Topic: Justin Tomlinson Letter to the Adver

[Chav]

I am saddened to hear this as people love their allotments, when I was a child I enjoyed going down to the allotments and chatting to the old boys who all seemed to have their favourite chair there. I am sure they got out of their homes for some peace and quiet. Much wisdom was handed out along with tea and butties.

I bet you only went down there to nick the cabbages and broadbeans didnt you Mr W .....

[Muggins]

MArt said "They will all own a baseball cap and at least one will be named after a soap character."


And said baseball cap will be worn back to front and now covered with an hoodie. 

I was sait on a bus once and noticed that evryone under 25 had abaseball cap work backwards and all the old boys had a cap, peak to the front.

Although a lot of this seems to go on, keep alevel head about it, chances are it was just one or two - tanked up - doing it probably for the first and last time, sort of daring themselves to do something daring.

Probably there is something in the air to make them excited - perhaps it's the news of the royal wedding! I have noticed tha thte youth of today cannot cope well with any changes to their reoutines.

[Richard Symonds]

Mart, the idiots have broken into the allotment site again tonight, about 5 sheds opened up and a dumper truck and mechanical digger on the other side of the fence set on fire, and they say this is a nice place to live with morons about like this..
regards

Complain to your MP about it, I am sure they will assist you.

What is he going to do about it Ringer?

Wouldn't it be better to ask the members of the Police Authority (Councillors Bluh, Ford and Fisher) to ascertain how the perpetrators can be be caught and pay you all compensation?

[kohima]

that dumper truck and the digger came from a bristol hire firm, so I would imagine that someone from the council will be having his collar felt in the morning..

[Muggins]

Was there no CCTV? 

[Spectre]

MArt said "They will all own a baseball cap and at least one will be named after a soap character."


And said baseball cap will be worn back to front and now covered with an hoodie. 

I was sait on a bus once and noticed that evryone under 25 had abaseball cap work backwards and all the old boys had a cap, peak to the front.

Although a lot of this seems to go on, keep alevel head about it, chances are it was just one or two - tanked up - doing it probably for the first and last time, sort of daring themselves to do something daring.

Probably there is something in the air to make them excited - perhaps it's the news of the royal wedding! I have noticed tha thte youth of today cannot cope well with any changes to their reoutines.

Just look at the phase of the moon !

Full moon = Lunatics?

[Muggins]

Care in the Community has a lot to answer! No that's not fair, I doubt very much the vandals were receiving any care.

It will be interesting to see who did this and what their backgrounds are - where was it exactly?

There still should have been CCTV where there was heavy and expensive machinery.

[Ringer]

Care in the Community has a lot to answer! No that's not fair, I doubt very much the vandals were receiving any care.

It will be interesting to see who did this and what their backgrounds are - where was it exactly?

There still should have been CCTV where there was heavy and expensive machinery.

Why would it have prevented it, it does not. http://www.theanswerbank.co.uk/News/Question508833.html

The police claims it has failed to slash crime http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2008/may/06/ukcrime1

[Tea Boy]

Tomorrow could see the biggest act of vandalism perpertrated against our allotments....... By SBC itself!!

Isn't the allotments officer role up for the chop? I have been told the parks deptartment has to lose one officer and it could be her?

Nice girl, and she was really starting to make a diference. Poor show all round. Just when we needed cheap outdoor activities the most.

I think it will be more damaging than any fire and few instances of stolen veg. 

[Ringer]

Are allotments important to some, but do not appear to be politically important to others? There were a couple of hundred people that voted green in Swindon in May. Maybe they need to get aerated about their officer, rather than just aerating their soil? Spiking the soil may have beneficial qualities, but spiking politicians election chances may have more enjoyable outcomes for some?

