Dear Councillor Derek Zanger - Portfolio Holder for Regeneration, Councillor Russell Roberts - Leader of Kettering Council, and all Kettering Councillors, Skateboarding is not a crime. Yet Kettering Borough Council seems to think differently with a proposal of making it and many other activities illegal, and banning them from the town centre. Most of the categories on the Public Spaces Protection Order have long been part of daily life in Kettering and we cannot understand why they would need to become a criminal offence when there are already established laws that cover problems which cause genuine harm to society. The proposal crudely lumps together completely unrelated activities. Skateboarding, and the extended creative community it supports and encourages, has helped to nurture successful skaters, BMXers, photographers, musicians, designers and generally innovative people who make a positive contribution to society. This creative culture and activity is a healthy, positive and accessible green way for people from a wide range of social backgrounds to enjoy themselves. The plan for the proposed PSPO has been poorly promoted to the Kettering communities and there has been a lack of genuine public consultation. The council has shown that it neither understands the benefits of skateboarding and other physical creative activities, and that it is out of step with public opinion and the government’s own targets on physical and social wellbeing for young people. The council has also shown that it does not understand the fundamental difference between the use of skateboarding in the streets and a purpose-built skatepark. We believe the PSPO is a waste of money and police time and that there are far more important issues the council should be dealing with rather than criminalising our population for being out in the fresh air having fun. We call for a halt to the proposed PSPO and banning of skateboarding from the town centre and request Kettering Borough Council engage in proper consultation with the public and skate community regarding the specific issues it wants to address, and the solution within existing laws. Find out more: http://www.kettering.gov.uk/publicspacesprotectionorder If you complete the online form please write that you were sent there from the petition. Read our open letter to the council here and the responses we have received from local councillors: http://www.chopperskate.com/open-letter-regarding-the-proposed-public-spaces-protection-order/

BRECK ROAD, DOVECOT, FAZAKERLEY, KENSINGTON, LEE VALLEY, OLD SWAN, SEFTON PARK, SPELLOW, WALTON, WAVERTREE and WEST DERBY libraries are all in danger of being outsourced and/or handed over to volunteers. Mayor Anderson claims to understand the 'worth' of libraries to our communities, yet a library that is outsourced and/or handed over to volunteers is on a slippery slope to closure. We demand therefore, that our libraries remain publicly run and staffed with properly trained library staff. We make this demand because our communities and our children deserve no less. We make this demand because Public Libraries will ultimately save you money, but more especially we make this demand because Public Libraries save lives. This petition is part of a city-side petition to defend the library service.

A historic pub in Kilburn which survived being bombed in the Second World War has been demolished by developers behind the backs of the local community. Developers ripped through the Carlton Tavern on Friday 10th April, despite being considered for statutory listing. Local Cllr Jan Prendergast from Westminster City Council said: “I'm horrified for the local residents that this has occurred. It came as such a shock to everyone. There was no prior warning to the council, no approvals and no proper health and safety procedures in place. “This was a lovely pub and I'm sorry to see it go, but I'm more concerned for the residents in Maida Vale for whom they showed no consideration whatsoever. It was the last building standing in Carlton vale after the WW2 bombings. “I've lived in the area for 35 years and have never seen anything like this before. We need to take very careful legal advice as to what steps we can take.” The demolition of the Carlton Tavern demonstrates how vulnerable communities are to speculative and aggressive development tactics. It also demonstrates a complete disregard towards the historic social infrastructure of Kilburn and the wider UK pub heritage stock. Local pubs are at the heart of our communities and allowing valued pubs such as the Carlton Tavern to be demolished in this way is ludicrous and is denying local residents a say in the future of their neighbourhoods. James Watson, Regional Pub Protection Advisor for the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) said: "Although we welcome the recent changes to planning law which came into effect on 6th April 2015, which afford some protection to ACV-registered pubs, the tragic case of the Carlton Tavern demonstrates just how vulnerable pubs are to rapacious development. We now urge the Government to take this case into consideration and amend planning law to ensure that such demolitions are prohibited unless planning permission is first obtained. This would ensure communities like Kilburn have a say in the future of their local pubs."

We believe there is already a saturation of betting shops in the Thornton Heath area (13 in total) and this has resulted in incidents of anti-social behaviour. It will also be detrimental to the health and well-being of local residents. If Thornton Heath is to remain a hub for the local community and play an important role in local economic life, there needs to be a variety of community, commercial and retail offerings. Another book betting shop will do nothing to sustain the area. We also believe that sitting a betting shop below social housing, next to the leisure centre and adjacent to the clock tower, a historical landmark, is an inappropriate site for a betting establishment.

This person is supplying a service to both old and young alike people in the town centre, he is doing no harm and the people of King's Lynn are behind him in keeping his local business running. It is not all about the big named shops that come to the town, they will up and move at a moments notice. This small business owner has laid out money as he has seen a gap in the market for his wares. Mr Peter Byrne has a clean, and tidy business, with he himself conscientious and friendly.

Wandsworth Council have approved an application by the ruler of Dubai, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum to build a six-story car park in Battersea for over a hundred luxury cars. At a time when the need for affordable housing has never been more urgent and pollution levels in London are making headlines, we ask that you overturn this decision and make a powerful, symbolic statement which shows that you really care about London. There is an urgent need for affordable housing in the UK, particularly in central London. You have a golden opportunity to make a meaningful statement. Rather than encouraging pollution, obscene riches and the exacerbation of extreme social inequality in central London, you have a superb opportunity to highlight the urgent need for more social housing and move London in a positive direction by publicly rejecting Wandsworth's decision. Homes for hundreds of Londoners, or hundreds of cars for one billionaire? Boris, this is a real chance for you to prove to us that you care.

