Loxford Polyclinic

By now many of you will be aware of the existence of the Loxford Polyclinic which now provides a lot of the Minor Operations (non- elective), traditionally undertaken at our larger hospitals. This will include a phlebotomy service, ophthalmic service, severe dental service, Sexually transmitted infection service and much more. I will provide a fuller description in a future blog.

What many of you will perhaps not be aware of is that I have been involved with the Loxford Polyclinic Community Panel and we held our first post-initiation meeting, which was a resounding success. The PCT have been very honest and open with us and have informed us of some teething problems with installed software that caused delays over the weekend and Monday morning, however, this glitch has now been rectified and a long term solution preventing a recurrence is being developed.

The new facilities are excellent and can actually be used by all residents of the borough -rather than going to the larger hospitals. An existing target stipulates that any person in the borough should have access to an appointment within 24 hours. These would have to arranged via your own GP' Clinics.

The clinic had a number of delays in the Construction phase that resulted in a 2 month extension to the initial opening date. However, It now looks a far sight better than when it was in its construction phase and is very state of art!

The next Polyclinic - within a wider Polyclinic system that will eventually serve the borough - is to be located on the site of King George Hospital!

The PCT will be placing a picture of all the Polyclinic Community Panel in the foyer of the new Loxford Polyclinic to thank the panel for its hard work and commitment. So you may be seeing my mugshot around for some time yet!

Armed Forces Day 2009

Here I am pictured with Captain Baggs of the Army Cadets on Armed Forces day in Valentines Park. They were a little disappointed with this years turnout, however I will be sharing ideas on marketing with them for next year.

The event was really fun and I got to use an unloaded gun and learn how to load it. I pictured some of the incumbent councillors to my fore during this demonstration.

Anne Chambers head of the Local St Johns Ambulance informed me of a recruitment drive for the local area. She was proud of her cadets attending on the day. Learn more here.

Juliet Talks at Redbridge College!

Juliet Chowdhry one of our long standing activists for Chadwell spoke recently at Redbridge College to ESOL students as part of a motivational speaker process. Juliet willingly gave of her time to facilitate this process - wishing to inspire others to follow in her steps to becoming a business woman. Why not read more from the Redbridge College website. We have written about this and other College functions on our blog read here.

Urination in South Park - A solution has been found!

It is a shame that peoples enjoyment of South Park and resident quality of life is being eroded by the acts of a few mindless and rather disgusting individuals - who choose to urinate in bushes near South Park Drive.

It is well known that South Parks toilets have been improved and re-opened and they have won a few Borough-wide cleanliness awards. Yet a few persistent joggers refuse to recognise the health and safety implications of urinating in bushes that are only yards from the toilets? Surely if exercising, a slightly longer jog would burn more calories? The perpetrators may not be aware that is illegal to urinate in public places and that if they are seen by children and adults more severe breaches of law are taking place.

I include a very positive response from the Parks Manager to my request to lower the height of the bushes at which the activity is most prominent :

"In response to the urinating issue, the area described has already been earmarked to have the shrubs lifted, which in essence have the same effect. The term contractor will roll this out in the forth-coming weeks. Obviously the other enforcement issues are for the SNT or Parks police to respond."

Redbridge Carnival Queen Selection Dance

The new Redbridge Carnival Queen selection will be occuring on the 26th July 2009 from 18:00 - 21:45 at Redbridge College. The event will be an exciting one with a performance from Alexandra School of Performing Arts who will provide a jazz, tap and Ballet routine fused with pantomime. We will also have performances form Elektra who will provide fusion belly dancing performances to wow the crowds. Tickets are limited to the first 100 people and will be sold at the price of £4.00 for adults and £2.00 for children. Refreshments will be sold on the day and we will also have a special raffle that includes hampers, Blue tooth device sand much more.
If you would like to join us, strut your stuff or just boogie - please call 020m 8514 0861 24 hours a day or Rajeshri Chouhan on 07941 083 716.

South Park Crises!

Residents surrounding south park are complaining about the Drug Dealing occurring in the park around 2am when there is purported drug dealing between young adults who climb into the park.

