NATIONAL TRUST MEMBERS REVOLT OVER ERDDIG HYPOCRISY

In a new twist on the long-running campaign against the National Trust’s intention to build 223 houses on one of the last green spaces in Rhostyllen in Wrexham (see www.Rhostyllen.com), members of the National Trust are targeting the Trust’s AGM in Liverpool later this year to challenge the decision to develop.  A group called the National Trust Friends of Rhostyllen have put forward two motions for the AGM - the first calls for the development plans to be scrapped, while the second calls for those responsible for the plans to be removed from the National Trust.

National Trust member Arfon Jones says ‘We feel that the democratic process within the National Trust has failed, and the Trust’s own policies have been ignored.  We are supposed to be a democratically run charity that is constitutionally obliged to focus on conservation, but here we have a momentous decision to develop taken without any consultation with members, let alone anything approaching a vote.  Profiteering on speculative developments and turning a green field site into part of the commuter belt makes a mockery of the founding principles of the Trust.  We have spoken to hundreds of members about this, and they are angry and ashamed that this is being done in their name.  As members, we would like to apologise for the National Trust’s behaviour in this matter.’

The Rhostyllen Residents Committee and community pressure group Cymuned have been campaigning for 18 months to stop the development on one of the last pieces of green space in Rhostyllen.  Campaigners say that the development, which would increase the population of Rhostyllen by almost 40%, would be for wealthy commuters and not for local need, and would have a negative effect on local identity and community.  It would  increase the traffic on the main arterial road into Wrexham town by some 300-400 cars.  The National Trust have arrogantly attempted to claim that local people are in favour of the plans, but a local referendum in January this year saw a 2:1 majority vote against the development.

Aran Jones, Chief Executive of Cymuned, says ‘At last year’s AGM, National Trust chairman Sir William Proby announced that the Trust would be using its £350 million pound annual operating budget to buy up green belt to protect it from developments exactly like this.  We say they should use a tiny fraction of that money to create a permanent endowment for Erddig Hall, rather than carry on with the unpleasant hypocrisy of preaching against development while trying to make a quick buck themselves.’

Tara Green of the Rhostyllen Residents Committee says ‘We began by lobbying the Trust members at Erddig Hall, asking them to cancel their membership or not to renew it.  The response was amazing, with almost everyone we spoke to promising to do what we were asking.  The Trust, however, was completely dismissive of this - they obviously feel that with over 3 million members, they don’t care if they lose a few hundred.  We then decided to ask members to join our campaign, and the National Trust Friends of Rhostyllen was born.  Trust members have been enormously supportive and very angry to hear what was being planned, and we are now considering the possibility of calling an extraordinary general meeting of the Trust before the end of the year.’

Members of the National Trust who believe that the Trust should not be engaging in property speculation can find out more about the campaign at www.Rhostyllen.com.

For further information please contact Arfon Jones on 07800-545716, Aran Jones on 07887-573446 or Tara Green on 07852-108370.

This publication is a press release from Cymuned.net

Wrexham council announce new complaints procedure

Wrexham council today announced that it is to change its complaints procedure which will result in a number of positive improvements to the process.

The current Complaints Procedure has 3 stages:-

Stage 1:-  To contact the staff directly involved. This could be the person who you initially reported your complaint to.

If your unsure who to contact, a list of departmental complaints officers is available on the council web site and also included in the ‘Have your say ‘ leaflet

The complaint should receive a full response within 20 working days of the department receiving it, if a full response cannot be given in this time, an interim response should be given with an estimated date when a detailed response will be sent.

If you are not happy with the response received, you can take the complaint to stage 2 of the complaints procedure.

Stage 2:-  To contact the appropriate departmental complaints officer,the complaint should be acknowledged within 5 working days,and a full response should be given within 20 working days, the response will be sent by the chief complaints officerfor that department.

