Visions, dreams and reality!

My column in the Herald Express 24th December 2013

Visions, dreams and reality! Headlines these days too often tell of the dreams and visions publicised by our political leaders offering the promise of a better future. It’s worth thinking about that as we let 2013 slip into history and look forward, hopefully with excitement, to 2014.

Keeping with the theme of dreams and visions it is also worth remembering the prophets throughout history who attempted to foretell or foresee the future. Many carried a mystical message from God whilst others simply looked at the world around them and said all this will end badly boys and girls if you don’t mend you ways!

Thinking about the historical prophets foretelling the future I was once told by a wise abbot (or at least I thought him wise) that I seemed to be a something of a modern day prophet. For a brief moment I thought that sounded quite nice but then he reminded me that things tended to end badly for prophets! A little bit of research confirmed the shocking truth that the community didn’t always want to hear the message and the easiest way of dealing with that was by lopping off the head of the prophet. Hmm.

I guess what I am saying is that whilst the dreams and visions can be fascinating we must not lose sight of the here and now.  That simple act is not quite as simple as it may seem. In these days of constant media input with twenty-four hour news and the casual spinning of truth things often are not quite as they seem. Not only that but there is a tendency to take for granted the antics of folk who continue to take more than their fair share. You will not have to stretch your intellect too far to find numerous examples where the gatekeepers of power seem to benefit disproportionately.

It is important for all of us to take note when the rhetoric of dreams and visions blows warm. That warming wind can mask the true nature of what is likely to happen or perhaps more worryingly might never happen. Does the dream work for the greater good or is it simply a money making event for the few. It is a duty for all to take notice and call to account. Not that I have anything against dreams and visions but I do worry about scary nightmares!

In a previous column I mentioned the Mayor’s Budget meeting at the Riviera Centre and the little questionnaire doing the rounds during the evening. I also said that there would be another chance to attend a similar meeting during January 2014. At the time the meeting was to be in a room at Paignton Library but that has now been changed to Thursday 9 January at the Redcliffe Hotel  (7-9pm). The Redcliffe Hotel is on Paignton’s lovely seafront. The sea actually washes against the wall of this atmospheric hotel. How nice is that!

If you can find the time it really is worth attending this meeting and making your feelings known. At the very least you might get a better understanding of reality. Having said that many of us have already become very aware of the economic here and now as the austerity cuts slice through so many things that we had taken for granted.

When you read this Christmas will have come and gone. Hopefully for you it was a joyous occasion and perhaps captured something of the simplicity of a traditional Christmas. I have always loved Christmas Day, starting with the first church service of the day, heading home for breakfast and presents before gathering for a traditional lunch.

This weekend is New Year’s Eve with a ring of endless fireworks around the world. A time for New Year resolutions which hopefully will contain a little more than simply wearing a tracksuit and staggering to the gym!  One resolution that we might all share is to make an effort to make this curious world of ours a better place. To do that we really must help each other and keep a careful eye out for those who might slip between the cracks as the austerity screw turns ever tighter. This is your time and your community.

But whatever you do for the new year please start with a smile!

Keep the smile.

Find ways to building rather than knocking down...

My words in the Herald Express Thursday 12th December 2013......Curiously since writing this I've bumped into a voluntary organisation struggling to cope with the sudden influx of folk seeking help as those most vulnerable take the pain of this fiscal mess.....

One of the things that you get to do when constructing a questionnaire is to select the questions that you want to ask and leave out the ones that you don’t want to ask. When you get to fill in a questionnaire you don’t have that luxury!

Why am I telling you this? Well recently I popped over to the Riviera Centre, also known as the Riviera International Conference Centre, to a very crowded Mayor’s Budget proposal evening. I estimated that around five-hundred people had braved the cool night air to hear about the pain that this budget is likely to inflict. That for Torbay, I have to say, is a very good turnout.

Most of us were sitting around tables with a councillor and an council officer to mentor. We were all clutching a questionnaire that offered the opportunity for us all to ‘have our say’ on the ‘tough decisions’ that have to be made in order to set a balanced budget. I’m not going to labour the point here but the lady sitting next to me must have been reading my mind and immediately made a comment about the questions being asked!

