Category Archives: Polegate

MP reports Wealden District Council to Government for “rubbish performance”

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Local MP Norman Baker has slammed Wealden District Council for still having not resolved the ongoing issues with the new refuse collection service across the district. Residents of Polegate, Alfriston and East Dean have repeatedly suffered from missed collections and inconsistent service.

Norman has now raised the issue with Eric Pickles, Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, highlighting the negative effects this is having on local residents as well as the spiralling costs associated with the mishandling of the changeover, and asked him to intervene.

The local council has been forced to apologise again now that the fiasco has gone into its thirteenth week. The changeover has been disrupted by a number of poor management decisions including bringing in new staff, and the movement older and more experienced staff onto new routes that they are unfamiliar with as well as reportedly selling off their older fleet of bin lorries and then realising that replacement trucks were oversized for many of the routes.

Norman says:

“I am stunned that even after previous assurances problems still persist. I have been in contact with Wealden repeatedly over the past thirteen weeks and have received the same repeated assurances that this problem will be resolved. Thirteen weeks on and we are still here, this is simply not good enough. It has gone on long enough and I have therefore raised this issue with the Secretary of State.”

Norman Baker MP calls for East Sussex Healthcare Trust head’s resignation

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Local MP Norman Baker has renewed his call for the resignation the Chief Executive and Chairman of East Sussex Healthcare Trust following today’s damning report by the Care Quality Commission.

The commission placed each trust in England into a band based upon the number of ‘Risks’ and ‘Elevated Risks’ identified in the report. East Sussex Healthcare was placed in ‘Band 2’ marking the trust as ‘High Risk’ overall, placing it amongst the worst in the country. Highlighted risks include the very concerning fact that users of the service are at danger of dying even when diagnosed with low risk conditions.

The current management of East Sussex Healthcare Trust is also responsible for the disastrous downgrading of services at Eastbourne DGH, a move that has already had a negative impact for many of Norman’s constituents in Seaford and Polegate.

Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals Trust was placed in Band 3, putting it in the lower half of the scale but without highlighting the trust as high risk.

Norman says:

“This report shows what I sadly already knew; the upper management of East Sussex Healthcare is letting down my constituents across the board, both in terms of the range of services offered at Eastbourne and now the safety of what’s left. There needs to be changes at the top to reverse this dangerous trend and that means the replacement of the Chief Executive and Chairman.

 “I am very concerned that my constituents are being given a second rate services when it comes to healthcare.” 

MP’s campaign for shorter journey times on track

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Local MP and Transport Minister Norman Baker’s campaign for shorter journey times from London to Lewes and Polegate is firmly on track.

The official Invitation to Tender for the new combined Thameslink, Southern and Great Northern (TSGN) franchise encourages bidders for the franchise to reduce stopping times and the number of split trains at Haywards Heath, proposals championed by Norman Baker. These changes will assist in decreasing journey times on the busy lines through the station whilst simultaneously releasing more capacity and providing more seats.

Respondents to the consultation commented on the need for improvements in frequency, speed and capacity of the services to several towns along the coast, but to and from Eastbourne in particular, a move that would benefit many people in the local area and help improve transport links across the region.

Norman says:

“I believe it should be possible to reduce journey times to Lewes and Polegate by up to 10 minutes if these proposals and a slightly revised timetable are adopted. I am pleased to see that my recommendations for improvements to the service to Lewes and Polegate are being acted upon. We now have a real opportunity to achieve a decrease in journey times and to improve the overall efficiency of local services”.

The report also includes public responses in favour of major projects including the potential reinstatement of Lewes-Uckfield adding further support for the campaign to reopen the line and improve the local railway network.

Wealden’s handling of the bin crisis has been ‘rubbish’ says local MP

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Polegate’s MP Norman Baker has trashed Wealden District Council over their ongoing mishandling of the new recycling service across the region. The council’s claim that they are now averaging a 95% collection rate still leaves thousands of households with litter on their doorsteps, especially in rural areas such as Alfriston.

 Norman has been in ongoing contact with senior staff at the council expressing his concerns and has formally written to Trevor Scott, Wealden’s Director of Environmental Services. Assurances were given that the fiasco would be dealt with within 6-8 weeks of the introduction of new recycling services. It is now coming up to that initial deadline yet problems remain widespread across the region.

 Wealden is requesting that residents report where bin collections have been missed so that they can be logged and passed to their agents, Kier. It is recommended that this is done via email to avoid the lengthy delays currently being experienced with the over-the-phone service.

 Norman says:

“It is simply unacceptable that weeks after problems were identified, local residents are still facing problems with their bin collection. It has been many weeks since the changeover and my constituents in Polegate and Alfriston have seen little improvement in their situation. Furthermore, the many complaints this issue is producing daily have now clogged up many of the means of contact with Wealden and this is leading to further problems as residents struggle to have other issues addressed.”

 “This whole fiasco has gone on long enough, Wealden has made many promises but we now need to see real actions and solutions. I hope that ultimately, this new service does bring about a more efficient and greener refuse collection, but currently this seems a long way off with many hurdles to overcome before this vision is a reality.”