The Bradley Stoke Journal

Bradley Stoke Town Council has voted to freeze the precept charge on residents’ council tax bills for the second successive year. The decision, agreed at last Wednesday’s Full Council meeting, sees the charge on a Band D property remain at £113.50 for 2012/13.

Commenting on the freeze, Cllr Roger Avenin (Con, Baileys Court), Chair of the Finance Committee, said:

“We continue to find ourselves in uncertain economic times and many residents’ household budgets are under pressure. As a Council we’re here to support the community and it simply wouldn’t be right to ask hard working families to pay any more this year.”

Councillors are also keen to point out that services aren’t under threat with Town Mayor Cllr Ben Walker commenting:

“We’re not making cuts, we’re still providing for the community; we’re just focusing very hard on doing everything we can as efficiently as possible. Our youth budget for example has been maintained but it has been opened up to a wider variety of organisations than ever before, so we can support a diverse range of activities for young people of all ages.”

The Town Council precept typically represents less than 10% of the total Council Tax bill. The largest proportion, around 80%, is taken by South Gloucestershire Council (SGC), with the police and fire services making up the remainder.

More: Government offers SGC a sweetener to freeze Council Tax »

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Spending on youth provision by Bradley Stoke Town Council (BSTC) looks set to be slashed by 39% from April if draft budget plans are approved at a meeting next week.

The news comes as young people await the outcome of a two month consultation into ‘youth needs’ in the town that was run by South Gloucestershire Council (SGC) during November and December last year.

The Town Council agreed a budget of £61,500 for ‘youth funding’ in 2011/2012 – with all of this amount being paid to Southern Brooks Community Partnership (SBCP), the organisation contracted to run the town’s sole youth club at the Brook Way Activity Centre.

In July 2011, the two Councils decided they weren’t happy with the way the club was being run and SBCP’s contract was terminated, leading to 13 youth workers being issued with redundancy notices.

The youth club was closed towards the end of October and since then SGC youth workers have been providing an interim programme of youth activities, including ‘detached’ work to engage young people on the streets.

The Town Council’s budget for ‘youth funding’ in the coming financial year has now been set, subject to final approval, at a similar figure of £60,000.

But it appears that the Council has quietly “absorbed” the costs of other youth-related budget items into the ‘youth funding’ category, leaving just £37,455 available for whatever the two Councils decide should replace the axed youth club.

More: "Absorbed" costs include £8,400 to lock Skate Park gates »

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Bradley Stoke Town Council has been told by Royal Mail that it has no plans to provide a larger post office in the town.

The news, revealed during public questions at a recent Council committee meeting, will come as a disappointment to the vast majority of the 273 people who responded to a recent Council consultation to assess demand for better post office facilities in Bradley Stoke.

The survey, conducted between August and October this year, saw 92.7% of respondents express the view that there is a need for a larger post office in Bradley Stoke, with 76.6% specifically calling for a post office to be provided at the Willow Brook Centre.

The results of the consultation were sent to the Royal Mail, Tesco, the Willow Brook Centre and the local MP.

Speaking at this month’s meeting of the Leisure, Youth & Amenities Committee, Town Clerk Sharon Petela said a response had now been received from someone “high up” in Royal Mail.

According to Mrs Petela, who said she didn’t have the letter to hand as she was planning to reveal its content at the next Full Council meeting in January, the response could be summed up as: “nothing’s going to happen”.

More: Royal Mail to look at Pear Tree Road queuing time issue »

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South Gloucestershire Council and the Town Council are reminding local youngsters about the ‘Youth Needs Survey‘ currently being conducted in Bradley Stoke.

The consultation was started after the two Councils jointly decided to close the town’s only youth club at the Brook Way Activity Centre with effect from the end of October, a move which led to Southern Brooks Community Partnership having to make 13 youth workers redundant.

Interim measures put in place by South Gloucestershire Youth Services since the beginning of November have seen youth workers engaging with youngsters on the streets and the staging of organised sessions including DJ-ing, circus skills, skating, football and music.

To help encourage young people to give their views, an event was recently organised at Bradley Stoke Skate Park, where youth workers gave out copies of the survey to help promote the consultation.

The consultation is open to all 10 to 19-year-olds who live in Bradley Stoke and it runs until 17th December.

Cllr Sheila Cook, executive member for children and young people, said:

“Your answers are important to us because it means that we can use them to shape new services that appeal to more of you and provide something for everyone to enjoy.”

More: "Biggest-ever consultation on youth services", says Mayor »

A public consultation on the provision of post office services in Bradley Stoke has demonstrated an overwhelming demand for a larger post office in the town.

The survey, conducted by the Town Council between August and October this year, saw 92.7% of the 273 respondents express the view that there is a need for a larger post office in Bradley Stoke.

A clear majority (68.1%) specifically said they would like to see a large post office at the Willow Brook Centre, a proportion that increases to 76.6% if those that expressed two or more locational preferences are included.

The town’s only current post office, within the Tesco Express store at Bradley Pavillions, Pear Tree Road, is criticised by many of the respondents for being too small and offering an inadequate range of services for a town the size of Bradley Stoke.

Parking facilities at the existing North Bradley Stoke post office are condemned by many respondents as inadequate and there are numerous complaints of people experiencing long waiting times at the two window facility.

The consultation was carried out after Cllr Tom Aditya, newly elected in May this year, raised the matter at July’s Full Council meeting, having campaigned as a resident for better post office facilities since as long ago as 2007.

The Town Council has now agreed to send the results of the consultation to the Royal Mail, Tesco, the Willow Brook Centre and the local MP.

Royal Mail and Tesco reluctant to change the status quo »

South Gloucestershire Council (SGC) has revealed details of the interim youth provision measures it has put in place following its decision, jointly with Bradley Stoke Town Council (BSTC), to close the Brook Way Youth Club at the end of last month.

Youth workers will be going out onto the streets on three nights a week to engage with young people congregating at places such as the skate park and the Willow Brook Centre.

The street work will be supplemented by six hours of activity sessions each week – including DJ’ing, football and young women’s projects – taking place at Baileys Court Activity Centre and Bradley Stoke Community School.

Catherine Challinor, a full time youth worker for SGC, said the programme would remain in place until Christmas, after which it might be reviewed following feedback from service users.

Having taken the decision, back in July, to close the Brook Way Youth Club, the Councils have now finally opened a public consultation to ask young people which activities they would like to see provided in the local area. The survey, dubbed “the largest, most in depth consultation regarding youth provision in Bradley Stoke” by Mayor Ben Walker in a recent Town Council newsletter, was supposed to start in September but finally got underway on 1st November.

The Bradley Stoke Youth Needs Survey 2011 runs until 17th December. SGC says it will publish the results of the consultation by the end of January 2012 on its Youth Unlimited website.

More: 13 youth leaders made redundant following Councils’ decision »