If you are still not happy with the response or if the response has not been received you may take the complaint to stage 3 of the complaints procedure

Stage 3:-  To contact contact the corporate complaints officer :-

You can write to:-

Lisa Vaughan

Corporate complaints officer

Legal and democratic Services

Wrexham County Borough Council

Guildhall

Wrexham LL11 1AY

Or directly by phone on 01978 292201

The complaint will be acknowledged and you will be advisedthat the corporate complaints officer will investigate and issue a full written response within 20 working days.

If after following our complaints procedures the complainant is still not satisfied youmay contact the Local Government Ombudsman :-

The Local Government Ombudsman

1 Ffordd yr Hen Gae

Pencoed

CF35 5LG

We spoke to the corporate complaints officer Lisa Vaughan Who outlined the future complaints procedures Who told us “The review of the corporate comments, compliments and complaints procedure has been aimed at making the procedure easier to use, easier to understand, more efficient and more accessible to our customers.”

The key areas will be:-

To actively encourage customers, partners and staff to comment on the service.

To keep and analyse records of the number and type of formal and informal comments, compliments and complaints, and use this data to improve our service to our customersand prevent the same problems reoccurring.

Ask customers who use the service what they think of it.

To constantly review and improve the procedure where possible.

She went on “ We are currently proposing that the complaints process be simplified,and the time scale be reduced from 60 days to 40 days in total, this would mean a department time scale of 20 working days and a corporate time scale of 20 working days.”

“We also aim to improve the way we publicise and deliver this information to our customers, and an annual sample survey of people who have used the service will be undertaken to measure the satisfaction rates an identify areas of improvement “

“ The complaints procedure is changing” she said “ and its xcchanging for the better we hope, anyone who has trouble with making a complaint should contact me directly on 01978 292201, although I am the corporate complaints officer, I will make sure that the complaint gets to the correct department and that it is dealt with correctly “

The move comes after complaints were made but not answered and the complaints procedure was seen to be failing, Wrexham council want this new procedure to work and ask the public to be patient.

The Truth about Wrexham County Borough Council

The truth about Wrexham county borough council is that it is being run by a bunch of nobodies who think they know better than the law.

Disabled people are suffering because the complaints system is not being adhered to by council staff, and this applies to most departments of Wrexham council.

People who have gone through the complaints system are aware that if the department does not like what it hears then it will ignore it and eventually the complainant will give up.

Complaints made include housing repair issues, threats of eviction for having children’s toys in the living area, unfair county court charges for rent arrears that were not due, failed refuse collection, disabled people including children being totally ignored by social services, and education deliberately lying to a family for 6 years.

Residents are now calling for a vote of no confidence in the council because important issues are being ignored and it is feared that Wrexham council is out of control and beyond the law.

There are people who want to do something about this situation working for Wrexham council but cannot because they know it will mean that they lose their job.

We spoke to one council worker who told us they work for Wrexham council in the Guildhall

most of what they have told us we have withheld to protect them

“ Wrexham council is not really interested in what they see as petty complaints, all complaints are read or heard in the normal manner and passed to the relevant section or department for action, however that’s as far as it goes.”

“ I would like to see changes to the complaints system because it is not being run the way the council say it is, no one person is accountable for the initial complaint so it gets ignored in the hope that the complainant gets fed up and gives up. “

They went on to say “ Each department manager is ultimately responsible for all dealings within their departments but because of meetings in and out of office your lucky if you get through to them and its usually there secretary who deals with your query and that means it goes back to the section that it was originally sent to It’s a vicious circle.”

We mentioned some of the complaints outlined to us and the responses received to complaints

“ I just don’t know what to say “ says the council worker “ there are obviously some important issues and its clear by the nature of some of the complaints that Wrexham council is in serious trouble with dealing with some of these complaints.”

“People should receive the first response by means of a acknowledgement letter within 10 working days followed by a letter or phone call dealing with the complaint itself, if the complainant is not satisfied with the response then they can take it to level two complaints via the corporate complaints officer for that department and if still not satisfied it can be referred to the council Ombudsman.”

