25 Feb 2015 Care and support charges - have your say
Dorset County Council is asking residents for their views on charges for social care ahead of changes introduced by the Care Act in April. Although most of changes the Act will bring are legal requirements, there are some aspects councils can decide at a local level.
The level of certain charges that will apply for people who can afford to pay for services
The circumstances when the county council will give a refund to people who miss a service due to illness or other absence
Charges for the carers' "Short Breaks Service"
Administration charges and interest rates that will apply to the new Deferred Payment Agreement (loan) scheme
A public consultation is now underway, and the county council is keen to hear from local people about the proposals before any changes are made.
Cllr Jill Haynes, Cabinet member for adult social care at Dorset County Council, said: "Designed to put people in control of their care and support, the Act represents the most significant reform in the law about adult social care for decades.
"It will place new duties and responsibilities on local authorities, including Dorset County Council, about care and support for adults and their carers.
"The proposed policies aim to make sure we deliver the legal requirements of the Care Act, and also deliver the best possible care for Dorset residents."
"The county council's annual grant from the Government is going down in real terms, whilst the demand for our services - and the cost of providing them - is going up. We have to save £45 million by 2017-18, and want to spend what we have in the areas where people tell us it will make the most difference to them and the people they care for.
"As any changes will need to be in place by April, the consultation will end on 16 March. We want to encourage people to give us their views and ensure that the charging policies are fair and equitable to everyone.
"The results of the consultation will help us shape how the Care Act legislation is delivered at a local level."
A new scheme to help West Parley residents with small jobs round the house and garden has recently been launched. A Good Neighbour Scheme has been launched by the Partnership for Older People Programme and will cover Ferndown and West Parley. The aim is for resident volunteers to carry out minor jobs, such as changing a light bulb, moving small items of furniture, dog walking if ill etc. This work is done for a donation to cover the volunteers expenses. Clients wishing to use the scheme should phone 01202 834034.
Scheme organisers are looking for local volunteers to help with this work. West Parley already had a network of volunteers who help with community tasks, such as litter picking, leaflet distribution and work on the appearance of the village as well as helping with our Volunteer Drivers transport scheme.
This new scheme is a great way to meet other residents, especially those in need. Anyone interested in volunteering to help out should contact the Co-Ordinator, John Muggleton on 01202 861832.
25 Feb 2015 Support your local shops
New Road will be closed to traffic from 2nd March for 3 weeks and no doubt there will be a considerable amount of disruption whilst the essential road maintenance work is being done. However, there will continue be access to all the shops and businesses at Parley Cross throughout the road closure.
It is a difficult time for all the businesses at Parley Cross affected by the closure so it is hoped that residents will continue to support the businesses now and in the future. We all know the saying "Use it or Lose it" applying to businesses and this is particularly relevant at present.
The changes that have taken place at Glenmoor Road shops have improved the whole area. An extended hairdresser and a new coffee shop mean that all the shop units are occupied. A number of large planters have been put in place in recent years so the whole area looks the best it has been for some time. The new 20 mph speed limit signs are now working in front of the shops and close to Parley First School.
9 Feb 2015 New Road closure - more info
The A347, New Road, in West Parley will be closed for three weeks for Dorset County Council to repair the road.
The structure of the road is severely damaged and needs to be repaired. The county council are employing specialists, Stabilised Pavements Ltd, who will be able to recycle the material in situ and by adding bulking and binding elements will give the road a new lease of life.
A full closure will be in place, below Parley Cross up to Ensbury Bridge over the River Stour, for three weeks from 2 March. The work is part of the council's planned highway maintenance and will include resurfacing and resolving drainage issues. All residents and businesses along this stretch of road have been contacted and the teams will ensure that people and essential services have access. Discussions with Go buses and Yellow buses are on-going to minimise the disruption to passengers.
