, fly-posting, littering and dog fouling).

We all continue to deal with individual residents’ concerns on a range of matters and, as a general rule, the sooner a resident contacts us about an issue the easier it is to resolve.

Our successful residents’ surgeries with a representative from the local Neighbourhood Police Team continue to be held on the second Saturday of each month from 9am to 10am at the Parish Council offices. The forthcoming dates are: 13 December, 10 January, 14 February, 14 March and 11 April. No appointment is necessary and all ward residents are welcome. Some of our surgeries have been very well attended and we did run a poll on our web site asking if residents wanted us to consider extending the existing one, adding another day and time (perhaps a weekday evening) or leaving the arrangements as they are. The response was low so we plan to leave the arrangements as they are but we would love to hear from any resident of the Ward who has a view on this. We want to give as many people who want it, the opportunity to meet with us.

Details on these and other news items can be found on our ever popular community web site http://www.haydonwickintouch.com/ so please do pay us a visit.

Summer 2008 Edition

We are delighted that the electorate of Haydon Wick chose to re-elect Cllr Rex Barnett on 1 May with a 61% share of the vote in a four-way contest. Rex would like to thank all those who supported him and all three of us wish to re-iterate that we will continue to work hard for all Ward residents regardless of whether they voted for us or not.

We will persist in our efforts to address the flooding problems that affect parts of the Ward. Work on the Council owned part of the Haydon Brook, upstream of Westfield Way is continuing and the downstream section is due to be tackled by the Environment Agency in May. We will continue to press the developers north of the Brook and the Council to make improvements to the er culverts to improve the water flow. Rex has recently got the Environment Agency to install a depth measure which will help to alert local residents earlier to any potential problems. Thames Water has been doing exploratory and jetting work in Greenmeadow and the Village and they are due to give an update on their proposed remedies at a public meeting in June but we will keep the pressure on them to take action. We have already secured a commitment from the Council to remodel the road surface in the High Street and Blunsdon Road to improve the surface water drainage but there is little point in that work being done until Thames Water have completed their sewer work.

Recycling rates are still improving and we thank residents for their efforts and commitment. We recently discovered that a number of residents received a supply of plastic bottle bags with no printing on them. Provided that they are obviously the Council's standard issue bags, the waste collection teams will pick them up but would remind householders that no other bags are acceptable and they will be refused. A further supply of plastic bottle bags will be delivered to all households over the Summer. We are frequently arranging for additional collections from the Haydon recycling centre due to its popularity but we are also having to get the area cleaned up. Some users of the site are dumping bottle bags there instead of using the kerb side service or putting them into the skips provided; general waste is also being dumped. We would like to remind everyone who uses the site that no waste should be left around the collection bins as this constitutes fly-tipping and could result in a substantial fine.

After many months of waiting for the Councilïs Highways department to undertake the work, we have been advised that the review of Thames Avenue will be carried out shortly and the results available by the end of August. Once we have them, we will set up a meeting so that we can present the findings and consult with any interested residents. We have been campaigning for about four years to get Vehicle Activated Signs (VASs) on Thames Avenue to remind drivers of their speed. Two signs were approved some months ago and they should be in place by the time this article arrives on mats. We are delighted to have secured these and are still pressing to get two more for the area on Westfield Way near the junction of Osterley Road.

After working hard to get all the roads adopted on the Abbey Meads estate, we are very nearly there. Just one area around Cagney Drive is still outstanding and we are awaiting an update on this at the time of writing. We will announce this on our web site when we hear.

Grounds maintenance is a big issue at this time of the year. The Council has done a lot over the Winter and most of the area looks tidy. However, if there are any areas that residents feel need attention, do let us know and we will get them attended to.

The Town Centre regeneration has begun with the launch of the Big Screen in Wharf Green, the long-awaited new Central library will open early Autumn and work has begun on the old college site. Other plans are at various stages and it remains to be seen if the 'Credit Crunch' will have an impact on the pace of development although Swindon's buoyant economy may help ensure it moves ahead as planned.

