Wokingham Borough Council has agreed a proposed £100,000 increase in funding for the council tax reduction scheme (CTRS), to help residents who may experience financial difficulties in paying their council tax.
The growth to the localised CTRS, agreed at full council in January, will ensure more working age borough residents have access to financial help.
Wokingham Borough Council has reviewed its current CTRS, assessing its impact and effectiveness and, in light of the current cost of living pressures, additional funds to support residents is needed.
The Council, like all local government organisations across the UK, is facing huge financial challenges to ensure vital services are protected and its residents receive the help and support they need to keep their families safe.
This additional support needed for residents, comes at a time when Cllr Clive Jones, leader of Wokingham Borough Council, has written to central government as the borough continues to receive the least funding from central government per resident of any unitary authority in the country.
Cllr Jones has stressed the need for further funding as the increases in demand for statutory services for residents, including those with special education needs and disabilities, have left the council struggling financially.
Cllr Jones said, “We need to make savings to ensure that we have the funds available to continue to help those in need. This £100,000 increase in funding for the council tax reduction scheme, that is required, is just one example of the help and support that we are providing for our residents who are struggling financially.
“We don’t receive our fair share of money from central government compared to other local councils across the country. This, combined with high inflation making everything more expensive, is putting further pressure on critical local services that are in increasingly high demand.”
Cllr Imogen Shepherd-Dubey, executive member for finance, said, “We are making the tough decisions to ensure that we remain financially sound. Savings need to be made as the cost of living crisis is hitting our residents and local businesses as well as us as a council.”
“We have advised residents that they will be receiving less blue bags this year. This is because 54 bags this year will cost the same as 80 bags did last year. This is just one example of spiralling costs at a time when central government are not providing us with adequate funding to support our residents. We need a new local government funding model based on the genuine costs of running a local authority.”
“Despite financial pressures, high costs and inadequate funding, we are on track to set a balanced budget for the next financial year. We have worked hard to reduce costs and spending to protect vital services and help residents who may experience financial difficulties. Due to the needs of our residents, we have also allocated an additional £250,000 within our budget for next year to continue to provide financial support.”
For further information about the council tax reduction scheme visit the Council website.
Wokingham Borough Council is asking for resident’s views to help it write a new, updated version of its Local Transport Plan, an official document guiding how it maintains and improves footways, cycle lanes, roads and other transport networks for many years to come.
This will offer residents more ways of getting around and more chances to leave the car at home, especially for shorter journeys. As the local highways authority, the Council is promoting this to reduce air pollution and traffic congestion, tackle the climate emergency, address inequality and help people live healthier lives.
During this initial engagement, which runs from Wednesday, 1 February until Sunday, 12 March, the Council wants views on ideas like more support for electric vehicles, more cycle parking, and providing more space for pedestrians on pavements in village and town centres.
This process is still at an early stage and will be followed by more detailed consultation, but everyone should take part now so it reflects the community’s needs and wishes from the outset. To respond, please click HERE.
Building on successes and moving with the times
All highways authorities must have an up-to-date Local Transport Plan that looks to the future and sets strategies for every part of the network. This must be presented to the Department for Transport and can help secure Government funding.
Wokingham Borough’s current plan, which runs until 2026, has provided benefits like its mostly traffic-free ‘greenways’ and improvements to Wokingham town centre, including the interchange with bus access at the station and a new link from Wellington Road to Reading Road.
It has also resulted in major new roads like the Winnersh and Arborfield relief roads, the latter of which won an award for measures benefiting wildlife, and upgrades to existing roads plus new footways and cycleways like the Bader Way from Woodley to Winnersh Triangle and Dinton Pastures Country Park.
Most schemes that the existing plan outlines are now completed – and with changing travel trends and a greater focus on the climate emergency, which the Council declared in 2019, it must be refreshed to better meet local demand and the issues facing the borough.
