At the weekend we took ourselves off to Leavenheath where the village hall was screening The Artist. The hall is part of the Suffolk Digital Cinema Network (a non-profit association) which encourages community film screenings across Suffolk. Network members borrow digital projection equipment, and get advice and training on how to run properly-licensed screenings in their own venues. Members choose the films they show to meet the needs of their local audiences. There were just under fifty people in the audience and it all went very well. There was a interval during which we could buy drinks and ice creams. I fully recommend The Artist which is a 2011 French romantic comedy-drama film in the style of a black-and-white silent film and stars Jean Dujardin and Bérénice Bejo. The story takes place in Hollywood, between 1927 and 1932, and focuses on the relationship of an older silent film star and a rising young actress as silent cinema falls out of fashion and is replaced by the “talkies”. (A sort of Singing in the Rain without the wetness). Some might argue that the real star of the film is Uggie, Dujardin’s Jack Russell .
Sound finally comes in as the film starts rolling for a dance scene with Dujardin and Bejo. Once the choreography is complete, the two dancers are heard panting, and this is only time in the film sound is heard coming from Bejo, who otherwise says nothing. The director of the musical calls out audibly, “Cut!” to which producer adds: “Perfect. Beautiful. Could you give me one more?” Dujardin, in his only audible line, replies “With pleasure!” revealing his strong French accent. The camera then pulls back to the sounds of the film crew as they prepare to shoot another take.
Well worth a trip to one of the villages and well worth seeing the film again
Local Colour
Babergh Core Strategy
This week saw Babergh District Council consider its Core Strategy. In many ways it is an admirable document setting out how the District might develop over the next twenty years. However, deep within its detail are what could be considered serious threats to the Hadleigh’s well being. Kathryn Grandon moved an amendment to the approving resolution pointing out that the commercial area allocated on the map is in the wrong place. The commercial area should not have to share street space with residential areas. Residential streets should not be sharing space with diesel lorries accessing their places of business twenty four hours a day. An illustrative map indicated the possibility of an industrial corridor to the east of Hadleigh. This will become an eastern barrier to further development since no one will want to be separated from the town by a commercial area. The commercial area should not be alongside the residential area. Instead it should be on a site having easy access onto the A1071 (the town by-pass) Once again we have a community being led by the Council but not in a way which will enhance its future prospects. The amendment went down by more than thirty votes to six. One of the Liberal Councillors for Hadleigh voted against the amendment citing the need for a decision to be made. The Core Strategy has now been approved and has been published to the Towns and Parishes for further consultation. Then it goes to the Planning Inspectorate for comments and approval. Meanwhile people similarly minded to Kathryn and myself are looking at how one influences the Planning Inspectorate – as Babergh does not appear to be listening.
What No Bunting!
We have no street bunting in Hadleigh for the Queen’s Jubilee.
According to the Suffolk Free Press Town Clerk has said that “the authority has been informed the bunting was not allowed in the (High) street which is a conservation area, for fear of the damage it would cause to historic buildings. Under health & safety regulations, and due to the listed buildings we can’t put the bunting up”.
But yesterday the E.A.D.T. reported that the Town Clerk had confirmed that the reports were simply untrue. Instead “It would be physically impossible to attach it (the bunting) at a high enough level for vehicles including big lorries that regularly use the road to avoid it. Meanwhile the Town has commissioned the local Brownie and Guide groups to design and make bunting which will be zig-zagged across the street this week end when it is closed to traffic. If this is logistically impossible it will be draped from the buildings instead”.
Apparently Long Melford which is equally historic has bunting. There is no across the street bunting in Hadleigh but plenty on our buildings.
The newspaper advertising boards say it all:
On the Buses
For som
e time, Simon Wills, Shelley Pingo, Kathryn Grandon and I have been agitating for Suffolk County Council to restore the subsidy which was previously given to the later evening bus services from Ipswich to Hadleigh. Simon provided the legal research and a lot of lobbying muscle, Shelley collected over 3,750 signatures and Kathryn & I provided our political skills and connections in getting the idea in front of the right people. The funding was withdrawn last year and the bus operator stopped operating the service. Since that time Hadleigh has faced an evening curfew and has been marooned on Sundays and Bank Holidays. On these days we could be a desert island as far as public transport collectively is concerned. This has had social, educative, community and economic consequences for Hadleigh. Our residents have no local train options, entertainment options or higher education options. To take the train, visit the cinema, attend college and many other things residents have to visit Ipswich. And if that involves a journey after 6 p.m., they are stuck. Such opportunities are open to those who have access to a car. Suffolk County Council allowed us to speak to the Council on Thursday. I was delegated to do the deliver my speech of a lifetime. Thankfully the Council had listened to our earlier presentations and have agreed to a trial six month restoration of the later evening, Sunday and Bank Holiday bus services. This will aid economic recovery , enhance sustainable growth and plug the social gaps.
Because whether you are in catering, retail, hospitality, leisure, medical or manufacturing work patterns require you to be able to get home after six fifteen in the evening! We need the bus service – otherwise we are cut off from economic development, educational opportunity and enhanced leisure activity. Thankfully from August onwards we shall be back on the road after 6.15 in the evenings.