The Council's campaign against graffiti has been successful in the area but there was a spate of blue graffiti spotted in Abbey Meads recently. We are determined to tackle this scourge and, if anyone knows who is doing it, they can tell us in confidence and we will get the appropriate Authorities to take action. Alternatively, residents can call the graffiti busting hotline on 463463. If the graffiti is on private property, the Council will remove it at no charge but residents will be asked to sign a disclaimer.

We all continue to deal with individual residentsï concerns on a range of matters and, as a general rule, the sooner a resident contacts us about an issue the easier it is to resolve.

Our successful residentsï surgeries with a representative from the local Neighbourhood Police Team continue to be held on the second Saturday of each month from 9am to 10am at the Parish Council offices. The forthcoming dates are: 9 August, 13 September, 11 October, 8 November and 13 December. No appointment is necessary and all ward residents are welcome. Some of our surgeries have been very well attended and we did run a poll on our web site asking if residents wanted us to consider extending the existing one, adding another day and time (perhaps a weekday evening) or leaving the arrangements as they are. The response was low so we plan to leave the arrangements as they are but we would love to hear from any resident of the Ward who has a view on this. We want to give as many people who want it, the opportunity to meet with us.

Details on these and other news items can be found on our ever popular community web site http://www.haydonwickintouch.com/ so please do pay us a visit.

Spring 2008 Edition

We must begin our latest report with the excellent news that the Councilïs Adult Social Care service is now rated 2 stars (out of a possible 3) with Promising prospects for future improvements. In 2004, Ian became the Cabinet member with responsibility for the service when it was rated 0 stars. By 2006, he had worked with officers to improve it to a one star service. That year, David took over Adult Social Care when it was added to his Housing portfolio and he built on Ianïs work. This is a fantastic achievement in such a short period of time and our thanks go to all those who have contributed to raising standards for some of the most vulnerable people in our community.

Rex is continuing to lead on flooding issues. Some progress is being made with Thames Water, the Environment Agency and the Highways department to get improvement works done to alleviate future flooding problems. At the time of writing, we have just been informed that Thames Water will be doing more extensive CCTV work on the sewers around the High Street / Blunsdon Road area. By the time this article is published, we will have held our second round of meetings with these bodies and expect further progress to be made. Updates will be published on our web site. Rex has objected to a number of proposed new developments in the light of the flooding problems and developers are now starting to sit up and take notice and amend their plans.

The new extended waste collection service has proved a great success locally with just a few teething problems that were resolved early on. Current indications are that Swindonïs recycling rate is now up to 41% against 19% just 4 years ago. If there are any outstanding issues that we can help with, do let us know. Ever since we secured a TetraPak recycling bin at the Haydon Centre, it has become so popular that excess packaging was being left around the site when it was full. We are delighted that we have now secured an even larger bin which should help to keep the area tidy and, perhaps, evening encourage more recycling.

David has continued to work on the provision of primary school places in the North. Three local schools have been expanded on a temporary basis and consultations are ongoing to get support for a permanent arrangement so that Catherine Wayte, Abbey Meads and Haydonleigh will become 2 form entry schools. Athough Taw Hill and Oakhurst are outside our Ward, we can report that plans to expand provision at St Francis and a possible new build in Oakhurst are being developed.

We hope that the long awaited review of the Thames Avenue traffic calming scheme will be carried out by the Highways department soon. We will report the conclusions and proposed actions in our next report and on the web site as soon as we receive the information.

We are pleased to report that we are making progress on the adoption of areas still owned by the developers on the Abbey Meads estate. The only areas still to be adopted are around Cagney Drive, Cooper Fields and Wynwards. We will keep working to resolve these cases.

The building of the new central library to the rear of the Town Hall is nearing completion and it will be ready for business later this year. Plans to regenerate the Granville Street area (Regent Place) and the old College site are progressing well and a developer has been appointed for the area covering the old Police station and bus depot.