Helping to make greener, healthier changes
Cllr Paul Fishwick, executive member for active travel, transport and highways, said: “We’re proud of what we’ve accomplished with our current Local Transport Plan but, looking to the future, we’ve got to be even more serious about the impact of vehicle transport on the environment.
“The root cause of congestion is too many cars on the roads, but we need to encourage more people to leave them at home by providing infrastructure that makes this feasible and helps them feel safe to use it, alongside a reliable local bus network that’s vital to the community and the economy. Our new Local Transport Plan will be at the heart of this approach.
“While we can’t always avoid building new roads, they aren’t a viable long-term solution to the problems facing our community and the wider world – there’s got to be a shift towards more environmentally friendly alternatives.
“Please help us understand what’s important to you when getting around, so that we can consider the changes we need to help everyone lessen their day-to-day impact on the environment.”
Tackling the issue from all angles
The Local Transport Plan incorporates strategies like the Council’s Local Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plan, which it consulted on last year and hopes to publish soon. This will suggest improvements over the next decade or so and help to secure funding, though none is currently allocated and there would be further consultation before any schemes went ahead.
The Council is striving to protect Wokingham borough’s bus routes as operators continue to grapple with the impact of covid-19 and inflationary pressures, and continues to make progress on a new greenway linking Wokingham town with Arborfield via Woosehill.
Last year, it also opened the North Wokingham Distributor Road and Nine Mile Ride Extension near Arborfield, both of which will alleviate congestion locally while offering walking and cycling opportunities with a separate shared footway and cycleway.
For help completing the Local Transport Plan early engagement survey, or for alternative formats, contact the council’s customer services team on 0118 974 6000 or visit one of its libraries.
The Local Government Boundary Commission for England (LGBCE) has launched a consultation on the electoral wards within Wokingham Borough and is calling on residents to give their views.
Proposal
The LGBCE is proposing that there should be 18 wards in the borough, seven fewer than there are now. These 18 wards will each be represented by three councillors.
The Local Government Boundary Commission for England is an independent body accountable to Parliament. It recommends fair electoral and boundary arrangements for local authorities in England. In doing so, it aims to:
Make sure that, within an authority, each councillor represents a similar number of electors
Reflect the electoral cycle so that each ward is represented by three councillors
Create boundaries that are appropriate, and reflect community ties and identities
Deliver reviews informed by local needs, views and circumstances.
Have your say
Full details of the proposals and the consultation can be found on the LGBCE website. People can also give their views by e-mail at reviews@lgbce.org.uk, and by post:
Review Officer (Wokingham)
LGBCE
PO Box 133
Blyth
NE24 9FE
Wokingham Borough Council Chief Executive Susan Parsonage said: “It is important that ward arrangements take account of local views and reflect our community and so I would urge everybody to have a look at the proposals and then make their comments.”
The consultation will run until Monday 10 April, 2023.
Woodley Town Council’s Planning & Community Committee has sent a letter to Wokingham Borough Council outlining concerns with its proposed new parking scheme.
The letter provides a balanced, non-political view of all members of the Committee, which is represented by a mix of Conservative, Liberal Democrat and Labour Councillors. The concerns with the new parking arrangements focus on the potential negative impact on the community of Woodley.
Several issues were raised, including:
Change of chargeable times – potentially reducing evening footfall to businesses
Scale of increases – with the potential to make Woodley Town Centre uncompetitive compared to other local shopping centres
Addition of new charges – charges for residential overnight permits and market trader permits
Disproportionate contribution to Wokingham Borough Council parking funds – the burden of monies raised to cover budget deficit unfairly lies mainly with Woodley and Wokingham.
The Committee have asked for a series of concessions in implementing the scheme, providing a rationale for each concession and is hopeful to receive a positive response from Wokingham Borough Council.
The letter can be viewed HERE, or within the Planning & Community Agenda Minutes, dated 31 January 2023 HERE.
