Over the past few weeks, a number of people There are no spare places at the second school
have expressed surprise at the number of issues and the Government places a limit of 30 in a
that local councillors get involved with. class for infants‘ classes. So I have to give the
Some have been delighted that I or a colleague parents the news that they do not want – that
have been able to help them with a problem, one they will have to sit it out and wait for a place to
resident was disappointed that I could not help become available.
them with a dispute they had with their I am also continuing to pursue the best way to
employer. help local shops and businesses, prompted in
Councillors are expected to make decisions that part by the question of early closing raised a few
are in the best interests of the council as a whole, months ago.
but it is acknowledged that we owe a special duty Last week, I was delighted to be able to speak at
to our own areas that have elected us. the planning committee last week on behalf of
Although many councillors are elected as local residents in Gallows Hill Lane and
representatives of political parties, councillors Hazelbury Avenue.
represent and work with all residents, regardless Over the past couple of months, I have been able
of party politics. to use my planning expertise to support and
The public part of our role is attending meetings advise the residents as they have opposed the
and voting on issues, but any resident who has development.
ever been to a council meeting (with the Sometimes public sector bureaucracy and
exception of planning) would be surprised how language can seem very daunting and a vital
few decisions are actually made. part of a councillor‘s role is to help residents
I am a dual-hatted councillor, meaning that I steer the best route.
serve on two authorities: Three Rivers District I am working on obtaining grant funding for a
Council and Abbots Langley Parish Council. new youth club which will hopefully be run in
At Three Rivers, I chair the Regulatory Services the village from the autumn.
committee, which deals with a wide range of I also have dozens of other issues pending at the
licensing-type issues including taxis, elections, moment, including poor roads and pavements,
caravan sites, tattoo parlours, scrap yards and overgrown hedges, new dog waste bins and play
wild animals, but not alcohol or gambling. equipment.
At the parish council, I have stood down from If you need help or want to make a complaint,
several years of chairing the leisure committee to please contact me or one of your other councillors
become council leader. – we are always here to help!
Some of the ‗casework‘ issues derive from one
council or another, but many are just sent to me
in hope that I can help in some way. Even if
there is nothing I can do, or it would be
inappropriate for me to do so, I will let the
correspondent know where else they can take the
problem.
So what‘s in my ‗to do‘ tray at the moment? With
my chair‘s hat on I am working with council
officers on possible new ranks for taxis in the
District. As Parish Council leader, I had a
meeting earlier this week with the Clerk to write
a protocol to formalise public speaking as a right
at Parish Council meetings. But in terms of
casework, the issues are varied and I never know
what to expect when I pick up the phone or open
an email.
One case that I have at the moment is of a family
trying to move a child from one local primary
school to another.
46
Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68  |  Page 69  |  Page 70  |  Page 71  |  Page 72  |  Page 73  |  Page 74  |  Page 75  |  Page 76  |  Page 77  |  Page 78  |  Page 79  |  Page 80  |  Page 81  |  Page 82  |  Page 83  |  Page 84  |  Page 85  |  Page 86  |  Page 87  |  Page 88  |  Page 89  |  Page 90  |  Page 91  |  Page 92  |  Page 93  |  Page 94  |  Page 95  |  Page 96  |  Page 97  |  Page 98  |  Page 99  |  Page 100  |  Page 101  |  Page 102  |  Page 103  |  Page 104  |  Page 105  |  Page 106  |  Page 107  |  Page 108  |  Page 109  |  Page 110  |  Page 111  |  Page 112  |  Page 113  |  Page 114  |  Page 115  |  Page 116  |  Page 117  |  Page 118  |  Page 119  |  Page 120  |  Page 121  |  Page 122  |  Page 123  |  Page 124  |  Page 125  |  Page 126  |  Page 127  |  Page 128  |  Page 129  |  Page 130  |  Page 131  |  Page 132