They concluded the call with “ Vulnerable and disabled people including children are suffering because Wrexham council staff can not be bothered or believe it will have an adverse effect on there promotion prospect within the council If they have too many complaints made against them.”

“ I have always believed that the present system of complaints is badly managed and open to abuse, its run on a numbers system that allows complaints to be hand picked so they show better results than the real number of complaints so the important complaints get ignored and the trivial complaints are dealt with on a daily basis.”

So we have a question or two for Wrexham council that in our opinion need answers to urgently.

Why are complaints to the council not being answered in the correct manner?

Why is the complaint system not dealt with by a central office which would be responsible for each complaint in turn?

Why are council staff allowed to behave in a threatening or intimidating manner when dealing with the public?

Why are tenants who are in credit with council rents or council tax taken to court for rent arrears without informing them and resulting in Illegal charges?

Why do social workers stand by and allow council officials to openly order the removal of children’s toys from a living area because it looks untidy even though one of the children has an autistic spectrum  illness?

Why do the education department feel that it’s alright to deliberately lie to a disabled child his family and other departments concerned in his care plan?

Wrexham council have a zero tolerance policy concerning abuse but when the good people of Wrexham fail to get the basic answers they tend to get upset, resulting in a charge of abuse caused directly by the councils failure to deal with these important matters.

Most people that have spoken to us say that “complaining gets you nowhere with Wrexham council.”  and say that  “ It’s an absolute disgrace the way Wrexham council treat people they are nothing short of bullying , the level of competence is next to zero.”

We thought about asking Wrexham council about these allegations but because of previous responses we thought better of it.

Wrexham council  ‘ABUSE ‘ Claim

Wrexham council is abusing its powers and causing distress to disabled children and other vulnerable people but denies its doing wrong.

A disabled child was told he was placed at the top of a waiting list for a specialist boarding school for 7 years but in truth he was never placed on the list at all.

Although a complaint was lodged it was not dealt with in the appropriate manner and the education authority’s Mr Graham Edwards passed it off as a misunderstanding.

Social services have said it could be seen as the council are abusing its powers and in so doing some complainants are being abused by constant inaction and lies, the family were then referred to the corporate complaints team

Attempts to get a proper explanation have resulted in stress and undue pressure being placed on the family in question and calls for a full investigation are being ignored because of the fear that Wrexham council could face prosecution for abuse.

The parents of the child have said that when they were informed by the education authority that there son was placed at the top of the waiting list as a matter of urgency

That there son would have a placement at the school within 18 months this never happened and each time they inquired they were told there son was still at the top of the list

Last month they were told that he is no longer on the list and no explanation was given

When asked why this was, they were told that he was never on the list as he was improving at his present school and no longer needed a specialist boarding school

 “This may be the case “ say the parents “ but that does not address the fact that we were deliberately lied to for 6 years and the council will not address this in the proper manner “

The parents say that “ Wrexham council needs to be investigated from the outside, someone who has no connection to Wrexham council should look at this seriously with a view that laws have been broken and that prosecutions could or should take place.”

They went on to say, “ Wrexham council have deliberately lied to us about this at every level they are a law to themselves and seem to be above the law and nobody can or will do anything about it. “

They went on to say that “ Some managers within the council have no regard for the families they are dealing with and seem to believe that its ok to tell lies on this scale.”

“We do not believe that this is an isolated case, we have heard from other parents who have had the same problems but have given up because of the stress and trauma caused by trying to get the right answers and is having serious effects on there lives.”

“ What’s the point in having a council that refuses to listen to or address serious problems when they arise, something needs to be done the council have systematically abused us by deliberately lying to us, the stress is having an adverse effect on our family life.”

Wrexham council declined to comment on this or any other concerns put to them.