We all continue to deal with individual residentsï concerns on a range of matters. As a general rule the sooner a resident contacts us about an issue the easier it is to resolve. The Councilïs campaign against graffiti has been so successful in the area that the issue is never raised with us now. However, if residents do spot any graffiti, we urge them to call the graffiti busting hotline on 463463 and action will be taken. If the graffiti is on private property, the Council will remove it at no charge but residents will be asked to sign a disclaimer.

Our successful residentsï surgeries with a representative from the local Neighbourhood Police Team continue to be held on the second Saturday of each month from 9am to 10am at the Parish Council offices. The forthcoming dates are: 12 April, 10 May, 14 June, 12 July, 9 August and 13 September. No appointment is necessary and all ward residents are welcome.

Details on these and other news items can be found on our ever popular community web site http://www.haydonwickintouch.com/ so please do pay us a visit. Please also note Ianïs new e-mail address.

Autumn 2007 Edition

Flooding has been the most significant issue we have been working on over the last few months. The two main problems that affect Haydon Wick are; the foul water drains in the Greenmeadow / High Street area and the Haydon Brook. The foul water drains are the responsibility of Thames Water and we continue to work with residents and the Council to bring pressure to bear on them to identify the route causes and then announce how the intend to permanently rectify the problem. Haydon Brook is the responsibility of the Environment Agency. Both organisations, along with the Highways Agency, have agreed to attend public meetings with affected residents to discuss what remedies should be put in place. At the time of writing, we are trying to agree dates and venues and will advise affected residents of the details with leaflets and by placing an article on our web site. We know that many residents requested sandbags but did not receive them. Unfortunately, when the River Ray burst its banks, 4 feet of water covered the Civic Amenity site, complicated by a chemical leak from an industrial unit nearby which meant the lorries carrying the bags could not get out. Since then and by way of some recompense, the Council has provided a free collection service for those residents with flood damaged goods for disposal. The three of us also toured parts of the Ward with residents and a Highways officer to do an assessment of any issues the highways Authority is responsible for and we are hoping to receive that report soon with suggestions for remedial work.

The new extended waste collection service is bedding in well and we are seeing a huge increase in Swindonïs recycling rates. The scheme was launched the week following the floods and huge credit must go to the people at Swindon Commercial Services for rolling the kerb side recycling scheme out with so few hiccoughs. The Councilïs Promise 49 stated that, by 2010, we will recycle at least 50% of our waste. Early indications show that we are well on target to achieve, if not exceed that. We have also secured a recycling bin at the Haydon Centre for Tetrapaks (soft drink cartons) which is proving extremely popular. Demand for the kerb side recycling of plastic bottles is also proving extremely popular and so we have agreed that the Council will provide an additional 13 plastic bags per household free of charge to encourage this further. The wheelie bins will be delivered in the Autumn with details of the collection arrangements; all collections for Haydon Wick residents will then be on a Thursday. The bins will NOT have micro chips in them as there are no plans for the Council to collect residue waste by weight. We would like to thank Haydon Wick residents for showing a tremendous willingness to participate in reducing the levels of waste going into landfill.

David has continued to work on the provision of primary school places in the North. He has managed to alleviate the potential problems he foresaw for the September 2007 reception entry by providing additional forms of entry at Catherine Wayte, Abbey Meads and Haydonleigh schools. He is now meeting with Council officers to try to find solutions to the increased demand for places that is predicted for September 2008 onwards. Whilst the number of primary school children has not increased across the Borough, many more than expected have moved into North Swindon from other areas leaving surplus places elsewhere.

Regarding the review of the

The successful campaign against graffiti continues. If residents spot any graffiti, we urge them to call the graffiti busting hotline on 463463 and action will be taken. If the graffiti is on private property, the Council will remove it at no charge but residents will be asked to sign a disclaimer.

We are pleased to report that we are making progress on the adoption of areas still owned by the developers on the Abbey Meads estate. Some areas have been adopted, some we are expecting to be adopted soon and a number around

The building of the new central library to the rear of the Town Hall can be seen growing above the hoardings and it will be ready for business in 2008. Plans to regenerate the

We all continue to deal with individual residentsï concerns on licensing, planning, benefits, Council Tax, landscaping, street lighting, refuse collection, fly tipping and grass cutting matters etc. As a general rule the sooner a resident contacts us about an issue the easier it is to resolve.