Well done, Suffolk County Council.
Hadleigh Show
Today is the day of the Hadleigh Show. A great day out. But the foundation of the Show is its agricultural underpinnings and the countryside it supports. More details can be found on http://www.hadleighshow.co.uk/
After the Floods
Today is the day of the Hadleigh Show. There has been much discussion as to whether the ground would be too soft for the fair and other heavy footprint machinery. But the rain held off and in the afternoon it was quite sunny. The River Brett is back to normal as the following show:
Rain & Floods
Thursday was quite heavy with rain. The River Brett overflowed its banks at various places around Hadleigh. By Friday the waters were still fast flowing but had abated a bit. The photo’s were all taken around 11 a.m.
Standards
Last week the Joint Standards Committee of Babergh and Mid Suffolk issued an Advice Note “‘Blogging’ & Social Network Sites”. Nearly five hundred words of what should be obvious. Of course we all have to observe the Seven Principles of Public Life; selflessness, integrity, objectivity, accountability, openness, honesty and leadership.
However, some of the advice seems to encourage an atmosphere where personalities and policies do not matter and thus honest debate is silenced. For example:
- make political points, but be careful not to be too specific or personal if referring to individuals
- general comments about another political party or genuine political expression are less likely to be disrespectful than comments directed towards or about an individual
Where is t
he respect for the people when their representative is hypocritical, misleading or less than competent. Local politics like many organisations can be maelstrom of ideas being advanced and like it or not it can be a zero sum game. If there is only a limited amount of money to be distributed why should monies go to the Dance East Boys in Babergh programme in preference to Home-Start Babergh? The Boys in Babergh programme speaks for itself. Home-Start Babergh is an independent charity that operates as part of Home-Start UK. They recruit, train and provide volunteers that work with families in times of need.
More importantly their support is given through home visits by volunteers and through support group meetings, where children can play together, supervised by a play leader, whilst parents meet with each other and with Home-Start staff. In many cases, their support is complementary to that of the professional agencies. Their volunteers are there for the family as a friend and confidant during a time of stress or difficulty. See: http://www.home-startbabergh.co.uk/.
Similarly why should the Dance East Boys in Babergh programme take precedence over the Kernos Centre. It provides counselling and support services to people with emotional and psychological difficulties from a wide variety of causes.
One of the main aims of counselling is to guide people from feeling victims of circumstance to feeling they have some control over our lives. See: http://www.kernos.org/
So, returning to the advice from the Joint Standards Committee: I hear what they say but it will not stop me from speaking out in a forthright and robust manner when I deem it appropriate.
Dusty the dog is man’s best friend
A happy story to brighten your day.
The EADT reports (Matt Hunter Wednesday, April 18, 2012 9.00 AM ) as follows:
The saying goes that a dog is a man’s best friend – and in one Suffolk village those words are particularly true. Jason Bloomfield, of Creeting St Mary, is celebrating after he was allowed to keep the puppy he saved from an A14 lay-by bin last month. The council worker discovered the aptly-named Dusty during one of his shifts but had an anxious 28-day wait before he knew whether he could keep the pup. It remains a mystery as to how Dusty ended up in the bin but it is believed his previous owners must have dumped him there. He said: “When they said he could stay we had a little party and a get-together to mark the day. “I walk him every morning at 5.30am and he’s up waiting for me – he’s an energetic little dog. Everyone takes a liking to him, he’s a lovely old boy. “He is absolutely brilliant, he loves his ball. I think he has done a little bit of training, he comes bounding back all day. I love him to bits.” Mr Bloomfield will take Dusty to the vets in Stowmarket to be vaccinated and micro-chipped in the next few days. “He does miss me during the day,” he said. “He knows exactly when I’m coming home, he gets up and goes to the door at 4pm. “He loves getting on my lap but if I’ve got tea he looks up to see if he can come up – but he won’t until I tell him.” Dusty and Jason have now become local celebrities, with people approaching them in the street to see how the pair are. “It’s weird being famous, I go into the dentists and Asda and they say, ‘tell us about the little dog’. “I find that everyone seems to know me at lots of places, they say ‘you’re the bloke off the telly’.”
http://www.eadt.co.uk/news/creeting_st_mary_dusty_the_dog_is_man_s_best_friend_1_1351915
Small Successes
Today’s meeting of Babergh District Council’s Overview and Scrutiny (Stewardship) Committee was a quite sparky meeting with much debate focussing on the Finance, Risk And Performance Management – Quarter 3 Monitoring Report (35 pages of facts and figures). The general complaint was that although we are told when targets are not being met – we are not told what is being done to correct the position. Cynics would say that the mushroom principle applies. The view being that it is not the Councillors’ role to understand what is going on but merely to note (and if appropriate approve) the reports. But deep in the data is the wonderful news that Babergh Matters (The Council’s publication for residents –sometimes up to 24 pages of photos and pufferie) has not been published this financial year generating a saving of £41,000. It’s possible that the £41,000 could be carried forward into 2012/13. But a saving is a saving and I have campaigned against the publication since I was first elected in May 2007. Consequently my day was cheered up immeasurably.
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