Hereford's Black & White House also known as The Old House is due for a refurbishment, once complete the new name will be Black and White House museum but which name do you prefer to use? Please vote 

Typical the first year the HV decide not to run their annual empty shop count in Hereford and the HT pick up on this story

I attended the BRPC Meeting last night at the Northolme Community Centre. During the public participation I asked if we could have at least 3 salt/grit bins for Glastonbury Close.

One to be situated at the top of the close near Sydwall Road, another at the bottom of Glastonbury Close situated in the turning point on the final bend and the 3rd positioned near to the open space at the very end.

Last Winter I drove to Tesco and collected grit on a few occasions and gritted the whole of the close from top to bottom as it is like an ice rink when the temperatures fall below zero. Over the years I have seen the bin lorry struggle and slide like you would not believe as well as vans and cars.

I remember seeing some yellow bins some years back but they have since disappeared. I will also write to the clerk to request a few additional bins in and around Belmont too.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank all our members for their continued support and wish you all a safe and

Happy New Year 2017.

Colin

A Herefordshire family from Wellington have had their planning application for a small bungalow
for their disabled child refused.


From ClaireSnead's facebook page

Our planning application for a disabled bungalow on the site of an old shed and yard has been turned down by Herefordshire Planning Department: Not redirected either because the 11 neighbours who supported it were "not significant" and our need for disabled access "not unusual". Sorrow is not a strong enough word.... This is us... we are a family... share, we need everyones help

Story

Hereford's historic city centre Green Dragon hotel has gone on the market for £3.5million with Bristol estate agents Christie and Co. it is the largest hotel in the city centre.

Some interesting history:

Owen Tudor

Body found in search for missing Hereford woman

Extended lease for Hereford FC.

Herefordshire Council and Hereford Football Club have negotiated an extended lease term which will assure Hereford FC’s tenancy for a minimum of 10 years from the commencement date.

The club’s stadium and surrounding area continue to improve following the opening of the new shopping development and the construction of the new City Link Road. There is also an opportunity for the redevelopment of the Blackfriars Terrace end, as part of the proposed ‘Urban Village’ project. This would mean a new spectator stand and facilities, alongside other retail outlets, and would see the stadium being returned to four sides.

Speaking today, Hereford FC’s CEO Ken Kinnersley said: “It is quite apparent that the council recognises the work of many local people who volunteer at the club and also the financial investment in stadium renovation since April 2015. A longer lease time will justify further investment to fund improvements, allow time for a return on the investment and ensure we are eligible to apply for grant funding that may be available for future projects.”

Councillor Harry Bramer, cabinet member for contracts and assets said: “Hereford FC continue to make a great contribution to the city and its supporters. Many local traders benefit from increased trade on match days and the football club is an employer and a contributor to the local economy. The stadium is within the area designated for regeneration as part of the Urban Village redevelopment project. Herefordshire Council are seeking a development partner and it is to be hoped this will include some improved facilities for Hereford FC.”

 

Plans have been submitted to convert How Caple Grange Hotel into a boarding house for Hereford Cathedral School.

The planning application to convert the former military barracks and council records office in Harold Street Hereford were refused earlier this week by Hereford planners however, a new planning application has now been submitted for change of use of an existing Georgian Country House Hotel (C1 Hotels) to a boarding house for Hereford Cathedral School (C2 Residential Institutions).

Hereford police Inspector Nick Semper who has been awarded for his work to help keep the city's night-time economy safe is to retire today.

I would like to personally thank Nick for his massive contribution to Hereford and for all of the hard work he has put in over the years, enjoy your well deserved retirement, you will be missed my friend and I look forward to joining you later for your retirement reception.

Now I wish to open a can of worms and I want opinion.

A lot of negotiations went on regarding this site and on balance it looks like a good result.

I however learnt something last week which throws a dirty rag over the whole site.

Herefordshire Council will not be adopting the site.....street lighting,maintenance,play areas,balancing ponds, everything in fact will be managed by a third party.

