Chalkhill kids get on their bikes as school invests in cycling

With safe cycling in Brent under scrutiny at the Brent Cyclists hustings tomorrow I though it  might be worthwhile to look at some positive things happening on the Chalkhill Estate.

Chalkhill Primary School has used 'Healthy Schools' money to buy bike and scooter storage:

There are two of these covered bike racks with helmet storage

Scooter rack

Sustrans have used their police connection to get some unclaimed stolen or abandoned bikes for the school and the school has spent a grant of £2,000 to buy 10-12 bikes for use by children without bikes.

The teacher in charge has trained in Cycling Profiency and there train chldren and others. He works with Sustrans on bike safety and there is a Dr Bike safety and repair service.

 Cycling Club runs before school every Wednesday. Children can use the large playground to improve their skills and control before other children arrive, The children who attend have named themselves the 'Bike-it Crew',

The school runs a special Bikers' Breakfast with a free breakfast, film and other events.

Cycling is also integrated into the sports and PE curriculun with children taking the bikes out for on and off road training.

Meanwhile 5 minutes up the road from the school additional cycling facilities are taking shape. The children were consulted by the designers of the facility which consists of a BMX track, family cycling track and a scooter course.

BMX track under construction in St David's Close

Part of the circular Family Bike Track

Brent Bikers & the Ballot Box: Hustings Wednesday 14th May in Wembley

Brent Cyclists, the local group of the London Cycling Campaign, are organising a public election hustings for candidates in the Brent Council elections, to take place at:

 

7pm on Wednesday 14 May at CVS Brent, 5 Rutherford Way, Wembley HA9 0BP

cycling.

London Cycling Campaign has been running a capital-wide campaign in the run-up to these elections, under the slogan “Space for Cycling”. Local campaigners have identified one change to the streets in every ward which would make their area better for cycling, and in the hustings Brent Cyclists will be asking candidates to respond to their local ward demands for Brent, and to the wider policy area of improving conditions for cycling and walking. The hustings will be open to the public, and it is hoped to have representatives from all the main parties there, as well as independent candidates.

 

Brent Cyclists Co-ordinator David Arditti said:

Our campaign is about making our streets more pleasant places for everyone. We need better streets in order to liberate the suppressed demand for cycling; most people say they would cycle if there was protected space for cycling, but the cycle lanes in Brent are very poor and give little protection, and the minor roads are generally hostile rat-runs full of parked and moving cars. 

 

The policies that we need are a combination of providing dedicated, protected space on main roads, removing through-traffic from minor roads, and providing routes through parks and open spaces. These policies would allow children to get to school by bike, allow the elderly and disabled to use electric bikes and powered wheelchairs easily, and everyone else to do the short journeys for which the bike is the most efficient option, in comfort and safety. Or town centres and shopping areas would also be improved and be helped to thrive by creating better cycle access. There is funding from the Mayor of London available, and now is the time for our local politicians to take a lead on providing for cycling.

The public can support our campaign, by emailing their council candidates through www.space4cycling.org

ARK intransigence provokes Copland strike over compulsory redundancies

The teaching unions (NUT, NAUWT, ATL at Copland Community School have sent the following notice. Copland is due to be forced to be academised and taken over by Ark later this year.

The three teacher unions at Copland Community School in Wembley will be taking strike action again this Wednesday over threatened compulsory redundancies. Two teachers face losing their jobs. The current Headteacher, Richard Marshall and the Unions have been meeting on a weekly basis with the joint aim of preventing this occurring. These negotiations have significantly reduced the original number of proposed compulsory redundancies as well as agreed very useful proposals on how to prevent the loss of the remaining two jobs. These include covering a maternity leave and extending the deadline for compulsory redundancies until December. It is well documented that there is a turn over of staff when a school converts to an academy.

But ARK, who are seeking to take over the school in September, have refused to

agree to any of these proposals.

ARK, known for their anti union stance, are prepared to see the school closed rather than negotiate, are prepared to see the pupils education disrupted. The teachers will be on the picket line again on Wednesday from 7.30 am showing their collective anger at this stance.

Tom Stone, NASUWT Secretary said, “I find the intransigence of the ARK management in not agreeing any of these eminently sensible proposals, unbelievable. We have had weekly meeting with the aim of preventing any redundancies. ARK is prepared to disrupt the children's education when such a small step would solve this situation.

Hank Roberts, ATL said, “If ARK do take over the running of the school in the autumn this does not bode well for the staff or pupils. The children's education has already suffered too much without sacking their teachers.”

Lesley Gouldbourne, NUT said, “We have been working so hard to prevent any strike action. Yet even when we and the school come up with an effective proposal, ARK refuses to agree. It is outrageous that this is allowed to happen when they are not even running the school.”

The teachers are planning to strike again on May 21st if there is not agreement to prevent these compulsory redundancies.

Brent not commenting on Tewari allegations as Wembley Matters refuses to pull Audit Report

I understand that Brent Council is refusing to comment on the Davini allegations LINK as it would 'not be in the public interest'.

At the end of last week Fiona Ledden, head of Brent Legal and Procurement wrote 'requiring' me to take down the leaked documents. This is the correspondence:

Dear Mr Francis

I am most concerned that you have quoted on your website a number of documents that have been redacted and made available to a respondent in litigation, which is yet to be heard before a judicial panel. The documents are confidential and provided to the relevant party solely for an Employment Tribunal. The case has not yet commenced and releasing documents before the tribunal has started to hear the evidence is highly inappropriate.

I am requiring that you take down the documents which you have attached until the close of the proceedings.

I will be taking this matter up with the relevant party’s representative and during the hearing itself, I consider these documents to remain confidential until the tribunal lifts that confidentiality.

Yours sincerely

Fiona Ledden

Director of Legal and Procurement

London Borough Brent

Could you please tell me under what powers you are 'requiring that you take down the documents...'
Thank you
Martin Francis

Dear Mr Francis

My reasoning is that, except in certain circumstances that do not apply here, a party to whom a document has been disclosed in litigation may only use that document for the purposes of the proceedings in which they were disclosed. It is clear that these documents have been leaked from the court bundle, and therefore I request that you remove the attachments that you have placed on the blog.

Regards 

Fiona Ledden

Director of Legal and Procurement

London Borough Brent

It does not appear to me that you have any powers or authority to 'require' me to take down the attachments and I believe that the wider public interest is served by them remaining on Wembley Matters.
Regards,
Martin Francis

Over the weekend I edited the attachments so as to concentrate on the main issue, the Draft Audit Report, and that remains on the blog.

In my opinion this is a case of straightforward 'whistle blowing' backed up by the published document. We, the public, Brent taxpayers and council tax payers, have a right to know:

• How our money is spent
• How effectively the spending is monitored
• Whether employment practices are fair
• Whether all employees are treated equally regardless of their position in the authority
• Whether elected councillors have full knowledge of these matters
• What oversight councillors have over senior officer decisions on employment and disciplinary matters with the Corporate Management Team