[kohima]

we have these breakins about 1 a week and its not just veg that goes missing it equipment and the like, you ring the police as I do as the site rep, and be told that I cant ring in such details of the break in, those whose sheds have been damaged must do that and if you send in a report to the council, if you get a reply your lucky.  The lock on our two gates fits every site in Swindon apart from the one at Walcot, who have the new one off locks, you only have to get hold of a key and your in throughout Swindon, tell that to Mr Hambridge and co and your talking to a brick wall..  We did have a lady in charge called Chrystal, who was very good, in what she did and how she went about her job, trouble was she was too good and was replaced....

[Ringer]

we have these breakins about 1 a week and its not just veg that goes missing it equipment and the like, you ring the police as I do as the site rep, and be told that I cant ring in such details of the break in, those whose sheds have been damaged must do that and if you send in a report to the council, if you get a reply your lucky.  The lock on our two gates fits every site in Swindon apart from the one at Walcot, who have the new one off locks, you only have to get hold of a key and your in throughout Swindon, tell that to Mr Hambridge and co and your talking to a brick wall..

Sounds like an indifferent way for a conservative council to treat paying customers? Maybe you need to speak to Capita? or Symonds or whatever they are called?

[Tea Boy]

we have these breakins about 1 a week and its not just veg that goes missing it equipment and the like, you ring the police as I do as the site rep, and be told that I cant ring in such details of the break in, those whose sheds have been damaged must do that and if you send in a report to the council, if you get a reply your lucky.  The lock on our two gates fits every site in Swindon apart from the one at Walcot, who have the new one off locks, you only have to get hold of a key and your in throughout Swindon, tell that to Mr Hambridge and co and your talking to a brick wall..

I get the odd stuff nicked, but the major losses are to caterpillars and pidgeons, wheres my air rifle!!. Bit rough to place the blame for the break down in society and lack of police response at the door of Mr H, he's only a council manager and will soon have 3 less staff to get stuff done. I suppose he could individually lock each of your cabbages to the ground?

My allotments is also still on the old key system, I think we are due to get the new one soon. Patience is a virtue. Will that happen now if there is no one to with the drive to do it?

[Ringer]

My allotments is also still on the old key system, I think we are due to get the new one soon. Patience is a virtue. Will that happen now if there is no one to with the drive to do it?

An even bigger society may help out?

[Muggins]

You don't have to have voted Green to enjoy an allotment - what concerns me is, just like Kohima, many don't know where to get quickest action.  Do you not have a Neighbourhood Policing team? Can you not send them Emails?  Either way the police are not goign to drop everything for the sake of cabbages and spades.

I don't bother phoning Mr Hambidge, for one thing he is rarely at his desk. Even his emails come back with 'I am not in the office until.... His job is not to take direct complaints.

To be fair, like I said I don't rely on speaking to him - I contact his underlings (sorry Teaboy).  If you are in an area with Wardens speak to them.

I don't expect CCTV to stop thing happening (although they can be effective for that)  but it will help if a nice little photo has been taken of them that did it.

Wouldn't it help if all the allotment holders clubbed together and got themselves a secure storage unit?

[kohima]

one of the lads on our site some time ago was boasting that he had just bought a state of the art lock and the haspe and other bits to put on the shed, within two weeks  they broke in and took his door off, those machines have been left out on the track all week, I was wondering if somebody was going to steal them intact, but no the erbs came along and burnt them instead..
they have cctv on the h pool roof but they have refused to move it or put another one up on the pole to look over our area.

[Richard Symonds]

we have these breakins about 1 a week and its not just veg that goes missing it equipment and the like, you ring the police as I do as the site rep, and be told that I cant ring in such details of the break in, those whose sheds have been damaged must do that and if you send in a report to the council, if you get a reply your lucky.  The lock on our two gates fits every site in Swindon apart from the one at Walcot, who have the new one off locks, you only have to get hold of a key and your in throughout Swindon, tell that to Mr Hambridge and co and your talking to a brick wall..  We did have a lady in charge called Chrystal, who was very good, in what she did and how she went about her job, trouble was she was too good and was replaced....

Take it up with the Police Authority Councillors Messrs Bluh, Ford and Fisher, after all they cost enough c£36k per annum I believe!!

