After a resident contacted me to query why a new litter bin was installed near to one that is already available, I asked a written question of the cabinet member.

The answer confirms that the bin was not meant to be installed there.

I have now asked to see the complete bin installation plan for Podsmead and I hope to hear back this week on that issue.

Gloucester like many cities and towns has a number of small businesses, providing goods, services and employment to local people.

The Liberal Democrat group are calling on Gloucester City Council to support Small Business Saturday on December 4th.

Below is the text of the motion we will be proposing at full council on Thursday 18th November.

Liberal Democrat Group – Motion on Small Business Saturday

Council notes that Small Business Saturday 2021 is coming up on 4th December. Small Business Saturday has grown into a significant event – with a record £1.1 billion spent with small businesses during last year’s event.

Council recognises that this is an excellent opportunity to promote small businesses in Gloucester and to celebrate the contribution smaller businesses make to our city.
Council believes that Small Businesses are the heart and soul of our local high streets. It is only by supporting our local independent businesses that we can also help our local high streets to thrive.

Council resolves to:
(a) Ask the Leader of the Council to ensure that the Council participates fully in Small Business Saturday on 4th December 2021.
(b) Request that officers work closely with local business organisations and smaller enterprises across Gloucester to make them aware of the day and encourage them to sign up.
(c) Ensure that Small Business Saturday is promoted thoroughly and prominently on the Council’s website, social media channels and other external communications.
(d) Develop a year round communications plan to continue promoting local small businesses and encouraging residents in Gloucester to shop small and shop local all year round.
(e) Investigate further ways to increase shopper numbers around Small Business Saturday and in the lead up to Christmas – such as free car parking in the city centre on busy shopping days – and establish a regular programme of measures to support small businesses.

Here are my latest written questions and answers for full council next week. I can ask supplementary questions on the night.

A campaign is being launched to encourage residents to waste less over the festive season to help make it a #greenerchristmas.

Gloucestershire County Council’s waste team, in partnership with district councils, is asking people to make ‘greener’ choices this year to reduce the impact Christmas waste has on the environment.

The campaign will focus on four key areas – food waste, gifts, trees and traditional items such as advent calendars and Christmas crackers. The advice includes:

Food waste

Meal plan for Christmas – decide what meals and treats you are going to cook, write a list of the ingredients you need and then keep to that list when shopping. This will help to avoid buying extra food which may get wasted at home.
Make the most of your leftovers to save food from going to waste by trying some low waste recipes.
Buy local this year and plastic free where possible, to reduce single use plastic waste and your carbon footprint.

Gifts

£42 million of unwanted gifts are discarded in the UK every year, so buy presents thoughtfully and try to ensure they will be well received.
Why not gift something sustainable? Perhaps something for the garden to encourage home grown veg or more wildlife. And a tree is not just for Christmas!
Trees

Consider what is the most sustainable tree for you. Artificial trees have a higher carbon footprint than real trees, but if you keep an artificial tree for 10 years its carbon footprint would be less in the long-term.
If you go for a real tree, rentable ones are available which are already grown and potted for you to take home before returning after the festive period. If you choose a traditional cut tree, try to get one which is local and sustainably grown and dispose of it correctly after Christmas, via a tree collection or your garden waste bin if allowed by your district council.
Traditional items

More sustainable, recyclable and reusable options are available for traditional items such as advent calendars, crackers and home decorations.
You could make your own foraged door wreath, get a reusable advent calendar or make your own, and opt for plastic free or recyclable Christmas crackers.

You can find out more about the campaign by visiting www.gloucestershire.gov.uk/gloucestershire-recycles/reduce/greener-christmas and looking out for #greenerchristmas on social media.

I have written to the section 106 officer at Gloucester City Council to ask for a few updates on Tuffley Park and Milton Avenue:

‘Could you update me on how much has been spent of the Section 106 money we have for Podsmead, and how much remains?

• Podsmead Big Local have drawn down £74,000 from the lottery funding and ordered the play equipment and GCC have raised an order of £16,000 to provide safety surfacing for the new play equipment. The installation is likely to be end of December.
• GCC have gone out to tender for outdoor gym equipment (£21,000). Companies have until 10^th Nov to bid and we are expecting four companies to bid. Monday 15 November – Friday 19 November 2021 we will put the bids up on the Milton Ave Facebook group page and ask the community to vote on which they prefer. If we could spread the vote more widely in some way that would be great?
• So we have about £30,000 remaining in the Podsmead budget now.
• Completion of the wall will be mid-December. The gates will be installed at the same time. They came to about £5,500. The wall was paid for with the insurance money.’

We still have some money available for projects, then, and I would like to hear from residents on any ideas they might have. I have asked for a toddler swing to be considered for the play park at Tuffley Park. Other ideas could be benches or some more planting. Do let me know.

I have written to Highways, reporting a couple of issues on Bristol Road:

‘There are two issues to report to you on Bristol Road Podsmead:

1) a drain which needs clearing out, opposite Ultimate Accident Repair Service
2) a pothole on the pavement outside Enterprise Car Club
So both these issues are on the Hempsted Lane side of the road.
Many thanks,
Cllr Sebastian Field’

I am really pleased that Matthew Homes have installed some bollards between Manu Marble Way and the other side of the Earls Park development. Thank you to them for honouring their commitments in the plans.

This pathway was being used as an illegal cut through by some vehicles and was putting pedestrians at risk.

I am working proactively with Matthew Homes on this and other issues such as the overflowing bin at the play park. To this end I have requested a meeting with the site management team at Earls Park, in order to raise some issues that residents have put to me.

If you would like to tell me about any problems at Earls Park please contact me.

I understand from residents that recycling was not collected in Podsmead again this week. Several collections have been missed in the last few months.

The council and its street care partner Urbaser are saying that problems are due to driver shortages. The way they are dealing with this currently is by only collecting the black bin waste, and in certain weeks not collecting the recycling. Food waste should always be collected.

The trouble with this is that residents are not often aware this is happening and present their recycling in the usual way. When it is not collected they don’t know whether to bring it in or leave it out.

I will be raising this issue with city council bosses to find out why this is still happening and how we can solve it. I am concerned that Podsmead seems to be bearing the brunt of this problem.

Current advice is to take your recycling back in if not collected by the close of play on Friday. As always, do let me know any issues with waste, recycling or anything else.

I have had a response from the county council to say that the blocked drains at the entrance to Newark Road will be cleared soon. They may even already have been done by now.

If you know of any blocked drains in Podsmead please let me know.

Several issues have cropped up in Earls Park recently so here is an update on some of them.

Barron Way drainage

In Barron Way, residents have been having some issues with their drainage. I contacted Matthew Homes who arranged for a contractor to attend. The blockages were due to builders rubble in the drains at Emery Avenue. This has now been cleared.

Hopefully this will solve the problem but if not residents should get in touch in the usual way.

Millstone Way refuse and recycling

There have been some problems recently with waste and recycling collection for some residents of Millstone Way. After speaking to Matthew Homes and an officer from the city council, we have arranged that waste and recycling can be put out and collected from the fenced area pictured.

The site manager is contacting residents to ensure they know about this. Despite some communication breakdown this week, hopefully this will be in place for the next collections.

Litter bin in Manu Marble Way play area

Residents have contacted me as the above bin is nearly full. I am liaising with the site manager and the city council as to how it will be maintained in future.

If any residents of Earls Park or Podsmead have anything they need my help with please let me know.