I did ask the council officer on my table what would happen if Torbay set a negative budget. It seems that cannot happen because it would be illegal! Hmm. That didn’t really answer the question but in many ways it was a rhetorical observation. But here’s the thing. How far can you push a population with draconian cut after draconian cut? One immediate call was for an increase in council tax. Explain that to a low wage family facing huge increase in utility bills, rising food prices and a complete tsunami of other soul destroying fiscal onslaughts! Of one thing there is no doubt and that is that the gap between those that have and those that have not is getting worryingly wider by the day.

You can have your say by filling in that questionnaire, by making contact with your councillors, by attending the next public meeting at Paignton Library on the 9th January 2014, by chasing your member of parliament or indeed simply becoming more aware of what is actually going on. You have a voice and you have a vote at the next election.

I have always had in mind that story about a frog in a bowl of water and suddenly these days I am feeling very frog-like! You see if you placed that dear little chap in water that was too hot he would simply hop out at speed. But if the water is cool then he is a happy-chappy and doesn’t notice that the water is heating up. Eventually the water becomes too hot leaving our sad little frog with no energy left to hop. Do you get the picture?

I’ve written about the nature of our social landscape before and at that recent meeting it was obvious that those who would feel most of the pain would be the vulnerable. Many of those folk do not attend public meetings as a rule and often have little or no access to computers. If you have a social conscience that must be a worrying concern.

I did make a note of a number of comments made by Gordon Oliver during the evening which included “I share your view completely” “I share your emotion” “With your help we can do it” “We’re very happy to listen – but the reality is!” “Let’s continue to talk” “It’s not my decision!” Against that backdrop were the comments of people who bravely attended having been homeless and sleeping rough. As one man said “These cuts to organisations helping those with little will result in deaths!” Certainly the loss of support to places like Factory Row will be catastrophic for many of our most vulnerable citizens.

I would like you to think about something. We constantly bang on about cutting spending and say very little about generating income. That doesn’t mean selling off assets because you can only do that once! What it does mean is looking very carefully at cleverly creating income from the assets that we have, both in terms of facility and community expertise. A number of folk are already working toward that and we need to build the portfolio. We have amazing skills within the community and need to liberate that energy. So let’s start looking and find ways to building rather than knocking down.

Ultimately it will be about working together for the good of all and whilst we probably know this it still seems a hard thing to make happen. So when it comes to building a questionnaire you might now think of a few more questions that you might want to ask!

Keep the smile.

Budget cuts always seem to hit the most vulnerable hardest

MY STUFF IN THE HERALD EXPRESS 28th NOVEMBER 2013

 

Vince Cable (Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills) came to visit South Devon the other day and amongst other things spoke to the local business forum at the end of a busy day. For all sorts of reasons I didn’t attend that gathering but was fortunate enough, thanks to Adrian Sanders MP, to spend a little time with Dr Cable during the late afternoon. I’ve always been a supporter of Dr Cable and really enjoyed reading his excellent book ‘The Storm’ about the financial crash, published in 2008.  But although I have admired his work I did have a problem with some of the changes in direction once he joined our coalition government. I reminded about his potentially being included in the 2012 Olympics as a member of the fiscal gymnastics team with backward somersaults as a particular skill. Those adjustments are of course a consequence of endless policy trade-offs in any coalition which is why our present political leadership has been a worry for me. Anyway it was a pleasure to meet him and I do recommend his book to you as we battle through this age of austerity.

I did raise an eyebrow recently, something that I seem to do a little too often these days, when HRH Prince of Wales called the three main political party leaders to Buckingham Palace to debate voluntary service for the young. Doubtless the meeting will result in numerous focus groups, assorted projects and the usual myriad of quango style organisations. Thinking about the financial action of the Coalition I felt a certain empathy with Prince Charles’ obvious concern for our young people. We should, of course, all be concerned because this is about the building blocks of a cohesive functional community and given the high level of young people without jobs this has to be a worry.