[Chav]

we have these breakins about 1 a week and its not just veg that goes missing it equipment and the like, you ring the police as I do as the site rep, and be told that I cant ring in such details of the break in, those whose sheds have been damaged must do that and if you send in a report to the council, if you get a reply your lucky.  The lock on our two gates fits every site in Swindon apart from the one at Walcot, who have the new one off locks, you only have to get hold of a key and your in throughout Swindon, tell that to Mr Hambridge and co and your talking to a brick wall..  We did have a lady in charge called Chrystal, who was very good, in what she did and how she went about her job, trouble was she was too good and was replaced....

Take it up with the Police Authority Councillors Messrs Bluh, Ford and Fisher, after all they cost enough c£36k per annum I believe!!

Or ask to look in Mr W's Shed    (only joking ) !

[Ringer]

I wonder if those accounts will show what happened to the money given by Tesco,  about 6 years ago, this money had to be given, in exchange for the permission to knockdown the old Wills social club and the then extension of the Tesco store, which in the course of time came to nothing more than a bigger car park, but the money, to be used to refurbish the shops in Gorsehill has never been seen..

It looks like the current lot spent this money and was it used on shop fronts if not maybe thats why it has never been seen?

15 December 2010

Ref: FOI Freedom of Information Request FOI 101000245521

Thank you for your e-mail dated 19th November 2010 received in our office
on 19th November 2010, concerning a financial donation from Tesco to the
Gorse Hill area.

I enclose for your attention, the following information.

A payment of £30,000 was received by the Council in May 2006, under the
terms of the planning agreement dated 4th November 2004, associated with
planning permission S/03/2835 (and tied to revised permission S/05/0652 by
legal agreement dated 6th July 2005).

An extract from the 2004 agreement below makes reference to the
contribution subject of this enquiry.

Contribution towards the Enhancement of Gorse Hill

Prior to opening,the Developer will pay to the Borough Council Thirty
Thousand Pounds (£30,000) towards the enhancement of Gorse Hill, Swindon
or other such forms of improvement as agreed between the developer and the
Borough Council PROVIDED THAT the enhancement works shall not include any
works that once completed could hinder or impact on the Developer's
trading levels at the existing and extended store on the Land.

The contribution has been allocated to partially fund the St. Marks
Recreation Ground refurbishment works project that delivers enhanced
sports and play facilities in the Ward of Gorse Hill & Pinehurst. Phase 2
of this project is nearing completion.

[Ringer]

This FOI has proved so useful on the 106 debate to "our friends" the Tories perhaps someone can do one on. What happened to the money from the sale of the brunel that one poster bangs on about?  Still no one has  provided the adver article on the sale of the Brunel. If  anyone does not make an FOI request then maybe they finally accepts what posters on TS have said about the sale of the Brunel? 

Another FOI to help tory friends could be why the Tory led council used money from the sale of the Brunel to pay off the pension hole. It was to fill a gap that was caused by Thatcher who made councils take a pension contribution holiday from 1990 to 2003 to assist with their funding during her early years of cutbacks to services. Spending the family pension pot has hit her heirs aand succesors hard!

It can't be done this time as some council pension funds have still not managed to fill the holes from Thatchers directive. Please if you do not believe this then FOI away.

To help out here is an example from Royal mail to demonstrate it:

Then there's the pension fund black hole, which stands at over £5 billion, caused by a 13-year "pension holiday" that Royal Mail took from 1990-2003. During this period postal staff still made their pension contributions, but the company didn't pay its share into the pension fund thanks to a change introduced by Margaret Thatcher.

Full article here:
http://www.organizedrage.com/2009/10/why-are-uk-posties-striking.html

Anyway Merry Christmas to you as I am having an "individual" Christmas I may appear a bit sad posting on TS on Christmas day, but to all those surrounded by their families and enjoying their Merry family Christmas all I can say is Bah Humbug! hic, and bottomshss up hic anyone fancy a port and lemon?