The cost...a staggering £360 per year fee for all properties including unaffordable homes. No doubt yearly increases will be capped however what action would be taken against those that wont/cant pay.

So unless you can advise differently your council tax on this site will be paying for just a fortnightly bin collection.

Very short sighted by the council and a guaranteed problem development for the future.

If they ain't dancing in the Blackpool Tower Ballroom, they're doing it on ice, and if they ain't baking a bloody fruit cake to entertain us, they're on a quiz show, on a rotten bus, in a bloody house falling out with one another or in the Australian North East coast jungle eating all manner of creatures just to earn their fee, win the barstard competition and get the chance to advertise for Iceland Foods and move on to the next pointless celebrity programme where we the bloody viewers are invited to phone in and decide whether or not we want them to carry on doing buggar all that supposedly thrills us and entertains our poor souls. The barstards!

There was a time, not so long ago, when their star would dim, the calls dried up, their agent told them to 'clear off and don't come back' and they ended up on the end of a coastal rotten pier playing Widow Twanky in pantomime. Not anymore mores the pity. Nowadays, when their voice goes, they can't sing a bloody note or something else prevents them performing and getting a generous round of applause, it signals the beginning of their second career of the celebrity programme entertainment circuit.

What bloody next? We've already got the bloody celebrity President. It'll be bloody Pope next. The barstards!

If I had anything to do with it I'd certainly introduce something harsher, some dreadful alternative that'd make them think twice about signing up for Celebrity this and Celebrity that. Shoot the barstards. By Firing Squad. If the public don't phone in on Premium Rates and acknowledge 'we like you', then take them out of the house, off the dance floor or out of the jungle, and shoot um! That'd sort it out and it'd definitely increase the viewing numbers.

And if death by Firing Squad is a little to harsh for some then amputate a limb or sever a toe or finger. Anything! Beat them senseless and roll them in nettles but just stop this celebrity culture that's dominating my television screen.

I know if I were a celebrity and I was fully cognisant that there was a very good chance that I could walk into the Celebrity programme and end up hopping out, I'd give it some serious consideration. And as for the Firing Squad bit, which I personally don't think is particularly harsh or excessive, we could involve our brave Armed Forces Men and Women to do the shooting,which, they've been highly trained to do in their past service to us,and then and at the same time raise some much needed revenue to help them.

Looks like the Marches LEP is going all out to get EU Investment - maybe because there is no money in the kitty here in Herefordshire. I thought Herefordshire Council was our local authority. I didn't realise decisions and policies would be made by an unelected quango operating out of Westminster and the EU. How do our councillors feel that this could be the beginning of the end for our local authority? I am surprised they are consulting local communities when there are only a few weeks in which to comment.

I notice in the news and press that the fine and penalty points for using a mobile phone whilst driving, is due to increase next year.

I'm sure most people will agree that this is a good thing, even though there seems to be little enforcement of the law by our boys and girls in blue.

The point to this post?  Ah yes, that...

I was waiting to cross Yazor Road in Hereford today (Thursday 29th September 2016) at approximately 12:50, one of the cars passing me was a rather distinctively decorated driving instructors car, complete with personalised registration (nice touch.)  

As she, oops sorry, as the car passed me by, I noticed the driver, with one hand on the wheel, the other down by their side was doing a marvellous "nodding dog" impression, something down on her, or his (her) lap was taking up quite a good percentage of attention away from the road, that's for sure.

What chance do we have to expect people to resist the urge to use their mobiles whilst driving when a driving instructor is quite prepared to openly do just that?!

Still, it was probably important, wasn't it?

Proposed plans have been submitted to convert the former Johnson's Dry Cleaners, first, second and third floors from retail space to residential apartments.

We need to look at the bigger picture, the city centre will face no end of objections for future planning applications from RESIDENTS when businesses what to put up illuminated signs and extend business hours to accommodate functions in restaurants and bars etc, this happened recently when Yates applied to extend their opening hours (they won the court case in the end) and they received objections from the flats next door.