I do wonder whether our local political leaders had any of that in mind when setting the budget for Torbay in particular. Did you notice the Mayor’s budget detail or did it get lost in the swirl of political rhetoric that always makes any sort of reasoned analysis problematic? I did take a long hard look, as did a friend who made the following comment, “Have you looked at the Mayor’s budget on the website? There are so many cuts to services for the most vulnerable! SHOCKING!!” Curiously that comment was brought into immediate focus later that same evening when I bumped into another friend working for Torbay Council and lightly asked the question, “Still got a job?” Her face dropped and I realised immediately that I had asked the wrong question. It seemed that she had received her notice that afternoon. My reply was, “But you work with very needy young people!!” Given that she has always done much more than was required for her post, had supported so many marginalised young folk and helped in ways that I cannot even start to list the loss to Torbay will be huge. That’s the point really. It’s not just what folk do for a job it is also a matter of understanding what they also do through goodwill. Expecting the voluntary sector to pick up the slack is it seems to me wishful thinking!

Budget cuts always seem to hit the most vulnerable hardest. This budget is going to impact upon us all and so how about making your view known? Why not attend the Mayor’s Budget Event on 2^nd December at 6.30pm at The Rivera Conference Centre (also known at the ERC, on Torquay seafront). The event is open for us all to attend! If you have computer access then do take a look at: http://www.torbay.gov.uk/index/yourbay/events/budget where you will even find an interactive budget simulator to see how you might allocate the meagre funds available! You will also find a questionnaire allowing you to have your say about the Mayor’s proposed budget.

You have the chance here to participate in local government and the ability to engage gets even better because now Torbay Council will be streaming many of their meetings. What does that mean? Well this is a computer based facility that will allow you to watch proceedings live!  You can join, via the Internet, a full Council meeting live on 5^th December simply by clicking on: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tHy8b6V-_QE

Of course if you don’t have computer access you can read about these events in the Herald Express! You can also attend as a member of the public and watch our elected councillors in action although you cannot actually participate.  The meeting will be in The Forum at the Riviera International Conference Centre on the 5^th December starting at 5.30pm.

Goodness, we are all going to be busy bunnies!

Keep the smile!

 

 

 

 

 

Stranger danger in your own home

My words on the Herald Express 14th November 2013

 



 

 

I happened to notice a poster the other day whilst researching changes in the local government landscape. The headline message simply asked the question 'Whose coming into your home tonight to talk to your children?" The little poster showed two young children cosily looking at a shimmering computer screen. Intrigued I read rather than skimmed the information. You might, as I did, raise an eyebrow at that because we tend to know exactly who is coming into our homes! But do we always know? This campaign is about the Internet and what we allow, perhaps unwittingly, our young people access. If you have children and allow them to access the Internet then you really really should read what the Virtually S@fe team have to say!

 

If you read the Herald Express regularly then you will have been aware of the consequences of unpleasant people using social media platforms online to work against the good of a community. As a parent we always want the very best for our children and therefore take as much care as we can to keep them from harm. I guess that is why this little poster made me shiver. The thought of some unpleasant character having a conversation in the bedroom of a young person is horrible and yet that is exactly what evil predators attempt to do via the Internet.

 

The Internet is of course the most wonderful creation and has probably made the world a smaller place. I love it and spend many useful (and not so useful!) hours each week communicating, learning or simply being entertained by this magical invention. But as with most things unpleasant folk tend to spread their darkness causing mayhem and harm. That is sad and also a worry which is why this campaign by Virtually S@fe caught my eye. Virtually S@fe is a project delivered by Devon and Cornwall Police, Hele’s Angels and Safer Communities Torbay with funding from the Torbay Safeguarding Children Board. You can find them at http://www.torbayvirtuallysafe.co.uk/  by phoning 01803 207263 or 207262 or email scatt@torbay.gov.uk  

 

Having said all that we must remember that true friendship is such a precious thing and good friends bring warmth into all our lives. Friendship is a two way process and not a function that should ever carry a score card. To be there for another without counting the cost is a huge thing and too often lost in our fast moving confusing world. Being there for a friend at a time when help is needed doesn't mean that a credit has been added to some emotional balance sheet to be claimed at a later date. Being there for a friend when it matters is a special gift and provides a spiritual lift to both! Friendship builds healthy communities!

