The Bradley Stoke Journal

The Sort It! civic amenity site in Station Road, Little Stoke, is to begin closing on Wednesdays when new operating times come into force on 1st August.

The news was buried in the footnotes of a South Gloucestershire Council (SGC) press release titled “Improvements to Sort It! Centres” put out on Wednesday (26th July).

In common with other Sort It! sites in Mangotsfield, Yate and Thornbury, the Little Stoke site will benefit from extended opening hours between April and September, remaining open until 6:30pm, but whereas the other sites will continue to open seven days a week, Little Stoke will now be closed on Wednesdays throughout the year.

Over a whole year, the other three sites will see a 25% increase in opening hours but for Little Stoke the total yearly hours will remain more or less unchanged.

Council says Little Stoke mid-week closure will pay for longer hours at other sites

Challenged by The Journal over the seemingly geographically-biased decision, a SGC spokesperson said:

“The reason for closing a SORT IT!* Centre for one day is to help to pay for extended hours on all sites.”

“The reason why Stoke Gifford [Little Stoke] was chosen was that it is a small site, which already has a vehicle height restriction and trailer ban in place for health and safety reasons. Wednesday was also the obvious day to close the Stoke Gifford site as data analysis showed this to be the least busy day at this site.”

“When we met with the local members for Stoke Gifford earlier this year they agreed the extra hours more than compensated for the day closure.”

Read on to find out what Bradley Stoke Councillors think of the decision »

South Gloucestershire Council’s (SGC’s) Cabinet has approved the submission to the Department for Transport (DfT) of a bid for £51 million of government funding towards a bus rapid transit scheme that would link link Cribbs Causeway with Bristol city centre via Bradley Stoke.

The £102 million scheme, known as the North Fringe to Hengrove Package, promises to provide a “fast, frequent and reliable public transport service linking the areas of Cribbs Causeway, Aztec West and Emersons Green with Bristol city centre and with Hengrove to the south of the city.”

Locally, the project includes the construction of a Stoke Gifford by-pass, providing a much-needed road link between the south of Bradley Stoke and the Avon Ring Road, emerging between Junction 1 of the M32 and the University of the West of England [see map].

The scheme promises to provide a ten minute frequency service on the route, using “modern, accessible, comfortable and low-emission vehicles” (tram-like ‘bendy buses’ are shown in promotional material).

When the scheme was originally proposed in 2009, it was costed at £194 million, with the DfT giving “in principle” approval for £170 million of funding with SGC and Bristol City Council making up the difference.

Since then, central government has announced a massive reduction in the amount of money available for transport projects. This led to the two local Councils submitting a revised bid in December 2010, in which costs were reduced to the current total of £102 million. In the process, SGC’s share of the total cost has rocketed from 10% (£20M) to 30% (£30.5M).

A ‘best and final’ bid will now go to the DfT by 9th September and a decision is expected to be announced in December.

If the application is successful, planning applications for the scheme will be prepared by April 2012 and a public inquiry will be held in Autumn 2012.

Construction could then start in Autumn 2013 and parts of the scheme could come into operation during 2015.

Read on for details of the latest rapid transit proposals for Bradley Stoke »

The community of Bradley Stoke has been officially thanked for sending a giant congratulations card to HRH Prince William and Kate Middleton (now the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge) on the occasion of their wedding in April.

The letter, from St James’s Palace, describes the card as “a marvellous piece of work” and makes reference to the hearts, fabric and glitter that members of the local community put on the card at the Royal Wedding ‘street’ party held at the Jubilee Centre.

The group also received a photo card of the royal couple, which can be seen on the FoJG website along with the message on the back of the card.

Michelle Dent, Chair of the Friends of Jubilee Green (FoJG), said she was “very excited” to receive the letter on behalf on the whole community.

The Trustees of the voluntary group will be looking for a suitable place to display the letter and card so the community can view it, she added.

A Bradley Stoke Town Councillor has criticised the town’s newly-introduced part-night street lighting scheme by claiming it violates residents’ human rights.

Speaking at last week’s Safer and Stronger Communities meeting, Cllr Ed Rose said he supported calls by some residents for the lights to be turned back on because they have a right to “liberty and security” (Article 5 of the UK Human Rights Act) and “protection from discrimination” (Article 14).

The comments put Cllr Rose at odds with other members of the Town Council, including Mayor Ben Walker, who unanimously consented to the introduction of the scheme in January.

Cllr Rose, who was not a member of the Town Council at the time of the decision, says he was alerted to residents’ concerns at a Councillor surgery earlier this month.

A number of residents from Snowberry Close are understood to have attended the surgery and demanded that the lights be turned back on, saying that parts of their street are particularly dark due to the presence of tall trees which block out any ambient light.

Cllr Rose said he took the complaints on board and later conducted his own survey of opinions in Hawkins Crescent, Crystal Way and Snowberry Close, concluding that “people are worried and fear for their liberty and safety”.

Read on: Mid-August meeting to review feedback from residents »

The Willow Brook Centre’s new club for local mums stages its next meeting on Tuesday 26th July between 9.30am and 11.30am at the Bradley Stoke Harvester restaurant.

The club was launched last month when 85 mums enjoyed a free hot drink and received advice from Boots, the Willow Brook Clinic and Brantano. Entertainment for the kids included an art & craft workshop and a puppet workshop.

This month Explore Learning is coming along with a selection of educational toys and will be offering half price membership to Mummy’s Morning card holders.

Phoenix Dental practice will be giving away free tooth paste samples, and the Extra Midwifery service will be on hand to talk to mums about getting all the support they need in their local area.

Representatives from Boots will be back with all the latest on their beauty and perfume ranges.

Continue reading to find out how to join the club »