Council ‘harassment’ claim

A Wrexham family (Names withheld to protect the family) are claiming that Wrexham council has been harassing them, the family from Johnstown say that although they have complained nothing has been done.

The family say they were accused openly of benefit fraud which resulted in the breadwinner of the family having a nervous breakdown and losing his job as a labourer due directly to the worry of the accusation

Then they were threatened with eviction from there council home if they did not tidy the garden up, but although the property was passed by a senior housing Inspector and the tenancy enforcement team they were still taken to court which resulted in a bill of £200 from the council.

The family say that the garden was a little untidy at first, but when it was cleaned up and the council came to inspect it they gave it the all clear and told us that the matter would not now go to court, we thought that would be the end of the matter, and when we received the bill it was unbelievable, we contacted the council but they were not interested.

In the meantime we still had the accusation of fraud hanging over us, and were expected to pay full rent and council tax till it was sorted out

When we were visited by officials from our local housing office we were told that our children one of who is disabled could not have toys in the sitting room, and that they should play upstairs, and because of the undue pressure from the council it caused friction between us we split up for a while

The lady of the house told us ” On one occasion they told me that I should go into a refuse because it would free up a house for some one else”

She went on, then one of them told social services that I was under the influence of drugs and drink and there was a possibility my children could be taken into care, I am totally drug free and always have been and I have not had an alcoholic drink for over 6 years, and before that I sometimes had a sip at Christmas

We feel that our local council is harassing us, we have tried to complain but no one is interested.

The effects of this on our family is constant stress, we can’t relax, it’s even had an adverse effect on my children who are going through counseling caused by the threats and worry and nobody listening,

Wrexham council say they care but in reality they don’t, the complaint system is open to corruption and abuse and should be changed to a more open system under a central manager with staff employed to address complaints in all departments of the council.

What right has the council to come into my home and tell me that my children cannot play in the sitting room? Council staff have abused me and my family it’s about time somebody did something about it.

We were eventually cleared of any charges brought against us, but have not had an apology for being accused in this way, or the way that we were treated in our own home.

Wrexham council say that It’s happy with the way it deals with the public, but it can not comment on individual cases.

Bin bags attracting rats

New refuse collection rules brought in by Wrexham county borough council are causing problems in Wrexham because of the council’s no bin bag rule and that in turn is attracting rats looking for easy pickings.

Residents who once had a weekly collection now have a bi-monthly collection but not for excess bin bags, residents are now forced to dispose of excess rubbish themselves and if they leave it out with there bin they will be fined up to £140, disabled people and old age pensioners are worst hit because they say the council have told them that if they wanted the council remove them it would generate a charge of £70 for up to 4 bin bags per household.

Several residents say that because they live in private property they also have to pay for environmental health to lay baits, they see this as unfair because in their view Wrexham council caused the problem so they should pay for the clean up.

One council tenant told us that she came out of her home at 7.30 one morning to see a large brown coloured rat looking at her before disappearing into a bin bag outside her home “ Its just stupidity the council must do something about this what do we pay council tax for? It’s ok council staff getting a pay rise, but when are they going to earn it? We’re being ripped off and there’s nothing we can do about it its wrong “ she goes on “ Wrexham council don’t care a jot about what we think they sit in there ivory towers knowing this is getting worse but do nothing I have young children and because of rats I cannot let them play in the garden its become a no go area

Another tenant who is disabled and has a family of 4 says they have a pile of rubbish filled bin bags accumulated since the rule was introduced although they have not seen any rats they have found stray dogs and cats ripping the bags open to get to food and that is causing problems with litter being blown over gardens and roads I don’t have a car or any other way of getting the bin bags to the local amenities site in Acton

Wrexham council told us that excess rubbish is now the responsibility of the tenant or resident, it also says that it plans to go ahead with the proposed penalty for bins that are over filled or for bin bags left beside the bins on collection day it also said that it had not received any more than the normal call for complaints of rats and that Wrexham does not have a problem with rats as a whole in fact the population of rats seems to be falling due to the new collection rules, it denied claims that the new collections were causing problems.

