We are writing to contest the proposed removal of the play park next to Bangor Carnegie Library.  We welcome the council’s addition of a new larger play park to the Gransha Road end of Ward park, but we believe the existing smaller library play park should also be retained.  The library play park’s success relates to its proximity to both the library and café. The library runs rhythm and rhyme classes for young children three mornings week after which many parents make use of the small park next to library. Both facilities support  one another and encourage children to use the library also.  When caring for small children having warm indoor bathroom and food facilities around a play park are invaluable.  Being able to change a nappy or take a potty training toddler to warm indoor toilet very nearby to a play park are necessities. Being able to go indoors to breastfeed a baby in winter or get food and drinks for parents and young children at a nearby café such a Park Life are also essential. The time it would take to walk the length of  Ward Park from the new play park back to these facilities would be too long for the needs of small children and their caregivers given the pace a toddler or parent carrying a small child can walk.  The current park meets these needs and is functional in its current state with the exception of one small ride which has been removed. It is well suited to very small children. We welcome a new park and appreciate that this is something the council has provided but feel the removal of the existing park would have a negative impact on parents.  The proposal to provide a dementia / sensory garden is very much welcome and supported. There is no reason for this to replace the existing playpark. There is evidence that being around small children is beneficial to people with dementia and these two things could be incorporated in a more creative way. There is no need to silo off various groups of people who could be adjacent to or nearby to the existing park. Alternatively, the council could find another location within Ward park for the dementia garden. Perhaps this could be an opportunity for the council to review the dated and cruel practice of keeping enclosed live birds within the park and this area would be an ideal location for a new dementia garden.  Ward Park is a large park, especially when trying to cross it with toddlers or small children on foot and Bangor has a large enough population to justify to two play parks within one major park particularly as they seem to meet slightly different needs.  In 2019 Ards and North Down Borough council declared a Climate Emergency and therefore should be more mindful of unnecessary demolition which wastes an excessive amount of carbon. Whilst the council has plans to undertake a large amount of unnecessary demolition elsewhere in Bangor, it is carbon intensive and wasteful to remove a functional and very popular children’s play park. Especially one that is well used and takes up very little space in order to provide facilities for other users where other space available available for the dementia garden or the two things could be incorporated. Almost no public money would be required to keep this play park operational, a small amount would repair the ground where an old roundabout was removed. Therefore, this proposal should be cost neutral within your overall budget and plans to develop Ward Park. We ask the council to cancel its plans to remove the play park next to bangor library.  Many of us have been taking our small children to the very popular library rhythm and rhyme class followed by the adjacent playpark weekly for a number of years so know first hand it is well used. Many parents and caregivers understand the benefit of the proximity of this park to both the library and Parklife Café when caring for small children. It’s Removal would make our job more difficult trying to navigate the length of the park with small children in need of the bathroom or warmth of an indoor café as a place to eat. As the main existing user group of this part of the park we hope our views are taken on board by the council. Thank you. 

We need to show the big companies that we won’t let them rip us off or line their pockets.

It is not fair or deserving! 

The latest casualty of the exorbitant retail rents charged by Greenwich Hospital is the excellent vintage shop Joli, closing down this week. We understand Greenwich Hospital has to make money for its charitable concerns but, with imagination, this can be done without destroying the livelihoods of small local businesses and without ignoring its responsibility as custodian of a special part of London. Pricing out independent shops is counterproductive. Greenwich is a place valued by locals and visitors for its heritage and unique character. That will be lost if it goes the way of most high streets in the UK and becomes an identikit mass of chain stores. We call on John Healey, Deirdre Mills and vice admiral Martin Connell, respectively the trustee, director and advisor of Greenwich Hospital, to stop this happening.

Lloyds Bank have announced they are shutting branches across the country, including Stoke on Trent Tunstall's last bank in the town, which is always packed and almost every business uses.  Not everyone uses online banking, and the nearest other branch is also shutting.  The reason for closure stated is custom has fallen 41% "nationally" not locally.  There's numerous cash points in Tunstall on the outside of takeaways and Minimarts which have been subject to fraudulent activity and not looked after by the businesses. Many residents don't feel safe to use these and shutting this local bank with internal ATM's and staff to help withdraw funds will only increase the likelihood of people falling for these cash point scammers. I am the vice chair of  the Tunstall Town Centre Community Association and I've been asked start a petition to keep our last bank open.  CLLR Din for Tunstall and David Williams MP have been notified and will support the petition. 

Deep funding cuts are contributing to the decline in communal, thirds spaces – from community buildings shutting down to youth club closures. New Freedom of Information (FOI) data found that spending on community-related services and provisions fell by 18% between the years 2022 and 2024. This leaves many people, particularly young people without safe places to connect, grow, and thrive. The loss of these spaces is more than just a physical closure; it fuels rising social isolation, loneliness, and a growing sense of disconnection in our communities. 