We should keep the city centre as a city centre and protect the businesses now and in the future, either that or a clause should be put in place for all new planning applications to cover new builds/conversions to prevent such objections, in other words, if you rent/buy a property in the city centre don't complain when the local business wants to put up an illuminated sign or extend their opening hours etc

Planning application here

Our local NHS Trust have achieved this remarkable achievement by following the ideology of Common Purpose, placing their complete faith in LinkedIn and its vast number of under achievers who swim amongst their members deluding themselves and us into ever believing that 'it's a business' and should be run in that way when it was, is and always will be a bloody service.

Back to the question though. How did they manage it. Well, a start would be in giving the land the old Hospitals once sat upon away at a very commercially and highly interesting price. Next to buggar all is extremely interesting.

Then you get the interested sharks from the private sector to agree to build you a new one, which, considering the future opportunities that'll emerge, they happily agree to do, just as long as they get some sugar at the very end of the feeding frenzy upon our public funds. The bloody rent!

You then get some Wiley, cunning and very clever sharp suits from the private sector who've been feasting for years off the highly rewarding PFI stupidity, pop them in a room and introduce them to the public sector suits who just happen to be bloody incompetent, know nothing about how to avoid getting ripped off and eaten alive, set a rate of rent which is hugely damaging to the future well being of the Hospital and, end up wth a building that's far to small than the one the County really needed, very costly to run with an accompanying annual costs that'd destroy any public service organisation that doesn't manufacture and sell anything and can never ever service the debt that the highly paid, let's pay the best to get the best, incompetent public service suits agreed upon because they were out of their depth, largely due to the fact they'd all reached their own level of personal incompetence many years ago whilst combing the greasy pole of Public Sector Money Games.

Once that's been done, you gather in all the past failures, the dross and dregs of the public sector, allow them to build their Empire Of Dirt, stock it so full of management the whole thing evolves into a bureaucratic beast of burden that begins to eat itself alive resulting in administrative chaos that's not helped because the very same idiots who gave the Hospital away to PFI are the very same ones who negotiated yet another highly expensive and badly procured project that nobody ever wanted or needed but it sounded like a good idea at the time.

Then, you begin outsourcing everything to the private sector, enabling the savings of imaginary millions, the creation of thousands of imaginary jobs and the opportunity to never be held to accountability because it wasn't ever going to be your fault and just to confuse anyone who dares ever look beneath the big lie, you create loads of bloody Partnerships who are there to share in the glorious failure of it all chanting, 'lessons have been learnt' guaranteeing to everyone that they'll dig deeper and deeper before ever admitting that they buggered it all up.

Next, create Arms Length companies that can secrete the dreadful failures and never be opened to public scrutiny. Then, once you start that, create some Partnerships. They're all pointless of course but it all looks so grand from their corporate perspective and adds greatly to the ever increasing cycle of confusion, chaos and the stumbling from one self created disaster to the other that's just around their corner.

Then, once the private sector have created their Health Care Support company that's staffed with hundreds of Nurses and Doctors who left the local Health Trust because the money was better and the stress less, you get to lose lots more money quite quickly on staffing costs. Costs that are so high you've absolutely no chance of ever breaking even in this lopsided game of The Public Sector Cash Trough.

Course, there's the hundreds of other contracts that were also negotiated between the Idiot and the private sector. Want a new phone. Pay me. New Light Bulb. Pay me. No matter what it is or how simply the job can be done. Pay me! You pay me over and over again until our contract with one another expires.

In short, every single component part of our local NHS Trust is tainted by a commercial contract negotiated by an incompetent bungling idiot who's either left the gravy train or, through sheer luck,has managed to cling on despite the part they played in losing us all one hundred thousand pounds every day of our seven day week.

That's pretty much how to lose that sort of money. You simply make one single crucial strategic appointment and allow that one single idiot to indulge themselves and allow their imagination to run riot.