Entries Tagged 'Maidenhall Estate' ↓

The Vegetable Games at the Maidenhall Allotments in Halifax Road have proved really successful. The Town and Bridge project is proving to be coming up with some very innovative ideas and the Community Garden which looked a bit out of place last year now looks like an integral part of the Maidenhall Allotments.

Ben Gummer was also there, doing the MP sort of things. What’s really striking is how many people he knows already. I got mistaken for his brother, twice. Now I have no problem with people thinking that I look like Ben, he volunteered for public life and insults are a new way of life for him. But his poor brother, what did he do to deserve the calumny?

If they do decide to hold this event next year it is a really good idea to go down.

Just a quick note, in Monmouth Close there is a fox about and he has been attacking pets. Please keep your pets safe.

The Town & Bridge project is running “The Vegetable Games”. It’s on Saturday 24th July from 11.30am till 4pm at the People’s Community Garden in Maidenhall Allotments. There’s going to be quite a few events, including:

• Arts and Crafts Competitions
• Vegathon Games running all day
• Health Bus/ Barbeque/Tea and Home made cakes
• Samboomba Samba Band / Live Music in the Summer House
• Smoothie Bike-make your own healthy smoothies with pedal power

The Art in the Garden event is on today at Maidenhall Allotments, part of the IP-Art festival.

Ben Gummer was asked to write a letter to the Maidenhall residents, to appear in the Maidenhall Residents’ Association newsletter. Here it is:

Dear Maidenhall Resident,

I am really pleased to be able to write in this, the first edition of your newsletter since my election on 6th May. I want to say from the outset that I am here for everyone in Ipswich, no matter how they voted. So please, do not hesitate to get in touch with me if there is any issue that concerns you – whether it is a personal problem or something to do with the government. I shall soon have an office set up in Ipswich and will let you know the details when it is open but until then please continue to contact me using my email address (ben@bengummer.com), by ‘phone (0845 634 9197) or by post (House of Commons, London SW1A 0AA).

I am determined to help you and local activists deal with some pressing problems in the Maidenhall Estate and across Bridge Ward. The first is anti-social behaviour. I know that many people have been troubled by this in the area. I know people see that this is not something we can simply solve with more and more police powers: we need to attacked the root of the problem, which is family breakdown, our failed prisons system and a general lack of respect. This is not something any government can solve quickly or on its own. So you will see in the next few years measures to support families, to help restore discipline to our schools, and to give the police the powers they need without the paperwork that holds them back. But we must also work hard as a community together to do something about anti-social behaviour. So please let me and the MRA know of any problems that you have encountered and the ideas you have for improving the situation.

I know that many people have been disturbed by noise from the port, which can be very annoying. Before my election I lobbied the port companies to deal with the problem and some silencing work has since been done. But from recent reports I have received from local activist James Spencer it is clear that all is not completely solved. The key here is to ensure that the Borough Council knows whenever you are disturbed or irritated by noise, as then they are in a stronger position to do something about it. If you are troubled by noise from the port (or anywhere else for that matter) please contact the Council’s Environmental Protection Hotline on 01473 433 110. In the meantime, I shall be talking to company representatives from the port shortly to see what else can be done and will report back to you on progress.

For some years there has been a problem with speeding traffic on the corner of Maidenhall Approach by the Green. I am aware of this and the issue has already been taken up with the Borough. I shall pursue the issue next time I meet with traffic officials: there is a long list of complaints from across the town but this is one of safety and so I shall stress that it is a priority.

Finally, I’d like to commend the Residents’ Association on the work it has done is running the shop on Maidenhall Green. I know that this is a lifeline to many people and I would like to take the opportunity to let everyone who helps keep this shop going that it is a service others elsewhere in Ipswich would love to see in their area. So I hope to encourage others to take up your idea!

I hope to see you a lot over the next few years – and please do remember to get in touch should you want me to help with anything.

Yours,

Ben

Just a note to say that the fun day will be on at 28th August. More details to follow.

I was at the Maidenhall Residents Association on Friday to pick up some information and we got to talking about their website. It seems that when they search on Google then my website comes up first and theirs’ doesn’t come up.

They have had a bit of an issue updating this, but their website is here:

Maidenhall Residents Association

Hopefully this will help them get on the first page of Google, and if it doesn’t then anyone who’s just found the post through searching for them will find it now.

If you have come looking for their site, feel free to stay around.

We were canvassing in Maidenhall on Friday, and this afternoon (although I had to be away) and it looks like tomorrow as well. Add Richard Spring MP’s visit two weeks ago, and there’s a lot of blue in Maidenhall.

Canvassing Cardiff Avenue

(Bob Hall managed to get away with taking the photo and not appearing in the shot).

Sorry Maidenhall, you’re going

Yesterday I was canvassing on Cardiff Avenue, Montgomery Avenue, Tenby Road and Swansea Avenue. One of the shocks was the attitude of Labour councillors before 2004.

I heard two separate stories about councillors being asked to help tenants who wanted to buy their own home and both being refused help, once by Jim Powell and once by Harold Mangar. When it was pointed out to Harold Mangar that he owned his own home he simply retorted “I’ve worked hard for what I’ve got”. The implication being that Maidenhall residents didn’t. The typical Labour response of “it’s good enough for me, but not for thee” is exactly why the ward I live in should never be a one party state again.

I don’t think that currently people would be met with the same patronising attitude now, but I have no illusions that this is due to fear rather than middle class absentee councillors suddenly putting their socialist principles behind their constituents wishes.

Steve Flood would never win a councillor of the year prize for his work in Bridge, but his election was like an electric shock here. Councillors realised that they had to work to keep the ward and issues that affected Bridge could no longer be ignored by the council as they were by the Labour group in the 1980s and 1990s.

The Evening Star is talking about the Shoreline Management Plan. This rather dry sounding document is vitally important to anyone who lives on Wherstead Road and, potentially the Maidenhall Estate and parts of Old Stoke.

It predicts that Wherstead Road is going to have to close down more frequently due to flooding. Which rather begs the question as to why the Labour Party has always opposed a relief road. Hopefully they’ll stop that now that Bridge is no longer a safe Labour seat. Let’s hope in this case that Wherstead Road is not once again sacrificed as a sure fire electoral bet for Labour to be sacrificed for more marginal wards.

I’ll be back on this later, but it is important for anyone in this part of Ipswich that we keep on top of this, even those of us who live on high ground as we’ll be regularly cut off without some real action.

In the meantime the relevant part of the Shoreline Management Plan is here (it’s in PDF format so you may need to download Adobe) :

https://consult.environment-agency.gov.uk/portal/re/flood/anglian/smp150310/consult?pointId=1267547879064