Our successful residentsï surgeries with a representative from the local Neighbourhood Police Team continue to be held on the second Saturday of each month from 9am to 10am at the Parish Council offices. The forthcoming dates are: 8 December, 12 January, 9 February, 8 March and 12 April. No appointment is necessary and all ward residents are welcome.

Details on these news items and other news and information can be found on our ever popular community web site http://www.haydonwickintouch.com/ so please do pay us a visit.

Finally, we would like to thank all those residents who have completed and returned our annual residentsï survey. We do read them all and take action on any issues that are raised and use them to guide our policies.

Spring 2007

As promised in our last report, the Greenmeadow Highways Forum was held on Thursday 7 December at 1830 at the Haydon Centre and was chaired by David. Although the weather was inclement, around 30 residents came to air their views with others sending their apologies but asking for their comments to be considered. A number of issues were raised including the traffic calming measures along

After three years of effort, we finally got the installation of the path along the north side of

Since the introduction of new legislation giving the Council powers to compel the owners of utility boxes, post boxes etc to clean the graffiti off them, there has been a marked improvement in the condition of these boxes. If residents spot any graffiti, we urge residents who spot any graffiti to call the graffiti busting hotline on 463463 and action will be taken. If the graffiti is on private property, the Council will remove it at no charge but residents will be asked to sign a disclaimer.

Over the Christmas and New Year period, we received several complaints about the state of the Haydon recycling centre. David arranged for it to be emptied and cleared 3 times but still it kept overflowing. This is testament to the enthusiasm with which Haydon Wick residents are keen to recycle! We have now agreed with Swindon Commercial Services that the whole area will be cleaned weekly on a Monday as opposed to the previous fortnightly arrangement and the contracts for maintaining the site are going out to tender. We expect this to result in an improved service in future.

In November, following the heavy rains, there were a number of flooding issues around the ward. We did work with and are continuing to work with residents and all the relevant agencies to address these issues.

Grounds maintenance issues on the Abbey Meads estate are still rightly being raised with us by residents. The areas that are not being maintained adequately are still owned by the original developers and, therefore, the maintenance of these areas is their responsibility not the Councilïs. We are continuing to bring pressure to bear and hope it will not be too long now before the developers to bring these areas up to the required standard so that they can be adopted and then maintained by the Council. If you think you may live in a part of the ward where this is the case, please contact one of us to ask as we now have maps of the estate with each outstanding area and developer identified.

The Council received a very positive inspection report from the Audit Commission late last year. In 2002, Swindon was one of the worst performing authorities in the Country. Now we are a 2 star authority that is improving well. The Audit Commission said ïSwindon Borough Council has undergone a radical transformation. The pace of change and the progress made have been impressive. Given the building blocks that have or are being put in place, the Council is well placed to deliver further improvements.ï They also said ïThe Council now has much clearer political leadershipï.ï. A Government minister has also praised Swindonïs schools for being some of the most improved in the Country. We are privileged and honoured to have had the opportunity to make a contribution to the Councilïs achievements to date although, of course, there is still much to do.

The building of the new central library begun in January to the rear of the Town Hall and the new library should be ready for business in 2008. Plans to regenerate the

By the time this article is printed, the Council Tax levels will have been agreed and published for 2007/08. We have worked hard for the last three years to keep the increases as low as possible whilst improving service levels and have been successful at this. Significant additional sums are being invested in waste collection and recycling as well as Adult Social Care. During the pre-budget consultation, these were the two areas that residents consistently told the Council they wanted to see additional investment. At the time of writing and assuming there are no unpleasant surprises, we anticipate that we should be able to keep this yearïs increase to around the figure of Local Government inflation of 3.6%.

We all continue to deal with individual residentsï concerns on licensing, planning, benefits, Council Tax, landscaping, street lighting and grass cutting matters etc. As a general rule the sooner a resident contacts us about an issue the easier it is to resolve.