 

A few weeks ago I mentioned loneliness and the curious fact that even though we have wall to wall methods of communication social isolation seems to be on the increase. It is a particular problem amongst the lonely as the nights get longer. Even though we may drift around Facebook and other social media platforms it cannot replace the energy of being physically present! Meeting friends and making new friends, it seems to me, is increasingly important to our community as the social landscape changes. It is actually hard work to keep in regular contact with friends in this busy world but worth the effort.

 

The regular meeting places and community hot spots must be developed so that we do as a community pull together. Perhaps as a consequence of these hard economic times there is an increasing potential for greater community action and I have been very aware of new social enterprises developing. There are some very good people doing wonderful work and we must do all we can to support them. One such organisations is Aly Lazell’s Future Shores, a new non-profit project which has just registered with Companies House as a community interest company looking at collaboration for social change with young people in Torbay. They share their skills as professionals with young people to support them to build the projects which they believe will make a difference to their lives now and their futures. They work with the arts, education and enterprise and want to try new ways of working to make positive experiences happen. Projects already include Agatha's Closet (working with fashion, young women and enterprise to create creative industry and event opportunities), Make Music Now (working with young people to create a music offer that is relevant to what they want) and In-Tent (re-homing festival tents to families who need to get some time out and organising some amazing events so they can do just that).

 

I guess that where I am going with all this is the continued need to keep our eyes open and engage with the community. By working together we can make the world a better place that really is in the interests of all rather than just a few.

 

Keep the smile.

 

The end of an era - kind words from Mr Parker

Jim Parker's words in the Herald Express 31st October 2013

"THE shutters will finally come down on 35 years of history in Paignton at the weekend. Harbour Sports Paignton will sadly be no more.
Well-known businessman Frank Sobey has tried to keep the business afloat after more than three decades in the town, but he has been left with no option but to throw in the towel.
What do those TV property programmes say? It's all about 'location, location, location'. The truth is Paignton harbour just isn't the location it used to be for Frank.
That, along with the general market, decreased footfall and, according to Frank, making the harbour as un-user friendly as possible with a raft of rules and regulations, has persuaded him to say enough is enough.
He used to run the harbour outlet and other shops in the city centres of Plymouth and Exeter under Harbour Sports Limited, but the plug was pulled on that company via a creditor's voluntary liquidation just over a year ago.





Since then Frank has been running the Paignton shop as part of a partnership and using the name of the business which has been well known in town for such a long time.
The idea was to make a go of it and then look to sell on the business. It hasn't happened and a recent half price 'all stock must go' sale was the beginning of the end.
Frank says: "We carried on eventually for another year as a partnership using the name Harbour Sports in the hope someone would pick up the torch.
"The shop in Plymouth became a cycle shop/cafe and the one in Exeter is now a Children's Hospice SW charity shop.
"We've had several people express an interest, but sadly nothing came of that and Harbour Sports on Paignton Harbour will slip into history.
"It is a shame but that, sadly, is the landscape these days."
The harbour is seen by many as Paignton's hidden gem. It is one of the most charming places in the country yet it appears somewhat cut off and isolated from the main town centre.
It doesn't sit within the Paignton BID area where traders are given the opportunity to invest, and have a say, in improving their trading environment.
There have always been concerns about a lack of sign posting trying to encourage locals and visitors to walk the whole length of the prom and then see what lies beyond the harbour arch.
I can remember several conversations with the inspirational ladies who run TJs down there. By the way, it was brilliant to see them pick up an award in recent South Devon and English Riviera Tourism and Hospitality awards.
They are battling through but for Frank the fight is over.
He says: "These are hugely difficult times. The harbour is such a lovely place.
"It has not become a user-friendly harbour in so many ways with things like regulations and conflicting use.
"It comes down to footfall.
"The sadness is that the harbour is dislocated from the town. It has lost its way."
He can remember the days of teaching wind surfing from the harbour back in the late 1970s when it was 'vibrant' and not constantly blown out of the water by red tape and health and safety.
Frank says: "Poles and wires have been put up to stop people fishing off the harbour. It must have cost thousands of pounds.
"People see people fishing down there and they are told 'you can't do that'. They no longer come.
"Evidently, there was one incident where one man hit a passing boat. It is called life."
Somebody showed their disdain for the fish ban wires by hanging their washing on them. Wonder who?
Frank adds: "People are told 'you can't park here and you can't do that'. There are so many prohibition signs.
"We have a by-laws sign at the top of the slipway. We are saying 'welcome to Torbay — here's what you can't do'".
The changing face of the harbour is not the only reason he has decided to call it a day.
The limited company went under as it got caught in the harsh times in the High Street.
"The limited company went because we got caught in the changing market place down here," said Frank.
"The biggest thing was getting caught in the high street in Plymouth and Exeter. It was too expensive.
"When you walk down the high street it is like somebody who cannot afford good dentistry — there are gaps all over the place.
"People are milling around but they are not carrying shopping bags. There are so many empty shops."
He recognises there are many success stories out there and is not the sort of person to sit back and just moan and groan.
But there was one moment back at the harbour shop which has stuck with Frank as the clock ticked towards closure.
He says: "Some people are talking up activity (in the town centres) and people say they want to see independents.
"But people are using us as fitting rooms. We had a family of four in here looking at wet suits for an hour. Then the bloke took out his mobile device in the shop and ordered the wet suits on line," says Frank.
He adds: "We were hoping somebody would take on the sports business. We had four or five people who were keen, but they never got far enough to putting ink on paper." He says one interested party was an outdoor centre business offering services including corporate body boarding. They walked after discovering it would cost £5 a time to launch a kayak...
Frank tells me Harbour Sports will become a new shop focussing on chandlery and shellfish. Good luck to the new business, but Paignton harbour just won't be quite the same."

