Man's best friend but....

Residents of the Deer Park Estate are now keeping a regular check on dog fouling on the footpath behind St.Peter's and St. Paul's School.

Such fouling is not only unpleasant in many ways, it can also be dangerous. Up to 16,000 people each year are affected by toxocariasis, caused by a round worm living in animal faeces, and which can cause eye trouble and even blindness.

The seriousness of the problem has been recognised by the Government, who have set significant fines on owners who do not clean up after their pets, although in the first instance a warning is usually given.

If you wish to remind an owner,whom you observe has not complied, by reporting a failure to your local Ward Councillor or directly to the Borough Council, please record details:

Date, time and place of the offence
The name and address of the person in charge, if possible
A description of the Dog

Report from Councillor Ashley

Islington Close - the fight starts again

A year or two back a planning application for development at Islington Close was passed by the planners, but defeated after local action and reference to the plans board at Telford. The grounds were disruption to local residents, access for emergency vehicles and problems with flooding by the Strine Brook, among others.

It seems that another application in the area has been made. If residents feel the same objections, then it will require action by them and Dan Ashley. He feels that although much of the "brown field" land has now been used or earmarked for development, and we have to meet the Local Development Framework laid down by the Government, we must still resist developments which are inimical to local housing and residents.


Message from Councillor Ashley

The buses, the buses

Residents of Granville Avenue, especially, and others, will be pleased that the "bus barriers" at last seem to be working.

There were initial problems - a saboteur ripped out wiring, and "boy racers" have driven through at high speed and noise, but things have settled down now.

The result is that coaches taking pupils to Burton Borough School no longer use the Granville Avenue. They reach the school via the industrial estate, and return from the school via Audley Avenue, and Audley Road to Stafford Street.

The only remaining problem seems to be lorry drivers attempting deliveries to units on the estate at all hours of the day and night, and who seek to find it by a wrong instruction from a sat-nav. It is hoped that our highways section will erect direction signs to the estate emphasising the correct route.

Message from Councillor Meredith.

The LDF again

Planning permission to create a flat within an existing building has been turned down on the sole ground that it cannot be divided.

On the blog page for today, Councillor Meredith details a case where the LDF rules again make a nonsense.

So if you would like to sell part of your large garden, or convert within your large house, to increase the housing stock, then you must propose at least two new dwellings, so that at least 35% of them may be built as affordable (i.e. cheap) homes. If you have space for only one, then you must somehow acquire more land, and suggest that scattered developments are really one scheme.

It should be added that, should you succeed, your development will count as part of the LDF maximum numbers permitted over the next 9 years, of some 300 dwellings.