The Norwich Green

Please Vote Green in the City Council Elections

Tom Llewellyn (pictured left) is your Green Candidate in the City Council elections on Thursday 4th May. Tom has been playing an active role in Wensum Green Party for three years. He helps the Green Councillors with casework and campaigns. He has met thousands of Wensum residents on the doorstep. Tom runs a local community garden project. He does this work part-time, meaning that he will have enough time to fulfil his duties as a Councillor if elected.

This newsletter contains information on some of the campaigns and policies of the Green Councillors. Our next leaflet will contain a summary of our manifesto for the City Council elections and a summary of the achievements of the Green Councillors. For a copy of the manifesto please go to www.norwichgreenparty.org or call 621980 / 623223.

The Green Party holds two of the three City Council seats in your area (Wensum Ward). Only the Green Councillors keep in touch all year round through visiting residents and delivering newsletters. Please elect Tom Llewellyn to ensure there is a strong Green voice at City Hall.

Campaign Against Radical Tree Pollarding: Update

Green Councillors have been supporting a local residents’ campaign against plans by the City Council to radically pollard 32 mature trees on Lime Tree Road (pictured left). Four independent tree consultants have argued that there are more appropriate, less drastic and cheaper ways to maintain the trees than pollarding (which involves cutting the trees back to trunks). The alternatives include crown reduction and removal of weak branches.

In February, the Green Councillors and local residents successfully persuaded the Council to postpone the work until alternatives had been considered. The Council’s Executive is set to consider the options and make a decision at a meeting on 19th April. The Green Party believes it is important to ensure that a less drastic maintenance method is chosen. This would help protect the appearance and health of these trees and help ensure that the Council does not radically pollard mature trees elsewhere in the city.

Greens Fight for Affordable Housing in New Developments

The City Council has a policy of requiring 30% of housing in new developments to be affordable housing (mainly provided by housing associations). However, the Green Party believes the Council compromises on this policy far too often. For example, the developers of the important St. Anne’s Wharf site in the city centre recently got away with a 9% affordable housing quota. The Green representative on the committee was the only councillor to vote against this low level.

Wensum Ward Green Candidate Tom Llewellyn said: "Property prices in Norwich have been rising well above the rate of inflation in recent years and there are more and more people in need of low-cost housing all the time. Far from failing to implement the current 30% quota for affordable housing in new developments, the Council should be increasing its quota to 50% - as is the case across London. This is a priority issue for the Green Party at this City Council election."

25 Bus Petition: Response From First

The First bus company has now responded to the Green Party petition, signed by around 400 residents, for the reinstatement of the 26 bus service along Earlham Road. In October, the service stopped running along the section of Earlham Road between the ring road and Fiveways. First has said it will not reverse this action.

Tom Llewellyn commented: "While there is now a half hourly Konect service along this part of the road, the residents I have been in contact with are still unhappy about the re-routing of the more frequent 26 service. This is one reason why it is a priority issue for the Green Party at this City Council election to introduce a Quality Bus Contract for Norwich – to give the Councils power over bus services and help us to create an efficient and reasonably-priced network of bus services across the city."

Working With HELM Residents

Wensum Green Councillor Adrian Holmes has been working with the HELM Residents’ Association to lobby the Councils to improve traffic congestion and safety in the Marlpit area. A representative of HELM (Hellesdon, Earlham, Larkman and Marlpit) and Councillor Holmes recently met with Council officers to raise concerns on various local issues, including:

• Traffic calming on Knowland Grove.
• Traffic flow in and out of Marlpit Lane.
• The state of the hard standing in front of the garages on Jamieson Place.
• Car parking on kerbs at junctions and the possibility of painting yellow lines.

We hope the Councils will be able to take action on these issues. Adrian Holmes will keep HELM residents informed of developments.

Recycling in Knowland Grove Area

Tom Llewellyn writes...

In our March Wensum newsletter we reported that residents of houses in the Knowland Grove area had recently been added to the green box doorstep recycling scheme. Several residents from flats in the area contacted us to ask when they would be provided with recycling facilities.

We are pleased to report that the Council has promised to install six sets of communal recycling banks in the area by the end of May. The banks will be available for residents of flats across the Marlpit estate to use for recycling glass, paper and metals. I am pleased that the Green Councillors have successfully lobbied for these much-needed improvements to recycling facilities in Marlpit.

Recycling and Plastic Bottle Banks

Councillor Adrian Ramsay writes...

In our March newsletter we reported that the Green Councillors had obtained funding for two to three additional plastic bottle recycling banks in Norwich. The three most popular suggestions made to us about where these should be located are: Earlham House shops, Exeter Street car park and under the Magdalen Street flyover. We have passed these suggestions to the relevant council officers and will keep you informed of developments through this newsletter.

Several residents have requested a reminder of where the current plastic bottle banks are located. They are at Sainsbury's (Queen's Road) and Waitrose (Eaton). There are also some plastic banks just outside the City Council area at, for example, Tesco at Harford Bridge.

The need for better recycling facilities in Norwich, especially for plastic, is the most common issue raised with the Green Party Councillors by residents. We agree that it is crucial that there are comprehensive recycling facilities locally as the only environmentally-friendly way of tackling the waste problem. Because the Green Councillors hold the balance of power at City Hall we have been able to secure funding for some improvements to local recycling facilities. The money for the first plastic banks in the City Council area was only approved because of our role in the budget process. However, there is a long way to go before Norwich has a truly comprehensive recycling system and only the Green Councillors are willing to make this a top funding priority. This is a key issue for the Green Party at this year's City Council election.

Please Vote for a Strong Green Voice at City Hall

The Green Party holds five City Council seats. Green Councillors provide a voice at City Hall for a range of environmental and community concerns. Your area (Wensum) is one of the two wards in the city to be represented by Green City Councillors. It is important that the Green Party wins Wensum to ensure there is a strong Green voice at City Hall. Green Councillors have been actively supporting Wensum residents on a variety of issues, such as road safety and protecting green spaces.

Attacks on UEA Students

Several residents contacted the Green Councillors about the recent series of attacks on students on the UEA campus. Adrian Ramsay raised this issue with the Police and the Council, asking for more frequent Police and Community Warden patrols in the area. Green Councillor and UEA lecturer Rupert Read spoke at a meeting on the issue at which many students raised the need for better lighting on campus, particularly on the path leading to The Village where most of the attacks have taken place.

Tom Llewellyn said: "We have urged UEA and the Councils to improve lighting and patrols in the area to help stop these dreadful assaults."

Anti-Incineration Campaign

Claire Stephenson writes...