Wednesday 28 August 2013

Car Park Deal in Ipswich Extended

The Quids In “welcome to Ipswich” travel campaign starts on Monday and has now been extended to include more than 1,000 new car parking spaces just outside the town centre.

The £1 after 3pm applies to car parks belonging to Ipswich Borough Council and two run by NCP, Suffolk County Council’s park and ride service and Ipswich Buses' inward town services. It comes in for a 10-week Mondays to Fridays trial from 2nd September.

Ipswich Central, which represents town centre businesses, is co-ordinating the campaign, which is being backed by major retailers, including Marks & Spencer andDebenhams.

Today, the Borough Council said it was extending the scheme to its long-stay car parks in Portman Road and West End Road. This is in addition to its Crown, William Street, Regent, Upper Barclay and Bond Street car parks. NCP has joined in,with the new tariff applying to its Cox Lane and Tacket Street car parks.

That means a total of 2,094 car parking spaces are included in the Quids In campaign.

More details: www.allaboutipswich.com

Further comment:
Cllr David Ellesmere, tel: 07712 886629
Cllr Chris Stewart, opposition Conservative Group leader, tel: 07740 053903
Cllr Andrew Cann, opposition Liberal Democrat Group Leader, tel: 07545 289190

Monday 19 August 2013

Quids In Campaign for cheaper travel to Town

Come and see our lovely town Ipswich!
From Ipswich Borough Council
An ambitious plan to attract more visitors to Ipswich town centre was launched today.

The Quids In Campaign has brought together Ipswich Borough Council, Ipswich Central, Suffolk County Council, car park operator NCP and Ipswich Buses with a simple message: It’s cheaper to get here by car and by bus (than before)!

The campaign, which came after discussions with retailers, will run Mondays to Fridays from 2nd September to 15th November and will see:

·      Tariffs on Ipswich Borough Council’s five town centre car parks and Cromwell Square car park slashed to just £1 for the rest of the day and night after 3pm (weekdays).

·      Tariffs on NCP’s car parks in Cox Lane and Tacket Street cut to a total of £1 after 3pm (weekdays) – good news for Regent Theatre audiences and shoppers alike.

·      Park and ride fares cut to £1 (£2 return) after 3pm Mondays to Fridays.

·      Inward journeys on Ipswich Buses (town services) reduced to just £1 after 3pm (weekdays).

All the above bargain fares are available Mondays to Fridays only during the trial period and have been devised to boost retailers and other businesses.

Town centre business company Ipswich Central is a major partner in the “we’re backing Ipswich” campaign and is co-ordinating the scheme through its allaboutipswich.com website. Quids In is designed to show that a buoyant Ipswich economy is good for the rest of the county.


Thursday 15 August 2013

Spate of Break Ins in Stoke Park - Security message

There have been a few garage break-ins in Stoke Park and I thought it would be useful to reblog Safer Suffolk Communities post 

Shed and Garage Security

Suffolk Police have reported that since 1 June, there have been 50 shed and garage burglaries across Ipswich. An estimated £28,000 worth of property has been stolen, including £5,500 worth of fishing equipment and nearly £6,000 worth of garden tools. Bicycles and power tools were also taken. Of those 50 sheds & garages, 10 were believed to have been insecure. Losing property from your shed or garage is inconvenient and can be costly but tools from the shed can also be used to break into your house, therefore good security is essential.
Please take a few moments to check the security of your shed using the following points:
  • Make sure that the shed/garage is in good condition.  If the building is in poor condition, even the best locks won’t protect what is inside.
  • Make sure that the screws are concealed on fittings and hinges.
  • Fit mesh or bars inside the windows or board them up if you don’t use them.
  • Padlocks should be at least 6cm/2.5inches wide, hardened steel and closed shackle.
  • Lock the doors – even when you are at home.
  • Lock large items together with a good quality lock (www.soldsecure.com) or attach to them a shed shackle or ground anchor (www.securedbydesign.com)
  • Get a battery powered alarm or upgrade the house alarm to include outbuildings.
  • If you have a garage with a side access as well as an up and over door, consider fitting padlocks to the runners of the up and over door to prevent it from being opened.
  • Consider extra security for the garage (www.securedbydesign.com)
  • If you see or hear anything suspicious, call police on 101.  In an emergency always call 999.
Please contact Lucy Mures, Ipswich Crime Reduction Officer on 101 if you require any further information.
Please use the following link to pass useful information to Suffolk Police about any incident.http://www.suffolk.police.uk/safetyadvice/reportacrime/tellthepolice.aspx
Additional information can be found on our previous ‘National Shed Week’ Blog.
DO NOT USE THE INCIDENT LINK ABOVE IN AN EMERGENCY, OR IN A SITUATION THAT REQUIRES AN IMMEDIATE POLICE RESPONSE,  RING 999

Tuesday 6 August 2013

The Generation Blame Game

Listening to the words of a song 'Every generation blames the one before', (The Living Years by Mike and The Mechanics)  I thought - How very true.

Yesterday I was watching Sky News and caught the end of Kate Hopkins describing our young as the 'Done-To' generation. I believe she was inferring that this is their view of the world not her own!
A bit harsh? Maybe - she is very forthright and I don't always agree with her, but she often says the things most of us think but wouldn't dare say.

I think the majority of young people are fun, bright and interesting but the media loves telling us baby-boomers that we have done many terrible things to this generation.

Yes, it is difficult to buy a house now and yes it was easier for me to get a job when I left school than for young people now but I never had the opportunities that they now enjoy.

In my day a tiny minority went to university (which is why it was affordable for the country to give this type of free education). I understand that it's hard, to have build up of debt, for our graduates but many will never repay in full because the amount that needs to be paid back is dependant on level of salary and is written off after 30 years. The very successful or wealthy will no doubt subsidise the shortfall.

School was boring in my day - how I envy the computers, the creativity and the vast array of subjects that can be studied now. Discipline was harsh and unfair, often resulting in detention for minor things.

The economy of the 70's was as depressing as it gets - we couldn't afford holidays, there literally was nothing to do for young people and there were so many strikes, it seemed like a chaotic world - I went to work where we lit candles for light and the calculator had only just been invented! Under Labour, inflation reached mid twenties - what a nightmare decade, with the only saving grace being music and platform shoes (helping my 5 foot 2 inch frame nicely).

Ensuing recessions meant more hardship, there were no working tax credits or the help that can be expected now. Going to work didn't mean holiday, sick pay or maternity pay. It meant hard graft often without rights that are taken for granted now. Owning a house was fine but the 80's saw interest rates hit such a high that many lost them and had to start all over again.

Now, following the 'must have it now' culture, of which my generation did not contribute to on the whole, we are being blamed for everything from pensions, the myth they call global warming,  to how we've stripped the earth bare!

Sorry, but I ain't accepting that. It wasn't my generation that told our parents 'I'm not wearing that, I'll get laughed at - its not designer!' forcing parents to spend more than they wanted to on growing youngsters or £200 for a ball gown to celebrate the end of school life.

No - We can ALL take the blame, if a blame game it must be. However I prefer to look at solutions and what we should be grateful for, not who to point the finger at or what we don't have.

Our young are being forced into perceived victim-hood by the media's insistence on having a go at the middle classes and baby boomers. We're not perfect but nor did we have an easy ride getting here - we just had a different mindset.

So not in my name - thankyou!