Neighbourhood Watch are hosting a series of weekly online webinars in July to expose the truths behind scams.

The webinars are FREE to attend and are open to anyone who would like to know more about scams, the psychology behind scams, prevention and how a fraud case is investigated.

The webinars bring together experts in their field relating to online fraud, a topic which we are all too familiar with and can affect anyone and everyone, as our lives are played out more digitally.

The dates of the webinars and their topics are as follows:

6th July, 5pm
Exploring the psychology behind scams and how scammers are so effective at their crimes
Paul Maskell, Fraud & Cyber Crime Prevention Manager, Dedicated Card and Payment Crime Unit (DCPCU)

14th July, 5pm
Insights into how a fraud case is investigated and how not to be the next victim 
Ben Hobbs, Detective Sergeant; and Catriona Still, Head of Fraud Prevention & Training, Dedicated Card and Payment Crime Unit (DCPCU)

23rd July 5pm
Scams awareness training from the Friends Against Scams initiative
The National Trading Standards Scams Team (NTSST)

30th July, 5pm
Don’t get hooked by scammers! What you need to know about flubot and phishing scams
Christopher Budd, Senior Global Threat Communications Manager, Avast

How to book your place
You can click on the links within this message on each of the webinars topics to register your place or you can go to www.ourwatch.org.uk/webinars and click on the webinar that you wish to attend. You can attend all of them if you wish – make sure that you complete the registration page for each of them.

It was a pleasure to go along and present medals to the young competitors at the Blackbridge Jubilee Athletics track today.

After seeing the last few events I said a few words about what being a councillor involved and why it was great to see young people being active from a young age.

I then presented the prizes to the winners and competitors and chatted to the Managing Director about the strategic future of the track and the nearby hub that is planned.

I saw some complaints on social media about the hedges overgrowing the footpaths on the bridge from Bristol Road over into the industrial estate/Hempsted Lane by the canal.

I asked for them to be trimmed and this has now been done by the council, making it easier for pedestrians to get by.

Do let me know if there are any similar issues you would like me to take a look at.

The Club at Tuffley Park CiC are celebrating their 2nd birthday and held a party at the park.

It was great to attend, enjoy the food and drink and see all the stalls. There was a good mix of sellers, local groups, partners and charities present. We really enjoyed the day.

Well done to Ross and all the team at the Club. Here’s to many more years!

I caught up with PC Lea in Podsmead and joined PCSO Sexton on her foot patrol.

We looked at several issues including security in Earls Park and traffic and speeding issues in Tuffley Crescent. I also picked up some casework issues to report.

It is important to be visible in the community and I am pleased to work with the police on a regular basis to make our residents feel safe and reassured.

Here is a picture of the potholes that have been recently filled on Scott Avenue, after I reported them.

I’m pleased they’ve been done but the road is really looking like a patchwork now. What Scott Avenue needs is a full resurface. The Conservative-run county council do not agree that this road meets the threshold for action yet. I will keep pushing them to resurface the road properly rather than keep endlessly patching.

Duke of Beaufort Court, the sheltered housing complex on Podsmead Road/Poplar Close, has put this banner out on Podsmead Road.

It’s a lovely sentiment to see and I would like to thank them in return on behalf of the local community.

After residents contacted me about the faded yellow lines at the top of Poplar Close, I raised the issue with the council.

The council have responded to say:

‘Dear Cllr Field

Many thanks for your request. We have worked in partnership with our contractors, NSL to commission a locally based line and sign operation.

We can confirm that this has now gone live and we are currently working through the list based on priority order. We can assure you that this request has been added to the list/noted.

Thank you once again for contacting us.’

Parking is an issue at Poplar Close and I will continue to work with residents on solutions. There may be some good news on parking in the area in the next few months.

A divot appeared in the pavement at Tennyson Avenue and after a resident alerted me to it I took swift action to get it reported.

The council have now repaired it and although I am slightly concerned about the level being raised above the pavement surface, I think with use it will gradually smooth out.

This week I received a letter from National Grid Land & Property updating me on the first stage of investigations. Below is the text of the letter:

Dear Councillor Field,

Keeping you informed: routine investigation at former gasworks site at Bristol Road, Gloucester, GL2 5YA now completed

Further to my recent correspondence, I am writing let you know that we have completed the first phase of work on the site of our former gasworks on Bristol Road, Gloucester.

Activity on site 

The work carried out involved undertaking some initial routine site investigation works to assess the ground conditions on our land. 

The findings from these site investigation works will be used to inform a planning application we anticipate submitting to Gloucester City Council later this year. This will be an application for us to carry out remediation work that will improve the environmental condition of the site so it can be brought back into future beneficial use. 

Next steps 

Throughout the summer period, we will need to return to the site periodically for post-works monitoring. However, this will not involve any further excavation activity so it is unlikely anyone will notice our team visiting. 

Subject to Gloucester City Council granting planning consent, the second phase of remediation work is anticipated as starting early 2022, with it being completed by Summer 2022.  

Keeping you informed – ongoing communications   

Should you have any questions about our work, please refrain from visiting our site. Instead, please call our Community Relations team between 9am and 6pm Monday to Friday on 0800 1448 904 or via email at NGLPCommunityRelations@camargue.uk.