Poole’s proposed traveller site
Poole Council is proposing a transit site at Merley Park Farm, Willets Road, off the Lake Gates Roundabout just below Lambs Green.
This is on the border with Corfe Mullen and as far as possible from the centre of Poole.
Poole Council failed to consult neighbouring authorities no doubt hoping that it could be resolved before anyone knew. News leaked out and furious local councillors raised the matter at a meeting at Bearwood Communty Centre on 22nd October.
Free bus travel before 9:30 am
After continuous pressure from your local Liberal Democrats, East Dorset District Council is to re-instate free bus travel before 9:30 am.
Those with bus passes and entitled to free bus travel will be able to travel before 9:30 am.
Earlier this year the council said that his would be too costly. Anne Holland for the Liberal Democrats argued that the extra cost would be negligible and was concerned that people with medical appointments, the partially sighted and those with limited services after 9:30 am would suffer. She offered three low cost options all of which were turned down by the council.
The change is proposed to start on 1st December in time for Christmas shopping.
Corfe Mullen biggest group at protest rally
At the protest rally held in Bournemouth square on Sunday 14th September 2008, attended by representitives from Bournemouth, Poole and Christchurch, by far the largest group were from Corfe Mullen.
Annette Brooke MP started off the rally with a strong and emotive speech supporting the protest against development in the Green Belt especially in Corfe Mullen.
A meeting is to be held at Corfe Mullen Village Hall on Tuesday 30th September at 7:30pm to discuss further action.
Waste at County Hall
Over the last 18 months:
- Expensive report and survey to close 13 libraries. After strong public resistance opening times reduced instead.
- £1.3m found for unnecessary self service machines for every library.
- Another U-turn after plans to close 6 Day Centres withdrawn after strong public resistance.
- Expensive consultants advise on 'Fit for the Future Programme' - £1m spent already, £16m to go,the programme is behind schedule, projected savings reduced.
- Queen Elizabeth re-build £6m over budget so far and taking money from other schools.
- £11m saving from £16m IT programme rapidly vanishing.
- £5m wasted on 'fashionable' Call Centre.
In spite of extra funding Adult Social Care is now rated as one of the worst performing in the country.
Despite massive increases in government funding, Dorset County Council now has extensive debts. When Liberal Democrats were in charge at County Hall the council was debt free and services expanded.
Lorry nuisance
Several years ago a weight restriction was placed on a short stretch (200m) of Wareham Road just north of the entrance to Beacon Hill landfill site. Now more and more lorries are ignoring it and using Corfe Mullen as a short cut between the A350 at ‘Limberlost’ and the A31 at Lake Gates. We will be monitoring the weight restriction with our Community Beat Officer, PC Paul Mellor and reporting offenders to the Police and Dorset Trading Standards.
Buses Return
20 minutes to Poole 10 minutes to Wimborne.
The Wimborne Flyer is now coming through Corfe Mullen every half hour !
Since the day the Wimborne Flyer first ran two years ago we have asked and begged that some of its journeys should include Corfe Mullen and on April 6th the service started.
Dogged determination, lots of letters and persistence by the County Council, your Councillors and the people of Corfe Mullen have finally persuaded Wilts and Dorset to change the route. We must now show their decision was worthwhile by using the bus as much as we can.
The route gives us a fast regular service to Poole, Broadstone and Wimborne as well as a service through the village. Hooray !!
Take the Bus !
Bus Passes
Your councillors are trying to persuade East Dorset District Council to change its mind about enabling people to use their free bus passes before 9.30 am, especially the partially sighted and disabled. If you have been badly affected, please let us know, as evidence of hardship gives us more chance of changing the situation.
Street Lights
Many of you will have noticed the new street lights on Wareham Road and Lockyers Road.
The new lights meet the latest British Standard, being better spaced, using less power, and reducing light pollution.
£31.6 million from the Department of Transport has enabled DCC to start a 25 year maintenance programme and replacing about 70% of the county’s street lights over the next five years.
