Category: Wokingham and West Berkshire Issues

I have responded to the request of the Vice Chancellor for views on the future of this school in the University.

I have urged the University to keep and develop the School. Government policy and the national interest point towards more school pupils taking Science and technology subjects  with a view to going into Higher Education. Reading University sits at the heart of a hi tec valley with many computer and engineering based jobs available, and with many digital age companies expanding. There are opportunities there for our local university which I would like them to take up. I will be happy to help if they need assistance in their relationship with government or the wider community.

 

The latest figures for the Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust show that locally more medical staff are treated more people. It is a story of growth and improvement in service.

Sine 2010 the local NHS has recruited an extra 70 hospital doctors and 258 additional nurses. There were 1313 more operations in 2012/13 compared to 2009/10. 8960 more people were seen in 2013/14 compared to 2009/10 with a wait of under 4 hours.

The rate of cdif infection has more than halved over the same time period

I have been sent the following communication from the Post Office about services in Winnersh. All interested should go onto the www.postofficeviews.co.uk website where they can send in their comments, citing 23093999 as the branch reference.

“Winnersh Post Office®

427 Reading Road, Winnersh, Wokingham, RG41 5HU

Proposed move to new premises & branch modernisation

I’m writing to let you know that we are proposing, with the Postmaster’s agreement, to move the above Post Office branch to a new location – Winnersh Food And Wine, 487 Reading Road, Winnersh, Wokingham, RG41 5HL. I’m pleased to tell you that, if the move goes ahead, subject to consultation it will change to one of our new local style branches.

This change is part of a major programme of modernisation and investment taking place across the Post Office network, the largest in the history of Post Office Ltd, which will see up to 8,000 branches modernised and additional investment in over 3,000 community and outreach branches. The programme is underpinned by Government investment, with the Government committing £1.34bn in 2010 to maintain and modernise the Post Office network and in November 2013 announcing a further £640m investment in the Post Office network until 2018.

What will this mean for customers?

• Post Office services will be offered from two tills on the retail counter in a modern open plan branch
• Longer opening hours
• The majority of Post Office products and services will still be available
• Improved accessibility

Consulting on the proposed new location

We’re now starting a 6 week local public consultation and would like you to tell us what you think about the suitability of the proposed new location. Before we finalise our plans, we would really like to hear your views on the proposed location, particularly on the following areas:

• How suitable you think the new location and premises are and how easy it is to get there?
• Are the new premises easy for you to get into and is the inside easily accessible?
• Do you have any concerns about the new location?
• If so, do you have any suggestions that could help us make it better for you?
• Any local community issues which you think could be affected by the proposed move
• Anything you particularly like about the proposed change

I’ve enclosed an information sheet that provides more details about the new location and the range of products that will be available. If you have any comments or questions, please email or write to me via our Communication and Consultation team, whose contact details are below. Please note that your comments will not be kept confidential unless you expressly ask us to do so by clearly marking them “In Confidence”.

Any information we receive will be considered as we finalise our plans for the new branch. Other people in your organisation may be interested in this proposal, so please let them know about it.

You can share your views on the proposed move through our easy and convenient new online questionnaire via the link below. When entering the site you will be asked to enter the code for this branch: 23093999

Dates for local public consultation: Local Public Consultation starts	10 February 2015
Local Public Consultation ends	24 March 2015
Proposed month of change	May/June 2015 “

How to Contact the Post Office:

Internet: www.postofficeviews.co.uk

Email: comments@postoffice.co.uk

Telephone: Customer Helpline – 08457 22 33 44. Textphone – 08457 22 33 55.

Letter – FREEPOST Your Comments

 

Yesterday I met senior managers from Thames Water to discuss the quality of service, bills and flooding matters.
Thames are keen for more people to convert voluntarily to water meters, Many users would benefit from lower bills, depending on their usage and house size.New smart meters also allow the water company to receive regular electronic updates on usage to assist them manage the total system better. It also helps them trace leaks, reducing waste. Most homes do not use water in the middle of the night, so if water is still being supplied it warrants investigation to see if there is a leak that needs fixing.
Thames have a plan for a large new reservoir near Abingdon. They think this will be needed, given the large rise in population London and the south east is experiencing. Regulators, government and the industry are still making up their minds about this project. In the meantime water companies are exploring other options, including mending leaks and installing meters.I will be following up this conversation with Ministers, to review the best way of meeting future water demand. As we saw in the first two years of this decade, if you have a prolonged period of dry weather the system finds it difficult to cope.

