Drinks Levy should be used to tackle binge drinking
Commenting on reports that the drinks industry will be forced to pay towards policing town centres when 24-hour drinking is introduced,
21 Jan 2005
News
Roding Centre- Update!
Serious health and safety problems at the Roding Centre are delaying the Parish Council's attempt to take over management. Unless they can be resolved, it will not be able to obtain essential insurance cover. The possibility of the presence of asbestos in the building is another anxiety.
21 Jan 2005
So how many OTs have we got?
"The Adult and Community Care Committee kept hearing about poor service caused by staffing problems," County Councillor Diana Smith explained. "So it set up a task group to look at Recruitment and Retention. Proper statistics were hard to come by. We eventually got figures for the reported high vacancy rates in 'front line' teams, from 18% among the essential Home Based Care staff to 31% of highly-skilled Occupational Therapists. We heard of one team of Occupational Therapists entirely consisting of stand-ins. Looked at in purely economic terms, terms the Conservative Executive understands, we found under-staffing led to a big bill for agency staff, over 40% of Surrey's total. The costs in human terms are don't get counted, but they include de facto rationing of care for the people who need it, lack of continuity of care, and stress for staff. Sickness rates are higher among Adults and Community Care staff than in any other Surrey service."
20 Jan 2005
Bus cuts strand hospital worker
A ST Margaret's Hospital worker has spoken out against bus service cutbacks which leave him with a three-mile trek home after work.
MR
20 Jan 2005
Apathy towards Europe could prove costly
Scepticism, bureaucrats, a proposed Constitution, not to mention bendy cucumbers, are all associated with the European Union.
GSL
20 Jan 2005
Green light for Langston Road plans
The go-ahead has been given for the redevelopment of the former Langston Road lorry park, Loughton, despite pleas that it will have an adverse effect on local wildlife.
AK
20 Jan 2005