Andrew Martin, the county council's head of highways said: "Although this work is weather dependant we are confident that we will be able to complete the work in three weeks. The team will also pick up a small repair on B3073 Christchurch Road (West of Parley Cross) out of peak time. By recycling the material we have cut the time the road has to be closed and it is also a cheaper, more efficient way to reconstruct the damaged structure. We will work with the residents affected by this closure, checking that access is available when it's needed."
A diversion route will be signed via the B3073 Christchurch Road to Longham,
A348 over Longham Bridge and A341 through Kinson. There will be full pedestrian access at all times, but cyclists will be asked to dismount All the businesses at Parley Cross will be open and accessible from the crossroads. During this closure work will start on repainting and repairing Ensbury Bridge, continuing until 3 July.
Following the reopening of New Road a restriction of narrow lanes will allow light vehicles such as cars, vans and buses to pass over the bridge but not HGVs. A diversion route will be put in place and advertised. Temporary traffic lights will be used at the end of the project so that the scaffolding can be removed.
Cllr John Wilson, local councillor and Chairman of the county council, said "Unfortunately, this closure will cause considerable disruption and inconvenience for local residents, businesses and commuters, but it is essential work to keep our highway network functioning and I am satisfied that this method of repairing the road takes the shortest time. I advise people to use the well signed diversion route, but I expect that local motorists will soon select the best alternatives for their journeys.
Bus passengers should soon be advised by the bus companies about temporary bus stops and changes to journey times".
8 Feb 2015 Food collection banks
Food bank collection bins will be in place in West Parley by Thursday 12 February. All donations will be taken to the food bank at St Andrews church in Kinson, which is a part of The Trussell Trusts Uk wide food bank network.
Collection points will be Tesco Store, Parley Cross, Tesco Store, Glenmoor Road, Parley Cross Pharmacy, The Owls Nest Restaurant and The Parley Country Club.
There will be a poster at each collection point to explain how the food banks work, and who is entitled to use them. Donations can include powdered milk, sugar, soup, pasta sauces, all tinned food, cereals, tea bags, instant mash potato, rice and pasta, jam, biscuits, snack bars, in fact any non perishable foods as long as they are within use by date, and toiletries such as toothpaste etc.
1 Feb 2015 West Parley in Bloom
There was a surprise in store for the West Parley in Bloom committee when they received the entry papers for this years S&SE in Bloom competition they realised that for the previous two years they have been competing in the wrong category. The categories are decided by the numbers on the electoral register, West Parley have been entered in the small town but they will now be entering as a large village. This will not make any difference to the enthusiasm of Parley's Large group of very keen volunteers, together with cooperation from the new West Parley Gardening Club there are many new ideas in place and they are determined to raise their game to achieve higher marks this year.
This year West Parley in Bloom will also be entering the "it's your neighbourhood" competition this is specifically to showcase the work undertaken by the volunteer groups and Parley has a group of very hardy volunteers who work around the village all the year round. Anyone interested in helping to keep the village looking its best will be welcome to join them. Contact Stuart Couper for more details, email Stuart Couper - stuart@parleycross.plus.com or 01202 573833.
31 Jan 2015 Gardening Club January Report
West Parley had a very interesting January meeting with Janine Pattison the well known local garden designer, picture shows part of the 40 plus audience being very attentive. Janine has recently been on Television working on a large garden in Sandbanks so we asked for our talk to be designing for a limited budget. Janine suggested we start by looking at hedges and fences and gave suggestions for ways to disguise them, then decide on trees and shrubs to put the structure into the garden, paths and paving, then lawns and perennial borders. There was a great interaction with the audience with lots of suggestions being put forward and many queries answered. After a break for tea/coffee there was a lively question and answer session to round off a very informative and enjoyable evening.
Some of the members have been finding it a rush to the meetings so there was a unanimous decision to start future meetings at the slightly later time of 7.30pm. This will of course still be on the last Tuesday of each month. We look forward to seeing everyone at the next meeting on Tuesday 24th February. All the information on West Parley Parish Council website or email Pat Couper on pcouper68@gmail or tel 01202 573833.