There are also a large number of joggers who are urinating in the bushes across the road from no.37. I have asked the Trees Section and Parks Manager to cut these bushes to a lower level to reduce the occurrence.

South Park School is leaving its lights on during the evening and residents are concerned about environmental waste. I have asked the School for a response

Residents are concerned about the lack of policing of the roads around the school where parents are parking in front of drives and on the Zig Zags. I know there was a policing priority to reduce this issue and a programme of scheduled visits. I have asked the Local sergenat to confirm this is on their list of priorities.

The gates at the corner of the park a little further from the school are being left open all night? I have asked the Parks Manager to confirm why this is occuring.

Leon Greenman Memorial

A memorial to Leon Greenman is to be installed at the Holocaust Memorial Gardens in Valentines Park. Leon was a leading community figure promoting peace and unity to young people in the borough by speaking at various schools - as he shared his experiences of the tragedy of having to survive a holocaust. A Redbridge Hero we should all remember who suffered antagonism from fascists after the war and yet unstinting in his resolve to promote community cohesion.

As chairman of Redbridge Carnival Association I was pleased to be involved in a contribution towards this worthwhile scheme. I look forward to its eventual installation.

Learn more about Leon Greenman here.

Back From 10 Downing Street

I just returned from 10 Downing Street after meeting with the Prime Minister Gordon Brown. The event was a chance for small/medium sized businesses to be acknowledged and recognised for the impact they have on our country. PM Gordon Brown spoke eloquently about the support he intends to give to small /medium sizedbusinesses (SME) and the need to work together to improve our ailing economy. We were also taken on a tour of the actual cabinet room in which this Nation's decisions have been made since the days of Warpole. A ceremonial sword provided by the Saudis to John Major was the only highlight in this rather austere room. I spoke with Lord Peter Mandellson about the malfunctioning of the "Access to Work Scheme" but did not get much more of an opportunity to speak about other real issues as The PM left quite hurriedly after the event which led to an en mass and rather intense business networking session.

It's a shame really as I was prepared with a number of issue and don't feel I really had an opportunity to address pertinent needs for our community or my business sector. The government has lost an opportunity for consultation and absorption of real issues facing businesses within the SME category.

It was a privilege to enter into one of history most recognised places and I am looking forward to the future events of a similar nature.

Community Crime Fighters

Justice Seen - Justice Done. This is the new motto being driven forward by a new scheme championed by the "Ministry of Justice" . In a number of training sessions led by senior Police Officers, ASBO Officers and CPS - active community members learnt about the new policing pledge its contents, purpose and formation process. We also learnt how best to tackle antisocial behaviour and how to provide support to witnesses and link into the wider network of witness support. The aim of this event held on Friday 19th June 2009 and future training courses is to equip local community activists into becoming more knowledgeable, competent and confident when undertaking any role involving crime reduction and prevention. It was also a chance for the Justice system to recognise the commitment of members of local communities. I was invited to attend by two local sergeants as was Isla Martin from the Green Party, a reflection of our work with the Redbridge Neighbourhood Watch Association (RNWA -an overarching advice and guidance body set up to support local Neighbourhood Watches) and our own Local Watches. We both have achieved much through these watches resulting in this invite to the holistic London-wide meeting for only a selected 240 individuals. Our completion of the Course has resulted in our membership with the Community Crime Fighters Club which allows us access to a variety of training, best practice sharing and advice opportunities. We will be attending more training sessions and with other members of the RNWA who attended the course we shall cascade this information to other watches across Redbridge by designing our own training package. Please contact Isla or myself should you require further information.

Kinked George Protest advance warning!

I joined a few residents in a photoshoot today, organised to promote our forthcoming protest against the recent decision by King George Hospital, who now charge employees for the privilege to park on their premises. This is an income driver targeting poor nursing staff who quite frankly provide local residents with a much needed service for a pittance. The resulting on street parking has caused much community friction and parking burden.

Support our protest by attending between 12:00 - 13:00 on Saturday 27th June 2009.