At Monday evening’s meeting of the Shard End Ward Committee, the local police team provided residents with a copy of their information leaflet: Off Road Motorbikes – ASB, Safety & the Law.  For those of you who weren’t able to come along, you can download a copy by clicking here.

Don’t forget, if you have any information regarding the misuse of off road motorbikes, please contact the police by calling 101 or report the incident on-line via www.west-midlands.police.uk.

THE BIG INTERVIEW: Team #wearetheonemil meets Councillor John Cotton (FULL VERSION) from Social Breakfast on Vimeo.

Social Breakfast is an excellent, Birmingham-based social enterprise working to get young people more involved in local decisions and making change happen in our city. 

Last week, they put me in the hot seat for their regular “Big Interview”, which you can view by clicking on the image above.  We covered a whole range of topics, from my work as a Shard End Ward Councillor and as a Council Cabinet Member through to my sci-fi and music preferences!

To find out more about the work of Social Breakfast, take a look at their website here.

Despite being interrupted by a fire alarm during the middle of proceedings and having to evacuate the Council House for a short period, we managed to cover a wide range of topics, including the city’s Social Inclusion Process, the impact of welfare reform and how we can hand more power and control to local communities.

The meeting was live streamed on the internet and you can view a recording by clicking here.

There are over 9,000 households living in Birmingham City Council properties who will be directly affected and a further 5,500 who are tenants of housing association properties.  Over 400 of these households can be found in Shard End Ward – one of the highest concentrations in the city.

I recently gave an interview setting out the impact that Bedroom Tax will have on people living in our community and the kind of work the City Council is doing to try and support them. You can view it by clicking on the image below.

For more information about the impending welfare changes and how they might affect you or someone you know, please click here.

Last week, I opened three new food bank collection bins at the City Council’s Woodcock Street offices.  The bins allow Council staff to contribute food which is then taken by the Salvation Army to Birmingham Central Food Bank, for distribution to families and children across the city.

The growing demand upon food banks is a sad reflection of the pressures that the people of Birmingham are facing as a result of welfare reform, spending cuts and the general economic situation.  Here in Shard End Ward, we now have at least two food banks supporting hard pressed and vulnerable local residents and there is a growing network in neighbourhoods across the city.

I gave a short interview setting out the work that the City Council is doing, along with our partners, to try and help local people faced with these challenges.  Click on the link above to watch.

The official statistics show that more than one in four Birmingham households are classed as being in fuel poverty.  These numbers are certainly borne out by my own experience of trying to help residents who are struggling to meet the costs of heating their homes, often in the face of rising costs.

Birmingham Energy Savers will help residents by carrying out a home audit to identify energy efficiency measures and recommending a “Green Deal Plan” of improvements.  Crucially, the scheme allows residents to pay for some or all of the improvements by instalments through their electricity bill.  Repayments will cost no more than a typical household should save through energy costs.

The programme should reduce residents’ energy bills by up to £300 a year, which would take up to 40,000 Brummies out of fuel poverty by 2015.  It will also help to create more jobs for Birmingham residents, providing a direct investment in skills and opportunities for local people.

To find out more, please visit the Birmingham Energy Savers website.

I often get calls from residents asking for advice on these issues, so I was pleased to hear that Age Concern Birmingham have just relaunched their Firstcall Tradesperson service.  Firstcall Tradesperson puts people in touch with a qualified and carefully vetted tradesperson who will provide a free, no obligation quote for the work required.

You can find out more about the service by clicking here to download the information leaflet.

I’ve just received the latest newsletter from the Friends Of Kingfisher Country Park, who are doing a sterling job looking after the fantastic green space at the heart of Shard End Ward.

I’ve reproduced the letter below.  I know that the Friends are always eager to welcome new recruits, so if you’re interested in getting involved, they’d be delighted to hear from you!

———————————————————————————————————————————————————————-

C/o Sheldon Country Park Ranger Service
Old Rectory Farm
Ragley Drive
Church Road
Sheldon
Birmingham
B26 3TU

0121 303 6023

1^st February 2013

Email   FriendsofKingfisherCountryPark@se-and-tc.org

Dear Friends,

At last we have some very good news! Extensive work started last week to address the long-standing problem which has led to the water channel running alongside Yorks Wood and into Babbs Mill Lake being known as ‘the smelly brook’.

This is a community-led project seeking to restore the water quality of Babbs Mill Lake and the River Cole while enhancing the habitat and amenity value of the site.

During the past year the Committee, with Sheldon and Solihull Rangers, have aimed to raise awareness of Kingfisher Country Park and its environmental and recreational value by being present at various events. These have included the Big Bird Watch (Meriden Park), Sheldon Countryside Festival, Chelmund’s Day in Chelmsley Wood, a variety of community activity days in Shard End, Yorks Wood, Tile Cross, and Lea Village. We took part in Oaks and Shires week in Meriden Park and a Mini-Olympics Fun Day in the park, organised by local PCSOs.

More good news! In November we heard that the woodland and lake in Meriden Park had been designated a Chelmsley Wood Local Nature Reserve.

Now that we have an up-to-date mailing list and a clearer picture of the future of the Friends’ Group we hope to be able to give you advance information about events.

Future events include:-

20^th  February.
A mid-week Meander starting from the Pavilion at 10:30, towards Cole Hall Lane.

27th February.
Tree planting at Glebe Farm, details from the Rangers at Sheldon.

20th April.
A ‘Safer Shard End’ community day in and around the Pavilion.

Thank you for your continued interest and support.

Jeanne Holland