On the 30th of January, my housemate, a university healthcare student, was struck by a car at the Wavertree-Tunnel road junction, resulting in a serious injury involving multiple breaks which ultimately required surgery. This is not a unique tragedy. This junction is crossed by hundreds of people daily, not only is it a direct access route to Edge Hill train station, but it is a popular route for commercial shoppers in the adjacent Wavertree retail park, University students getting to campus and young children getting to one of the many Primary schools in the area. The constant flow of vehicle traffic from four different directions allows for one second when pedestrians can cross without the safety of traffic lights before the next cars come charging. Traffic lights are needed immediately to put a stop to further incidents. Additionally, clear road markings will prohibit vehicle users from separating into two lanes where there is only meant to be one, preventing misuse of the junction and more tragic accidents. Let’s come together and hope that what happened to my housemate does not occur to anyone else. We need to make our roads safer. Sign this petition to support the installation of traffic lights and clear road markings at the Wavertree-Tunnel road junction.

These cuts will place more barriers in the way of disabled people trying to access work, volunteering, education, training, day centres, social occasions, and much more. The enhancements to the statutory minimum have been a lifeline for many disabled people, granting them much more independence and reducing their financial burden. Please remember that not all disabilities are visible or physical.    The restrictions to the older person’s buss pass will also disproportionately affect those living in Hampshire’s most isolated communities that are already underserved by buses, and who are already struggling with the increasing cost of living.    In the long-term, these cuts will act to worsen the mental health crisis affecting Hampshire's communities by increasing isolation and the financial strain on the most vulnerable people.  This initiative is only saving £75,000 annually, which is a minimal saving in relation to the damaging social, health and environmental effects it will cause consequently. These changes prevent people in Hampshire from the right to 'live safe, healthy and independent lives', as per the county's strategic plan.    We therefore call on Hampshire County Council to immediately stop these changes and maintain the enhancements to its Concessionary Travel Scheme.

Students studying their GCSE's in year 11, but who are still 15, currently get kicked out of the library at 5pm. Other students in the same year group ,aged 16, are able to stay until 8:30. Pupils need a quiet place to study as many come from homes with younger siblings and have very little space to themselves. The library is essential for these students yet they are only able to have a maximum of 2.5 hours of peaceful studying on a school night. Which is why it's crucial to allow these students to study until 8:30 to improve their own education.

 Management companies and housing associations are ripping off residents by overcharging and not providing adequate services. Cambridge City Council pays the service charges to these companies for residents who receive housing benefit, but there is barely any scrutiny of whether these charges are legitimate.  Service Charge Justice Cambridge is aware of tens of developments in Cambridge where residents are paying overinflated, bogus or entirely unjustified charges, many of whom are recipients of Housing Benefit. Cambridge City Council is experiencing a £11.5 million 'budget gap', with vital public services facing being cut, all the while public money is being channelled directly into the bank accounts of management companies and housing associations whose residents say they are being overcharged and underserved.  It's vital that the Council investigates how much public money was allocated towards housing service charges for the financial year 2023/24, and supports Service Charge Justice’s campaign for better regulation of service charges.

The Lower Thames Crossing has been cited as the answer to all our traffic prayers for the last decade and at a cost of £800 million! However, even if this environmentally disastrous project does go ahead, it'll be nearly another decade before it's built. Projections show it will only help ease congestion for a short period of time and is expected to reach full capacity in a few short years. We currently experience an unacceptable level of traffic related disruption, with impacts on our businesses and health due to breathing in stationary vehicle fumes. We need effective short term and longer term solutions, such as the long promised monitoring of the Blue Star Roundabout. This is why as a community we have come together to form the Citizens' Forum on Congestion. The Dartford Crossing is the UK's highest-earning toll road. We the undersigned are asking National Highways to pay just a small percentage of the £200 million annual revenue from the crossing charges to invest in exploring effective solutions, to boost our local economy and help with infastructure problems.   We deserve to be compensated as a community....Now is the time for us to be heard! Written by Green Cllr Laura Edie, On behalf of The Citizens' Forum on Congestion  https://www.facebook.com/share/g/1E1xrgy6xp/

Raise Your Voice: Because Democracy Should Work for Everyone! Did you know that Disabled People make up 24% of the UK population, yet less than 2% of MPs are disabled? That means Parliament should have 12 times more Disabled MPs just to be truly representative. Is it any wonder that policies affecting Disabled People often miss the mark? The reality is, politics isn’t accessible. Many Disabled People can’t even get into the buildings where decisions are made, let alone run for office. And without fair representation, their needs are ignored. This isn’t just a disability issue—it’s a democracy issue. If one in four people in this country is disabled, why aren’t their voices shaping our laws?