Sept Report 2006 From County Councillor John Reynolds Guided Busway The Contract has now been awarded to Edmund Nuttall Ltd. Their programme is to establish a site compound at the Longstanton Park and Ride site this Autumn and commence construction between Longstanton and Cambridge early in the new year. Construction south of Cambridge and between Longstanton and St Ives will start later in 2007. Before construction can commence detailed planning conditions need to be discharged and design work is now underway to enable the discharge of the conditions for this first section of work. To aid the discharge, Local Liaison Forums are being established to act as informal consultative groups in the preparation of the detailed proposals. Two Forums have been established for the Longstanton to Cambridge section of the route and their first meetings were held on 13th and 18th September. Land purchase has commenced with the issuing of Compulsory Purchase notices to the landowners between Longstanton and Cambridge. This is a three month process, which will result in ownership being transferred in November. The first land has also been purchased by agreement. This is for the Landscape and Ecological Mitigation Area adjacent to Over Cutting, which will allow work to start on creating the new habitat for Grizzled Skipper Butterflies and other invertebrates this Autumn. A series of local exhibitions, similar to those held in the spring, are being planned for later this year. These will focus on the construction programme. Highways The summer has been a particularly busy time for the Highways Directorate and has stretched resources significantly. A key milestone was the completion of our first year with the Contact Centre. This has proved to be very successful with some 29,000 calls received during the year. The new Highways Service Contract went live on 1st September and work to take advantage of efficiencies that may be available in the new arrangement continue. A public launch of the new contract is planned for the end of the year when we can start to demonstrate some of the changes that have been made. The very dry summer has led to increased damage to the highway network and we will be bidding for funds to DfT to help address this problem. Record Levels of Recycling For the first 3 months of this year Cambridgeshire recycled a record 51%. 108,477 tonnes of waste were produced from April to June and 55,258 tonnes of that was recycled. Leading the way was Huntingdonshire District Council which achieved a recycling rate of 55%. Climate Change The themes for next year's government Beacon Scheme will include climate change. The panel advising government on the beacon themes recognized the important community leadership role of local government on this, and the importance of innovation and empowerment in promoting action. Climate change is the one area of the council's work, which should be considered for submission for Beacon status in next year's scheme. Staff across the Council have been invited to put forward examples of good practice in reducing greenhouse gas emissions or adapting to climate change to help build a case. Consumer Direct on TV From end of October, residents will be able to view the contact details for Consumer Direct (and Cambridgeshire Direct) through their TV's. They will also be able to complete a form and tell us about a rogue trader or scam as well as make a general enquiry. It is a set system at the moment but if it goes well, we will be able to add more functionality. Bar Hill Library and Post Office Working in partnership with the Post Office and Bar Hill Parish Council, the Library Service's work to install a Post Office in Bar Hill Library is now well advanced. Building costs associated with the Post Office installation are being met by the Postmaster, Hari Parekh and Bar Hill Parish Council have kindly agreed to fund CCTV installation, for the increased security of both staff and customers. The new Post Office plans to open to customers at 9.00am on Thursday 5th October, with an official launch on Customer Appreciation Day, Saturday 7th October - part of this year's Customer Service Week events in Cambridgeshire Libraries. New Corporate Scorecard Latest figures for the new baskets of performance indicators for Environment, Culture and Adults, which will feed in to the new Corporate Scorecard are outlined below. There are five categories of performance ranging from very good to poor. Adults 10 out of 15 indicators (67%) on target = Good performance Environment 18 out of 25 indicators (72%) on target = Good performance Culture 24 out of 26 indicators (92%) on target = Very good performance Social Care Support Services County Council services which provide support for adults with learning disabilities have received high ratings from Government Inspectors. The Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI) visited the supported living house at King's Hedges, Cambridge in June and judged the support and services provided 24/7 by staff as 'excellent,' the highest possible rating awarded by CSCI. Alder Close in March was given a rating of "good". Residents using the King's Hedges scheme rent their accommodation from a housing association and receive personal care and support from staff provided by the County Council's CSCI inspected the quality of the accommodation and facilities - including specialist equipment - staff training, financial management, medication regimes, health and safety, and measures to ensure that the care and support provided fully met the individual needs of the service users. 20 Alder Close is a 5 bedded short term care home for adults with learning disability. CSCI noted that the unit offers good care and support ensuring that service users are assisted to maintain their independence, choice, lifestyle and programmes of activity within the community. These schemes are really making a difference to lives and we are delighted that they have received the recognition they deserve. Congratulations to all the staff involved in making them a success. John Reynolds