Fuel poverty is a worry in hard times

My words in the Herald Express 31st October 2013

The South West Energy Centre

 

 

When our political leaders suggested the other day that we all shop around for the best energy prices I wanted to shout at the television screen. That may sound pathetic but that is exactly how I felt. Every year as the shadows lengthen the utility companies bump up the price of energy and we all shiver at the thought of yet another squeeze on the family budget. These are hard times and fuel poverty is a worry. It’s especially worrying for those who already struggle with crippling debt.

So what advice do we get from the House of Commons? Shop around for the best price! Great! Step number one is to make sense of the tariffs that they all punt. That is far from easy.  Comparison websites help as do numerous energy advisory folk wandering the streets, waiting to pounce once the call centre has caught another hapless shivering citizen. It’s all so confusing.

Of course getting your deal is a little like attempting to locate a pea as the thimbles move mercilessly around. Have you played that frustrating game? You do of course assume that there is actually a pea under one of the thimbles.  Hmm. It takes time and computer knowledge if that is how you plan to search for the best energy deal. It’s harder to do if you don’t have the required computer skills or indeed a computer. It must also be remembered that, despite the pressure to launch us all into cyberspace, many people still don’t own a computer and so shopping around for a better price online simply isn’t an option.

There are those who might argue that the essential utilities should not be in private ownership and looking at the huge profits combined with soaring energy bills you might raise an eyebrow. But they are privatised and political options for price control seem limited despite the rhetoric.  Oh yes we can all wear and extra jumper, heat only one room and limit the amount of light we use during the long dark hours but that doesn’t take away the pain of energy price increases on already staggering bills.

All this is not helped when we hear about the mis-selling of energy deals and doubtless a number of you reading this will have a certain empathy with that! So where do you get unbiased energy advice and information about avoiding fuel poverty? Well locally we now have a wonderful new facility just off the Brixham Road in Paignton called the South West Energy Centre. These folk have been tasked with helping us all to make the best of what is available in these troublesome times. If you are worried (why would you now not be worried!) about keeping warm, getting the best energy prices and avoiding fuel poverty then give them a ring on 01803 540 725 or if you have computer access look at www.southwestenergycentre.co.uk .

For those of you who follow my rambling rhetoric you will know that community cohesion is something that lights my fire. These long winter periods of darkness leave many folk alone and isolated. How well do you know your neighbours? Think about those who might be living alone and vulnerable. As we push more and more onto the Internet the daily meeting points, like the local Post Office, have disappeared. Even regular trips to local shops seem to be slipping into history. It therefore means that more and more of us communicate via social media whilst waiting for the knock on the door as the supermarket delivery van arrives.

