I actually finished my leaflet drop on Monday morning but haven’t really had a chance to post anything since.
This time round my wife, Alison, delivered to some parts of South Molton, taking a massive load off my shoulders.
Trudging round the pavements of South Molton in the rain (and sunshine) is a very tiring activity and I’ve now got two large blisters, and aching knees to show for my pains.
The table below shows how the council tax that South Molton residents pay is divided amongst various authorities for 2015/2016:
| Authority | A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H |
| DCC | £774.18 | £903.21 | £1,032.24 | £1,161.27 | £1,419.33 | £1,677.39 | £1,935.45 | £2,322.54 |
| NDDC | £109.72 | £128.01 | £146.29 | £164.58 | £01.15 | £237.73 | £274.30 | £329.16 |
| SMTC | £63.25 | £73.79 | £84.34 | £94.88 | £115.97 | £137.05 | £158.13 | £189.76 |
| Police | £112.98 | £131.81 | £150.64 | £169.47 | £207.13 | £244.79 | £282.45 | £338.94 |
| Fire | £52.28 | £60.99 | £69.71 | £78.42 | £95.85 | £113.27 | £130.70 | £156.84 |
| Total | £1,112.41 | £1,297.81 | £1,483.22 | £1,668.62 | £2,039.43 | £2,410.23 | £2,781.03 | £3,337.20 |
DCC – Devon County Council: They take the lion’s share as they are responsible for the big budget items such education, roads, care for the elderly and disabled, child protection, public health, libraries, recycling centres and waste disposal.
NDDC – North Devon District Council: refuse collection and kerbside recycling, housing, planning, street cleaning and leisure.
SMTC – South Molton Town Council: Amory Centre, Pannier Market, Assembly Rooms, cemetery, recreation ground, allotments.
Police – Police and Crime Commissioner for Devon and Cornwall: law and order and crime reduction.
Fire – Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Authority: fire prevention, fire and rescue.
Compare the Band D council tax in South Molton with the Band D council tax in various London Boroughs:
South Molton £1,668.62
Westminster £672.74
Kensington and Chelsea £1,062.33
Tower Hamlets £1,180.52
Camden £1,336.81
The highest council tax band in Westminster (Band H) pays just £1,345.48. That’s £323.14 less than a South Molton Band D property and a massive £1,991.74 less than a Band H property in South Molton would pay it there were any such properties!! Even Snurridge (or Northgate Manor as it’s now called) is ‘only’ a and G.
It appears that whilst the scaffolding is up around the clock tower it won’t be possible to wind up the clock.
The scaffolding is blocking the door that gives access to the clock mechanism and unfortunately Matt (the market manager) isn’t skinny enough to push his way past!
Perhaps it’s time to get an automatic windup mechanism?
Still, the contractors seem to making very good progress, so it shouldn’t be too long before all the scaffolding is down and the town hall is restored to its former glory.
There’s a desperate lack of ‘joined up’ thinking when it comes to providing facilities for the elderly and disabled.
Take the Amory Centre for example.
It’s fully accessible by wheelchair both at the front and back ( where’s there’s a long wheelchair friendly ramp). Inside there’s a special lift to enable wheelchair users to access the upper floors.
The parking at the back is completely different:
It is possible to pay the parking charge by phone, however there are a number of issues with this (not all just affecting the disabled):
Not at all well thought out and very unfriendly for disabled users.
Nominations are over and the candidates have been announced. SMTC: Fifteen candidates for twelve seats – mainly independent: Four Lib Dems, one Green and ten Independents (one who’s standing as a Conservative in the District Elections?!). NDDC South Molton Ward: Eleven candidates for two seats – Five Independents and the Lib Dems, Conservatives and Greens each have two candidates. Parliamentary: One seat with six candidates – Lib Dem, Conservative, UKIP, Green, Labour and Communist.
It was bound to happen again sooner or later – at least this time nobody was hurt! It might have ended completely differently.
Shortly after six o’clock this evening (Tuesday 7 April) a car coming from South Molton along Alswear New Road must have been travelling a wee too bit fast when it tried to take the sharp right hand corner at the bottom of the hill.
It would appear that it touched the kerb, hit the bank on the opposite side of the road and ended up on its roof in the right-hand carriage way.
Luckily South Molton’s finest – fire, police and ambulance service – were very quickly on the scene and did a sterling job.
It’s amazing what five or six people can do. I wouldn’t have thought they’d have been able to right the car by hand, but they did!
I’ve long believed that the 30mph speed limit on Alswear New Road should be extended beyond all the houses, and that the curve rich stretch beyond should have a lower speed limit than it currently does. Perhaps this latest accident might persuade Devon County Council to put a lower speed limit on this stretch of road.
On the other hand:
I received my new passport this afternoon and I have to say I’m very intrigued by this little yellow label!
I’ve just heard that Sir Terry Pratchett, author of the Discworld series of novels, has died aged 66 after suffering from Alzheimer’s for several years.
He’ll be greatly missed.
Apparently Devon’s entire library service is to be turned into an independent organisation in a bid to save £1.5m over the next two years.
County Councillors have approved plans for a community-owned “mutual” that would be commissioned by Devon County Council to run the service on its behalf.