In recent years the proportion of people owning their own home has fallen in the UK. This concerns me, especially as many people would like to own their own home but find at current house prices that is either difficult or impossible.

Present mortgage rates are helping. The typical interest rate at the start of a first time buyer’s mortgage is between 2.4% and 2.6%, rising to 4% to 5.7%. These rates are low compared with the rates past generations faced, making early years repayments more affordable.

The problem is the price of the property. In the Reading area a first time buyer can get a one or two bedroom flat for less than £170,000. The lower priced properties tend to be in Reading town rather than in Wokingham or the villages around. A £150,000 mortgage starting at 2.4% requires monthly payments of £664-£676.

This will be possible for some young people earning around the national average. For those on lower pay there are shared ownership options where the capital cost is far less.

I am discussing with the Council what more can be done to improve the range of affordable homes for sale and for shared ownership, to see if more can get a foot on the property ladder.

The Council and regeneration company has written to me to set out their preliminary ideas for the Carnival Pool area of south Wokingham.

They are planning a modernised and expanded leisure area. They wish to renovate Carnival Pool, resite the bowling alley, provide a larger gym facilities and indoor sports facilities. There will also be room for café/restaurant space.

All interested can see the plans on www.regeneration company.co.uk and can respond to the consultation request.

I am pleased to say I receive very few complaints about our local GP service. Many constituents are pleased with the service available to them.

Nationally there are issues with access to good GP services. Some people find it difficult to book an appointment. Some GP surgeries are overloaded, creating delays and difficulties for patients. If the GP service cannot cope, then more people turn up at A and E at the local main hospital.

On Thursday we had a debate about the future for GP services. I wish to see a further expansion of GP numbers, allowing more days and longer hours of opening as new GPs are recruited and become available. There are potential GPs who might like to work at different times and on different days from the standard five day week. If they volunteer contracts could be arranged to suit both them and patient needs for out of hours or week-end appointments.

I intervened in the debate to put this point, which was generally well received.

I attended a meeting with representatives of the Housing Association movement in the South east on Tuesday.

I urged them to offer more affordable homes for sale, and more shared equity properties, as many people seeking a home would like to be owners or part owners if at all possible.

Ownership is the preferred tenure for most people. It is good to be free to alter, improve and decorate your home as you wish. It is good to look forward to your later life when you will be able to live in your home free of rent or mortgage, or move to a more suitable property and maybe even release some capital.

Homes are now expensive in the Wokingham area. Young people seeking to buy either need help from Mum and Dad, or need to be on good incomes at a young age to make it affordable. It is difficult or impossible for those without such assistance. That is where the Housing Association movement, with access to state monies, can help. The Housing Association people present said they did understand the wish for more to own or part own, and said they were going to do more for shared ownership.

Wokingham Borough and West Berkshire do require affordable housing construction in new developments, recognising the problem.

I have lobbied in writing, by attending the consultation with officials, and by talking to Ministers and officials to get better abatement of M4 noise as we move to a smart motorway.

I am pleased to report that following further conversations the Highway Agency says it is now planning to provide noise reducing surface materials for all lanes of the motorway. I am still in discussion with them over their current plans for additional barriers, as I wish to see residential areas offered additional protection from these where possible and helpful.

Some residents are asking if the Council can put in the facilities needed before allowing more new homes to be built.

They are right to expect that school places will be available when new children need them. That is why three new primaries were placed in Wokingham for this academic year, in advance of many of the new homes. It is also why the Council is pressing on with plans for additional secondary school provision. That of course needs to go through a proper independent process of assessment for planning and building consent purposes, which might lead to altered plans. The Council intends to provide all the places children need when they need them.

It is also crucial that more transport capacity is put in, as we do not have sufficient for current users. The government has with Network Rail just completed a major capacity expansion on the railway at Reading to help constituents get to and from London and elsewhere. We do now have a better and larger Wokingham station. The Station link road is the first part of ambitious schemes for Wokingham’s roads and will open shortly. The Council is making progress with its plans for the Arborfield and Shinfield by passes.

I understand people’s impatience to see these much need new facilities available and will do all I can to smooth their passage where they need government money and approvals.