Think for a moment about those outside of that world. Think about older people living alone who might not see anyone for days and have no one to have a conversation with. As the days become colder the worry about heating might cause anxiety. Cold can kill as can solitude, loneliness and isolation.

Thinking about solitude in our lives it is interesting to reflect upon the seeking of a quiet place by design and the sadness finding yourself thrust unexpectedly into a lonely place. They are very different, seeking solitude and being lonely, and in this age of amazing communication social isolation, or so it seems to me, is rapidly growing.

Please take the time to look around and look for the lonely and the vulnerable. Seek out those who might slip below the surface as the cold winter nights drag endlessly on. Often all that is immediately needed is a friendly smile and a cheery greeting. Don’t be frightened to engage with local councillors and members of Parliament. They are human and would love to hear from you! You have a voice and you have a vote. Use both for the good of all and to lift the spirit.

Keep the smile.

 

Being quiet is the best option

 

 

A couple of things happened today that made me raise an eyebrow.  It seemed to me that they were connected and I therefore came to a conclusion. Later in the day I found that there was absolutely no significance in the coincidence. Too often, or so it seems to me, we attempt to look for significance in random coincidence with curious outcomes! In our sound-bite world this seems to be becoming a regular occurrence. The worry is that things are then said in error which can be hugely damaging.

As we rocket toward 2015 the war of words has already started as our political leaders attempt to score points over those opposing them. We all tend to only loosely listen to what is being said which inevitably links coincidental events to which we attach unwarranted significance. In a world crowded with social media it is so easy to hear bits of a conversation rather than the whole thing and judgements are then made without the luxury of firm knowledge. That judgement can launch damaging comment and once the words are out there attempting to pull them back is almost impossible!

All I am saying really is that once the political rhetoric heats up we must listen with care and keep the spiteful comments at arm’s length. To be quite honest if you don’t have something nice to say about someone then being quiet is probably the best option. If you do have a criticism to make then at least ensure that it is understood and balanced.

I don’t know whether you have stumbled across J K Rowling’s new book ‘A Casual Vacancy’ which is very different from the often dark Harry Potter stories. It was for me a fascinating read because it captured the essence of a community and demonstrated how words can skew a point of view. It doesn’t take much for negative comment to grow into something quite harmful. As the politicians both local and national seek election those social divisions can become very complicated with quite often unintended consequences.

One activity that I have always felt an excellent platform for social cohesion is the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award and recently the 500^th Gold presentation ceremony took place in London.  There is an increasing need, in my opinion, to encourage young people not in full time education to use the DofE to develop skills to provide a life platform that will both build their skill portfolio and also help bind a community together. Please ask your local councillors what they are doing to support the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award amongst those not in full time education or part of a youth organisation.

Talking of community cohesion I was really pleased to see so many people pitch up to the Oldway Mansion open afternoon the other Saturday. The tour of this crumbling building was actually quite exciting because we got to see parts that have never been open to the public. I gather from the developer that nothing much is going to happen for at least a year and that given the poor state of the fabric the whole project is going to be very challenging. Torbay Council, in these cash strapped times, must be really pleased that this money bucket is off their hands. At least I think that it is off their hands.

The weather this summer has been fantastic and the sunshine continued into September. That warm weather was good news for one young couple who decided to hold their wedding reception at the Red Rocks Beach Café on Goodrington seafront. Always a worry when you are that close to the water because if the wind comes blasting in from the sea accompanied by lashing icy rain then the whole event can become a washout. But their evening went well and the Red Rocks Beach Café throbbed with an eight-piece band hammering out toe tapping music.

It is very easy to say negative things about our tourism offering and yet there really is so much to do. For anyone wandering along Goodrington seafront and Young’s Park that evening it must have seemed quite atmospheric. I loved it and can still feel the tingle today.

In a little while the clocks change and the sun continues to head south. Thankfully this year we have all be buoyed by some lovely weather which has made the English Riviera sparkle. The thing is that the sunshine days kind of seep deeply into the spirit and allow you to almost radiate through the short winter days.

I guess that is one way to keep the smile!