Residents believe that Wrexham council’s use of cctv cameras to catch residents who overfill bins is anti-social, the claim is being made after residents were told that overfilling there wheelie bins will result in a £70+ fine, and that cctv cameras will be used to catch unwary offenders. 

Cctv cameras were first installed to keep us safe from yobs, and to fight crime, but it seems that Wrexham council want to criminalize us for overfilling our rubbish bins, and since the controversial introduction of bi-monthly collection from households, residents are complaining that the collections are to far apart, complaints are also being made that no proper consultation has been made between the council and residents, and there was only a two week warning that it was happening, and that those who need extra bins are having to wait as long as 10 weeks to get one authorised, and then residents have to pay a £10 one off payment for the delivery of the extra bin, which can be withdrawn if the council see fit without warning.

Some residents are also claiming that Wrexham council are not recycling as much as they could, because the price they get for selling some of the recycled waste is not enough to make it profitable, or viable,

One resident told us that his bin was half full but the lid was sticking up about a half of an inch, due to it being damaged by the carrier on the rear of the vehicle, and the way it was thrown around by the refuse collectors, he was warned that in future it would not be emptied if the lid was sticking up, he complaint and says he was told that these wheelie bins are very robust, and that it was unlikely that the bin was damaged by the vehicle or its working mechanism on the rear of collection vehicles, he says that the council replaced his bin, but was again warned that the lid of his bin should remain flat, or collection would be rejected by the collection crews.

Residents are complaining that Wrexham council does not care what the people of Wrexham say, “its all about how much money they can make out of recycling, its got nothing to do with making Wrexham a cleaner place to live in, That is evident with the constant traffic jams in and around Wrexham” claims another tenant, who went on to say , “Wrexham council claim to be making lots of progress with environmental issues, but its traffic calming strategy is causing twice as much CO2 emissions in the town because of speed humps etc, B & Q roundabout is a total joke, the town centre from Holt road through to the Mold road roundabout is an absolute nightmare, whoever is responsible for this mess must have little or no regard for the environment,or the people of Wrexham, I wonder how much this will cost us in future council tax rises , due to the inadequacies of an inconsiderate, uncaring council who’s only thought is how much money can we make out of this”.

Other claims that Wrexham council are the cause of litter blighting our streets because bin bags are not being collected due to this new regime, and that left, they are being ripped open by dogs, foxes and other animals, looking for food, this in turn is encouraging rats and other vermin, “Wrexham council seem to be doing less but want more money, its getting worse. “ say residents

Wrexham council say that it is the responsibility of the tenant to get rid of excess waste and bin bags at one of there public amenity sites located throughout the borough, and that its recycling plan is very successful.

Wrexham council also say that the present traffic congestion in the town centre is being looked at, and that a decision will be made in the near future.

Speed humps, Introduced to our roads to calm traffic in built up areas (especially outside schools) and to slow down boy racers, whether we agree or disagree with speed humps they are part of the road system in the UK.

Councils who deploy speed humps say that they help save lives, help fuel consumption by slowing down the flow of traffic, and that in turn helps the environment, and help in combating speeding drivers.

But now experts are telling us that they are the cause of over 1000 deaths a year in the UK, because ambulances and fire crews are having to slow down to negotiate the humps, this causes them to lose time in getting to a location where someone needs urgent medical attention, or life is at risk because of a fire or motor accident.

They also say that the speed humps cause damage to vehicles, even though speed humps are negotiated at low speeds, and in some instances they render vehicles un-roadworthy, because of damage caused to exhaust and suspension systems.

According to the Conservative party, they are a waste of taxpayer’s money because they require more maintenance than a normal stretch of road and actually harm the environment because of the constant slowing and speeding up of vehicles using them thus increasing fuel consumption.