Blue general rubbish bags will start being delivered across Wokingham Borough by Wokingham Borough Council (WBC) from Monday 6 February. They will be dropped on doorsteps over a six-week period, with all houses receiving them by mid-March.
Each house will receive a roll of 54 blue general rubbish bags, covering the period between April 2023 and March 2024. A leaflet produced by WBC will be enclosed to give essential information on how to recycle more and waste less. Residents can find their estimated delivery date on the Council’s website HERE.
Food caddy liners are not being supplied to residents this year. The council announced last July that it would no longer provide free caddy liners for residents due to the significant increase in the cost of the caddy liners and because of the huge financial challenges it is facing.
For the same financial concern, the council’s decision-making Executive agreed last September to reduce the number of blue bags for each household from 80 to 54 per year.
Cllr Ian Shenton, executive member for environment, sport and leisure said: “The reduction of the number of blue bags has allowed our waste budget to stay as previously set, instead of having to increase by £149,000. Stopping the supply of caddy liners has avoided adding a further £120,000. These changes will obviously help make a difference to this year’s budget and allow us to focus on keeping our vital services going and supporting residents who need us during these turbulent times.”
Recycle more, waste less
“Disposing of waste costs us more than twice as much as recycling, so it’s important to recycle more and waste less. Most of our residents are already doing a great job with their recycling, but we need everyone to play their part. With these 54 blue bags, we are asking all residents to take on the ‘One Bag Challenge’ again and put out an average of one blue bag of general rubbish per week.
“It’s not difficult, really. For the vast majority of our residents, one blue rubbish bag per week will be more than enough if you put all of your recyclable items in the green recycling bags and the food waste containers. Additional green recycling bags are available, if you need more.
“We’ve found that over half of what goes in our blue bags is recyclable, with food waste being the biggest culprit, followed by paper, cardboard, soft plastic bags and others. If those things were to be put in the food waste container and green recycling bags instead of the blue rubbish bags, we could save about £1 million a year.”
Feed your caddy, don’t fill your blue bags
The council is urging residents not to stop using the food waste collection service just because it is no longer supply the food caddy liners.
Cllr Shenton continued: “We don’t want residents to stop recycling their food waste, simply because we are no longer supplying the caddy liners. We made that decision to save council taxpayers’ money, and protect our vital services.
“You can use whatever bags you happen to have at home, buy your own liners or leave the caddy unlined. All bags, including compostable ones, will be removed at the recycling plant before the food waste inside is processed, so you can choose whatever way works best for you.
“Recycling food waste has huge environmental benefits. When recycled, food waste can generate energy to power our homes. It also breaks down into a liquid fertiliser rich in nitrogen for farmers’ fields, improving the soil and helping grow crops. If food waste is put into blue bags, it will be disposed of, rot and release methane, a greenhouse gas harmful to the environment.”
Over half of what goes in the blue rubbish bags could be recycled
According to a study by re3, 57 per cent of what’s in the average blue bag is recyclable, with food waste alone taking up 24 per cent. Other recyclable materials include:
Paper, cardboard and magazine (9 per cent)
Soft plastics (8 per cent)
Reusable textiles (7 per cent)
Glass bottles and jars (5 per cent)
Garden waste (4 per cent)
If residents need more green recycling bags, they can pop into any of the collection hubs in the borough to collect up to four bags. Alternatively, they can order them online for delivery HERE.
New way to contact highways and transport teams at Wokingham Borough Council
Wokingham Borough Council (WBC) has introduced a new way for residents to get in touch with a query or request about highways and transport.
In its new self-service portal, you will be able to choose from a range of things to contact WBC about, including:
Road signs
Road markings
Street lights
Street furniture
Footways.
This new system is for general enquiries, such as a sign needing cleaning or letting WBC know if road markings need a refresh, or to follow up on a previous report you’ve made.