Our successful residentsï surgeries will continue to be held on the second Saturday of each month from 9am to 10am at the Parish Council offices throughout 2007. The forthcoming dates are: 10 March, 14 April, 12 May, 9 June and 14 July. No appointment is necessary and all ward residents are welcome.

Our popular community web site http://www.haydonwickintouch.com/ now has a new look and contains even more information on these issues and many more so please do pay us a visit.

Winter 2006

On Election Day, some residents discussed a variety of Highways issues that affect the Greenmeadow area with Cllr David Renard. He pledged that, if re-elected, he would arrange a Forum involving Council Highwaysï officers to enable residents to raise their concerns and explore opportunities to address them where possible. David has now received a commitment from officers and the date has now been agreed; the meeting will be held on Thursday 7 December at 1830 at the Haydon Centre and be chaired by David. We urge all residents of Greenmeadow who feel that there are parking or traffic issues that need attention to attend the meeting. We would like to encourage residents who raise issues to also consider how they feel that it may be satisfactorily resolved.

We are expecting work on the installation of a path along the north side of Westfield Way between the new mini-roundabout and the District Centre to commence on 25 September so it should have been completed by the time residents read this article.

The free green waste collection now seems to have settled down as is proving to be a great success. The issue around waste that we now need to address is how to increase Swindonïs recycling rate from 27% today to 50% in 2010. Over the summer, the Council consulted on the future waste strategy for the Borough and we anticipate that most properties in Haydon Wick are likely to receive a weekly kerb side collection of recyclable waste with a fortnightly collection of ïlandfillï waste in wheelie bins. It is vital that all residents support the Council and increase their levels of recycling for the future benefit of Swindon and the planet.

Since the introduction of new legislation giving the Council powers to compel the owners of utility boxes, post boxes etc to clean the graffiti off them, there has been a marked improvement in the condition of these boxes. If utility companies are not keeping their boxes clean and you spot one, we urge residents who spot any graffiti to call the graffiti busting hotline on 463463 and action will be taken.

A number of grounds maintenance issues on the Abbey Meads estate have been raised with us by residents. The areas that are not being maintained adequately are still owned by the original developers and, therefore, the maintenance of these areas is their responsibility not the Councilïs. We will continue to apply pressure to the developers to bring these areas up to the required standard so that they can be adopted by the Council.

The Council is awaiting the results of its inspection by the Audit Commission and we expect this to be published in early December. We believe that the Council has continued its rapid improvement and are hopeful that this will be reflected in the report. The drive for further improvements will continue.

The arrival of the new central library is moving closer. Having relocated to Paramount House, the port-a-cabins have been demolished and work should have started on the building to the rear of the Town Hall by the time this is published. The new library should be ready for business in 2008. Plans to regenerate the Granville Street area are progressing well and a developer has been appointed.

We all continue to deal with individual residentsï concerns on licensing, planning, benefits, Council Tax, landscaping, street lighting and grass cutting matters etc. As a general rule the sooner a resident contacts us about an issue the easier it is to resolve.

Our successful residentsï surgeries will continue to be held on the second Saturday of each month from 9am to 10am at the Parish Council offices. The forthcoming dates are: 11 November, 9 December, 13 January, 10 February and 10 March. No appointment is necessary and all ward residents are welcome.

Please do keep up to date on these and many other issues by visiting our popular community web site: http://www.haydonwickintouch.com/.

Summer / Autumn 2006

At the time of writing, the local Council election results have just been announced and we are pleased to advise that Cllr David Renard was re-elected to serve Haydon Wick Ward with 56% of the vote and a large increase in the vote. David appreciates the support he received from the residents who supported him and he would like to re-iterate that he is committed to working hard for all residents of the Ward whether they voted for him or not. Gains were made in other parts of the Town which means that the Conservative Group will continue its drive to improve our Town and the services provided by the Council.

The Council will undergo its next inspection by the Audit Commission in June and we expect that they will find evidence of further improvement in the performance and services provided by the Council. Work will soon start on the new central library and the regeneration of Cavendish Square during this year and we look forward to those taking shape. We are also working on other regeneration projects for the Town.