The motorist group  “The association of british drivers”  claim that they are ineffective to most 4×4 vehicles because they just skim over the top at high speeds, with no discomfort to passengers, or damage to the vehicle

The costs to councils (Wrexham council probably included) is that they are running out of funds, and this is because they pay out more  in claims than the funds they have to repair them, and this also has a knock-on effect on the general repair of roads.

Councils have to deal with claims from property owners, because vibrations from vehicles bouncing over the speed humps are causing serious damage to buildings sited near them.

There is also evidence that speed humps are a cause of more noise pollution (rattling exhausts, squeaking brakes), and are probably the cause for more and more drivers complaining of back related problems, especially local delivery drivers, this in turn puts pressure on the national health service.

Disabled motoring group visitability.co.uk says” Speed bumps are potentially dangerous for invalid carriage users, especially when located in areas of particularly heavy traffic”.

Doctors surgeries and hospitals are reporting that more disabled people are suffering from the effects of speed humps, especially those travelling in wheelchairs.

The AA motoring organisation claims that traffic calming measures double the amount of carbon dioxide emissions, and fuel consumption.

A car that achieves 58.15 miles per gallon travelling at 30mph will deliver only 30.85mpg when going over humps.

The AA employed an independent engineer who used a fuel flow meter to test the consumption of a small and medium sized car at Millbrook proving ground, in Bedfordshire.

The result, calculated by averaging the performance of the two cars, also showed that reducing the speed to 20mph from 30mph resulting in 10 percent higher emissions.

This is because car engines are designed to be more efficient at speeds above 30 mph.

The average motorist who observed the speed limit on one mile of 20mph road during a daily journey, would produce an extra tonne of carbon dioxide in 1 year compared with driving at 30mph on the same stretch of road.

Wrexham council say there is no evidence to prove that speed humps are a danger to life or property, in fact they regard them as highly effective in slowing speeding motorists, and that damage caused is by the driver negotiating the speed hump to fast, and that they also believe that the extra cost to the motorist or the environment is negligible, and will continue to promote speed humps in areas they consider vulnerable until such times that they are proved otherwise, as far as we are aware, no claims have been lodged for damages to vehicles or properties in the bounds of the county council during the period 2007/08.

Residents vote overwhelmingly against National Trust plans

Campaigners have won a vote against National Trust plans to build 223 houses on its Erddig estate in Wrexham by 385 to 209 in a turn out of 24% - a ratio of almost 2 to 1 against. The same referendum also passed a vote of no confidence in the Rhostyllen Community Council by 307 to 221.

Election proceedings were marred when the local council used taxpayers money to send council workers to remove posters publicising the referendum, in what has been described as ‘an obscene abuse of power’. However, local campaigners are delighted with their significant victory.

Rhostyllen.com campaigner Tara Green said ‘We are extremely happy with the results of the vote. The National Trust can no longer falsely claim that the majority of local people are in favour of the development. People have finally had their say and it is a resounding NO. The vote also applied to any other development in our community that is not based on local need. Local people do not want this development, so it is time for the Trust to scrap their plans and abide by the democratic process.’

The Rhostyllen Residents Committee have challenged the community council to step down in light of the no confidence vote against them. A spokesperson said ‘A clear majority have voted no confidence in this council, and it is therefore only right that they now accept this decision and resign.’

Carrie Harper from campaign group Cymuned said ‘Local people have made it clear that they are against the National Trust’s ‘new village’ development. The planning committee should now take this into account when deciding on the planning application and refuse it. Iwan Huws, Director of Wales for the National Trust, has stated publicly that the development would be decided by the democratic process. The only acceptable option now is for them to pull out. The campaign will continue and their own members will vote out those responsible for the decision at the Trust’s AGM later this year. Hundreds have already spoken to us and stated their willingness to do so.’

This excellent article (not written by us) can be seen in its original form at http://www.rhostyllen.com/

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