Other issues, such as potholes, pavement damage and streetlights not working, can continue to be reported online via WBC’s report a problem webpage.
Issues causing immediate danger should always be reported via telephone on (0118) 974 6000 (option 2) or 0800 212 111 if it is outside of normal office hours.
Health and care partners want to hear your views on priorities for improving health, care and wellbeing services in the future
The Integrated Care Partnership (ICP) is a group of organisations which plan and provide health and care services for nearly two million people who live and work in the local authority areas of Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire’s three westerly local authority areas of West Berkshire, Reading and Wokingham (known as ‘Berkshire West’).
Members include local NHS organisations and GPs, local authorities, public health, Healthwatch, care providers, voluntary sector, the Oxford Academic Health Science Network and other research partners.
The ICP want to work with local people and partner organisations to shape the future of health and social care in response to local needs and are requesting for people, communities and partner organisations to get involved in the development of its strategy, as it will inform plans and proposals for the future of health and care.
Find out more and take part in the survey HERE. The survey closes on 29 January 2023.
Here is the latest edition of The Friendship Alliance’s newsletter sharing local activities, groups, events, and services, including its Friendship Tables and Warm Spaces across Wokingham Borough.
For the first time, residents of Wokingham Borough will need to show photographic ID to vote at this year’s local elections.
Anyone who wishes to vote is therefore being urged to make sure they are ready when May arrives by checking they have an accepted form of ID. There are many forms of ID that are acceptable and anyone who does not have one can apply for free online or complete a paper form and send it to Wokingham Borough Council’s electoral services team.
Accepted forms of photo ID include:
Passport
Driving licence/provisional licence
Blue badge
Certain concessionary travel cards, such as an older person’s bus pass or an Oyster 60+ card
Identity card with Proof of Age Standards Scheme (PASS) mark
Biometric Immigration document
Defence identity card
Certain national identity cards
It is expected that the website to apply for a free voter ID document, which is known as a Voter Authority Certificate, will be ready for applications from Monday 16 January.
Voter ID
If a voter turns up at a polling station with no accepted photo identification, they will not be issued with a ballot paper. The provision of a polling card alone will not entitle you to vote.
Voter ID is a new requirement introduced by the Government’s Elections Act, which was passed last year and will apply for the first time in England at the local elections on Thursday 4 May. If you already have suitable ID, it is vital that you remember to bring it on the day.
Voters will be able to use expired ID as long as they are still recognisable from the photo. A full list of accepted forms of ID is available on the Electoral Commission’s website, along with more information about the new requirement and how to apply for free ID.
Andrew Moulton, returning officer at Wokingham Borough Council, said: “With elections taking place in Wokingham Borough on 4 May, it is important that those who want to vote make sure they have an accepted form of ID. It may seem early, but checking now means you will be ready to vote in May.
“Residents who do not have one of the accepted forms of ID can apply for free ID either online or by completing a paper application form and sending this to the council’s electoral services team. Contact us if you need any help with applying.”
Register to vote
Anyone who wants to have their say at the local elections must also be registered to vote. It only takes fives minutes to register online and anyone wishing to apply for free voter ID should make sure they are registered to vote.
If a voter would prefer not to show ID at a polling station, they can apply to vote by post or proxy, which removes the need for photo ID. However, their proxy will still need to show their photo ID. The deadline to apply for a postal vote for the May elections is Tuesday 18 April and for a proxy vote is Tuesday 25 April.
Residents with questions can contact the council’s electoral services team at electoralservices@wokingham.gov.uk or call (0118) 974 6000.
Work to add pathways from Jerome Road and Malone Road to Malone Park play area will begin the week commencing 23rd January.
The play area will still be accessible but please bear with us if areas across the grass are restricted.
The new pathways will be suitable for pushchairs, wheelchairs and mobility scooters, enabling people to access the play area more easily, avoiding any muddy areas. We appreciate your patience and understanding while we complete the work.
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