The Folkestone Town Sprucer is under attack by Shepway District Council. Sprucer Peter Phillips and his team of volunteers are an independent community-based initiative that litter-picks, removes graffiti, repairs minor infrastructure, cleans litter-bins and signs, plus 101 other chores to help restore civic pride. Peter is arguably Folkestone’s most popular public figure. In an attempt to clear rubbish and a jungle of fly-tipping, needles and rampant overgrowth from Westbourne Gardens, a once elegant tree-lined park, the Sprucer team has been stopped in its tracks by threatened prosecution from SDC. The allegation: that trees have been lopped without permit in a conservation area – cutting that was necessary to get at the layers of rubbish dumped beneath the trees. Facing a possible £20,000 fine, Sprucer organiser David Taylor has already been interviewed under caution by SDC officers. Sprucer Peter Phillips faces a similar interview on May 12. Had they known the green square was in a conservation area, both would have sought leave to cut, although it takes six weeks for a permit to be issued, if it’s issued at all. This petition calls on SDC to immediately halt the witch-hunt, apologise to the team, grant a permit and work with the Sprucer to restore Westbourne Gardens to its original charm - a task that SDC has flunked by failing over many years to compel the owners, would-be developers, to clean-up the park, designated as an inviolate green space. Why has taken the intervention of the Folkestone Town Sprucer to focus SDC and the owners on tackling this appalling public eyesore?

One in four people suffer from this horrible, debilitating illness EVERY YEAR. It is a significant and proven cause of job losses, marriage breakdowns, drug and alcohol abuse, violence towards women and children, homelessness and suicide. Talking therapies such as counselling & psychotherapy are by far the best way to deal with mental health problems of this kind. Unfortunately the first step to getting help is talking about the illness, but the majority of sufferers do so in silence due to the stigma associated with mental health issues. This stigma is a direct result of the careless, uninformed and often deliberately offensive remarks of people in high profile positions, such as the Sun columnist Katie Hopkins. Until these people stand in solidarity with brave and outspoken public figures like Stephen Fry and Jon Snow this stigma will continue to cause completely unneccessary pain, suffering and even death for those who are afraid to voice the torment they feel. All it takes is a little education and a modicum of compassion. I implore Katie Hopkins to look up from her self-satisfied, self-righteous life and to see the pain that she and her ilk cause with their refusal to accept that others are less able or less equipped to cope with life's hardships.

After a 5 year fight, our landlord is demanding a huge sum of money for repairs bills and that we vacate our premises, destroying the business we've worked so hard to build up over the past 6 years. We've established a lovely spiritual community here, employing many therapists who provide help to many in need of healing. All we ask is for justice to prevail.

I strongly believe that this increased distance is to far too expect a child to walk to school, never mind the weather conditions such as the rain and snow. Our children will be tired, cold and maybe even soaked through before they even start school. How can we then expect our children to be able to learn when tired, cold and wet? Thanks to the council amalgamating many schools, the distance that need to be travelled are now much further for many pupils. Many of the children will have to leave the house around 7.30 am to arrive at school for 8.40 and then will not get home until after 4 pm on the days they finish at 3 pm and after 5 when they finish at 4 pm. This would mean that in the winter months they will be expected to walk in the dark under the underpasses and unsupervised as many of the parents will be at work. This is not to mention the overly heavy school bags that they are expected to carry which would also add to tiredness, increased stress and potential health problems such as bad backs, posture and sore feet. Furthermore the children are then expected to complete homework whilst tired and with dramatically compromised concentration levels. Many of the routes to the schools do not have adequate pedestrian walk ways and many areas do not benefit from having regular public buses which can transport children to school. On a normally day the amount of traffic in and around our schools is already extremely heavy. If these plans are approved then there is likely to be more congestion and more danger as parents are forced to transport their children to school themselves. Many parents will simply not be able to ensure that their children can get to school safely as they will have to leave early themselves, to get to work. This will impact family life as the parents may have to reduce their working hours or give up work completely.

Forced adoption is the removal of a child from its parents without their consent and usually against their will.Systematic forced adoption pursued as a government priority is unique to the UK. EU countries manage without it therefore it is not as claimed a “last resort” The result is that the parents lose all contact with the child usually for the rest of its life and never know if it is alive or dead. This can happen to parents who have never been convicted of any crime because they are thought to pose a risk to a child in the future Mothers frequently have their babies removed at birth for “risk of emotional abuse” . A prediction difficult for anyone to disprove.

KEVIN McCLOUD, MBE -"Dunstable is short on great historic buildings and so the removal of any ancient scrap of architecture from the town is an appalling idea. We need to conserve the old to help us understand the present (and for that matter, the future) and heritage is not a burden but an amenity and a great blessing for our society. It gives us a sense of place and connection. The loss of the ancient fabric of The Norman King will be a crying shame and a further erosion of that connection. It's appalling that there has been no collective will among the authorities to keep as much as possible that remains of this fine old building and to insist on a sensitive program of repair and even reinstatement of the structure and roof lost to the fire. Apart from anything else, I used to drink there and will miss it." - KEVIN McCLOUD, MBE