My Recently Published Letter to the Local Newspaper

This letter was written in response to yet another article relating to SDNP's proposed takeover of the control of the Community Centre that implied that part of their plans would include a doctors surgery. So far there is no evidence to support SDNPs claims that a surgery will be an integral part of their proposals, despite frequent requests for them to provide adequate confirmation.
Hannah Reynolds (SDNP Chair) responded personally to me by email and it will be copied above in this Blog.

Dear Letters -
Re your article – “Community Centre in Peril Without Funding” (Express & Echo, 3rd November).

Whoever takes control of the ‘Community Centre’ the community loses.
The Exeter Community Centre Trust plans, I note, include a Doctor’s Surgery. Has this been officially confirmed, is it to be a proper full-time surgery, or will it work at reduced hours? Will it provide a full range of medical services to the community as is expected at any Health Centre? My understanding is that prospective GPs had already visited the Centre and clearly expressed their disinterest in being involved. The police also declined a permanent stationing of officers at the Centre. I would be more than happy to be corrected on either of these matters.

St.David’s Neighbourhood Partnership’s/Exeter Community Centre Trust’s original plans only allowed for one single room for community hire, the majority of the building being effectively for startup businesses and ‘hot-desking’. I have also been informed that the existing playgroup are hoping to take over the only room that would be availabe for hire, as a new site for the playgroup and, presumably, this will effectively make the room unavilable for daytime hire usage by other groups. Assuming SDNP do take control, precisely what space will be available for community hire? The Community Centre is beginning to sound considerably more like a Business Centre than a true Community Centre. These are serious and relevant questions that need to be answered.

If the Community Centre is sold for redevelopment perhaps a condition of approval for the Planning Application could be the inclusion of adequate facilities for the Playgroup? Perhaps the building could be converted into single/multiple occupancy social housing units, there is certainly a definite shortage of such accommodation. Student accommodation could be another option.

Rest asured, whatever the outcome, I will continue to offer the same level of support that I always have.

I Know What to Do, I'll Try and Build Some Bridges!

Hope sprung eternal! - In an effort to pour a little oil on troubled waters I contacted Christine Fraser - below are the relevant emails.

Christine - Perhaps we should get together and try to sort out our differences.
Hannah (Reynolds) has agreed to supply tea and act, if necessary, as mediator/referee!!

Her response -
Thank you for your email. This has of course been passed to my legal adviser for his opinion. You will understand that I am therefore unable to meet with you at this time.
Christine

My response to her response
Christine,
Hmm..I see, clearly you are not interested in my proposal. I look forward to hearing from you and/or your legal adviser in due course.

Oddly enough, I never did hear from Christine, or her legal adviser.

Whoopee! New Chidrens Play Equipment for the Park, Nearly

An Exeter City Council staff member created plans for, if I recall correctly, £48,000 worth of new equipment for the childrens Play Area in Looe Road Park. Christine Fraser criticised the Council's plans and when I asked her, "What are they like?", she responded,"I have no idea, I haven't even seen the plans, but no doubt they will be their usual rubbish". I see Christine, you have not even seen these plans and yet you decide that they are rubbish. Surely this was a decision for the community to decide, not for you to once again 'claim to represent the views of the residents and users of the park' without discussion. Yet again your personal arrogance and interference went too far. We didn't get the new play equipment.

Logos - Will we, won't we?

Logos are an important aspect of any organisation's image and their partnership organisations.

I produced and distributed flyers on a regular basis around our community to keep them informed of many different issues and CF/SL/EPW insisted on including the logos of the various ‘partnership’ organisations. Not a problem, only in that frequent requests for specific logos, made by myself to CF/SL/EPW, were ignored and this caused a great many delays in the production and distribution of flyers.

I was then told by CF, “not to bother to include some of the logos, as long as EPW and Exeter City Council were included the rest were unimportant”. This approach was typical of EPW, something that was 'insisted on', one day, could be ‘discarded’ the next.

This made it very difficult to know precisely what protocols should, or shouldn’t, be followed. Eventually I realised that the only protocols that existed were at the whim of CF/SL.

EPW Chair, Susan Lawrence refused, on at least two occasions, to include written statements, from myself in the minutes of meetings. I specifically requested, several times, that these statements be included in the minutes and each time SL refused, stating that, “these matters have already been dealt with”, which was untrue. Other attendees at these meetings can confirm this.

Gina Richards - My Request for Support

By this stage in the 'game' I ,and other community reps, had serious concerns relating to how CF/SDNP/SL/EPW conducted themselves, particularly CF who was determined to create a 'make-believe' presence of SDNP in Looe Road Park from 2003.

I had accummulated a considerable amount of information supporting our community's concerns re CF/SL/EPW and passed a copy to Gina Richards, another Bonhay Road resident, requesting her support in putting an end to the actions of those already named. Gina Richards returned the paperwork to me, posted through my letterbox, with a note stating, "I do not wish to read this".

I would, through this Blog, like to know why Gina, a member of the Looe Road Working Group, and an EPW member and, presumably having the welfare of her own community as her basis for involvement, refused to support my concerns? Gina Richards was subsequently refused membership of Lower St.David's Community Association based on relevant section(s) of the Association Constitution and is now an active member of St.David's Neighbourhood Partnership. It is also my understanding that Gina Richards retains her position as a member of the EPW Looe Road Working Group despite having no contact with anyone in the Lower St.David's community including Lower St.David's Community Association and the residents of Looe Road.

Negotiations with Network Rail and First Great Western for community funding

The link between Network Rail (NR) and Looe Road is that some of the cottages were once occupied by railway employees.

Christine Fraser, myself, and another Bonhay Road resident, Gina Richards (more about Gina Richards to follow in another post), met at St.David's Railway Station with a NR representative to discuss the possibility of Network Rail providing some funding for improvements to our community, or so I had been led to believe by Christine.

This meeting discussed nothing more than NR providing funding for a piece of 'modern art' outside the front of the Railway Station.

This was not what I had been told this meeting was for. To raise funding,Yes, but given the many other more important things that need attention, a sculpture, no!

No doubt the installation of a sculpture outside the Station carried more kudos for CF/SDNP/SL/EPW than implementing other more mundane improvements.