Beacon Hill Latest
At a recent meeting of the Beacon Hill Quarry Liaison Committee, the landfill operator, SITA, presented plans for a new facility at the site. To comply with new legislation all trade waste brought in must be sorted to extract all recyclable materials, such as wood, metal, green waste and other useful building components, before the residue is land-filled. This processing will take place in a large purpose-built shed to the south of the weighbridge. The building will have a low pitched roof which will be used to harvest rainwater for use on site and will be barely visible from the Wareham Road. As part of their plan, SITA will also provide a Recycling area for public use near to the site entrance. This will have large skips for depositing of garden waste, metal, wood and cardboard set at a lower level to the service road, plus the usual containers for glass, cans, plastic bottles etc. This will not be a full-blown Civic Amenity site like Brook Road, Wimborne or Nuffield, Poole, but it will mean that local residents will not have so far to travel to get rid of certain wastes. If the planning application passes through it’s many stages successfully we will have a user-friendly facility that we have been trying to obtain for many years.
700 New Homes
in Corfe Mullen's Green Belt come a step closer!
Despite the strong arguments put forward by your local representitives at the recent panel hearing, it has been reccomended to the govenment that the proposed 700 homes should be built in Corfe Mullen's Green Belt. The Panel also recommended that a further 1000 homes should be built in East Dorset, some of which could be in Corfe Mullen.
Now the Secretary of State will consider the Panel’s report and publish her changes in the spring. There will be a 12 week public consultation on her proposed changes. We will make strong representation, but to be realistic the Secretary of State is unlikely to reduce the amount of housing proposed.
It is vital that we fight for the infrastructure to support any housing development. This will not be easy as the report suggests some vague improvements such as the need for the A31 to be made a dual carriage way through the conurbation, but there are no timescales and the extra housing is not made dependent on such requirements.
We must also ensure that the local planning process is strong enough to give us the best possible developments that provide some affordable housing, amenities, local road improvements etc.
Black Sacks get the sack
The annual issue of black sacks to residents of East Dorset has been stopped, this has been done to fund the extension of doorstep recycling to rural areas not yet covered by the present scheme. This is required by 2010.
Rubbish collections will carry on as before but residents will be expected to provide their
own black sacks from now on.
Liberal Democrats argued that it should be delayed until the 'brown bin' scheme is introduced to all areas including Corfe Mullen. The brown bin is a small wheelie bin for kitchen, other organic waste and cardboard and has been introduced to some parts of the district.
This is a stealth tax - an increase of £6 on our Council Tax.Rubbish collections
Changing Times
At a recent council meeting it was decided by the controlling Tory group, despite opposition from the Lib Dems, to stop the use of free bus passes before 9.30 am.This is to save £16,684. It will mean those residents who have to travel before 9.30 am having to pay for hospital visits etc. The current spending on lease cars for some officers of the council during 06/ 07 was £83,000. Other authorities such as North Dorset and Salisbury will still offer free travel before
9.30am.
Corfe Mullen Police changes
From Friday 11th January 2008, Corfe Mullen’s policing came under the control of the new Dorset Division (formerly Eastern Div.) having been transferred out of Poole Division. So we say goodbye, good luck and thank you to PC Ross Cleary, who will be returning to Plymouth in due
course, and we say hello and welcome to PC Paul Mellor who is based at the Wimborne Station under the supervision of Sgt. Alan Setchell and Insp. Ernie Henley. At the moment we are without any Police Community Support Officers, but we are hoping that one or more will be in place soon. For the time being any 999 responses will still come from Gravel Hill Station. The non-emergency number and contact for the above officers is still 222222.
At some time in the near future the Police are hoping to arrange a public meeting to introduce PC Mellor alongside the ‘Police and Community Together’ group (P.A.C.T.) and to discuss any current problems we have in the village. If you are interested in attending this meeting, please contact me on 692617 and I will let you know as soon as we have a date, time and venue. In the meantime if you meet PC Mellor around the village, please give him a warm Corfe Mullen welcome.
Sure Start for Corfe Mullen Library
Before Christmas we all had the opportunity to give our views about the future of the
Library in Corfe Mullen in a Survey. However, before the results of this survey have
been analysed the County Council is going ahead with its own plans.
The Library in Corfe Mullen is to be closed for 2 weeks for reorganisation and a bit of refurbishing, starting on Feb 4th and reopening on Feb 18th. The County Council plans for the future of the library include it being closed (as a library) on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Children’s Services are intending to use the building for a Sure Start programme on Tuesdays and Thursdays, regardless of the results of the survey.
If this benefits the children of Corfe Mullen then it is a good thing but so far we have been told little of what is involved.