Leicestershire Matters

Please tell us know your views on Leicestershire Matters and if there are subjects you would like to see included in a future issue.

Call: 0116 305 6162 or 0116 305 6957, e-mail: leics-matters@leics.gov.uk or write to: Leicestershire Matters, Room 211, Chief Executive’s Department, County Hall, Glenfield, Leicestershire LE3 8RA.

We also received the top rating from the Audit Commission for the previous two years. The Audit Commission is a Government body which ensures we spend your money economically, efficiently and effectively.

All councils are given star ratings, from zero to four – and we have been awarded four stars again after scoring consistently well across all our services.

The report praised us for:

However, despite the high levels of waste recycling already achieved in the County, we need to continue to reduce the amount of household waste that has to be collected and disposed of.

Overall the County Council was judged to be ‘improving well’ since last year’s inspection and well placed to consolidate our progress and improve services further.

For more details, visit the Four-Star council page or call 0116 305 7605.

Improvements…we have been praised for our adult social care

You can also find answers to ‘frequently asked questions’, information on the police and you can download many leaflets and publications.

The Childcare Act 2006 says Councils have to:

For more information on the early years service and Every Child Matters,in the county visit the websites, alternatively, call 0116 305 6545.

The union is a not-for-profit financial co-operative, which keeps all the money invested in it within the local economy.

Clockwise offers help, advice and options if you are looking for an affordable loan. It is owned and run by its members for the benefit of the local community and provides safe and ethical savings, loans and insurance.

For more details,on Clockwise write to: 20 Pocklingtons Walk, Leicester, LE1 6BU, call 0116 247 1740, or e-mail: enquiries@clockwise-cu.co.uk

One of these is ‘peer massage’ – a fun programme to help combat stress and anxiety in primary schools. Research shows that it results in calmer children and less aggression and bullying.

Children at Newbold Cof E Primary School in Newbold Coleorton, have been trying it out.

Head teacher Lesley Brewer said: “The children work on each other’s back, head, arms and hands. It’s a chance for them to touch each other positively and it’s a nice way to calm them down. They have control – they ask permission to touch each other and can ask to stop at any time.

“The children like it. They say it helps them to feel relaxed and that it’s a nice way to start the day. They work with different people, maybe those they don’t usually work with, and this helps them to make friends.”  

For more information visit the beyond bullying council page or call our anti-bullying team on 0116 284 5100.

Relaxing…School children enjoy ‘peer massage’

The ‘Show Racism the Red Card’ charity uses professional footballers, who are making a stand and fighting racism, as anti-racist role models.

We are working with Leicester City Football Club by sponsoring posters, which schools and youth groups across the County have been displaying.

Schoolchildren from Manor High School, Oadby; Greenfield Primary School, Countesthorpe and Shelthorpe Primary School, Loughborough helped launch the posters on behalf of the County Council and the football club.

For more information on the Show Racism the Red Card campaign, call Anjana Bhatt on 0116 305 6946 or e-mail: abhatt@leics.gov.uk

Campaign…Children from Shelthorpe Pimary School promote the anti-racism campaign

Hate incidents can involve physical, verbal or written abuse.  They take many forms but are essentially about someone being targeted because they are believed to be different, through age, disability, gender identity, race, religion/belief or sexual orientation.

If you have been a victim, or if you have witnessed or become aware of a hate incident, please tell us. We can then find out more about these incidents across the County which will help us to work with our partners to find ways to prevent them happening in the future.

It is the perception that counts; if you think it is a hate incident, it is.

Some examples of hate incidents:

You can report hate incidents on-line or at centres across the County, including district and borough councils and Victim Support. Call 0116 305 8263 for more details.

This project is being developed as part of the Leicestershire Local Area Agreement. We are working with partner agencies across Leicestershire to improve our effectiveness, to improve the health and well-being of local people, and the quality of their environment. Call John Wright on 0116 305 8015 for details on the LAA.

The Rural Rider service operates between Leicester, Market Harborough, Melton Mowbray, Oakham and some surrounding villages.

Why not find out how easy, cheap and environmentally-friendly it is to take the bus? To claim your vouchers for our Rural Rider bus service, or to request a local bus map & guide, please call the Passenger Transport Helpline on 0116 305 8777.

Please state the offer you require:

Terms and conditions

Only one voucher, per person. Cannot be used in conjunction with any other offer. No cash alternatives. No change given. Photocopies will not be accepted.

Visit the County Council website for more information on our promotions and for public transport news.

The rise in our part of your Council Tax bill is in line with the current rate of retail price inflation. This is despite the Government increasing its grant to us by only 0.8% - the lowest increase in grant for any major authority in England.

Nearly 90% of people who responded to our consultation agreed with our budget aims to:

The cost of providing many services is increasing at a higher rate than inflation, for example it costs around 10% more to deal with waste. We have also had to make good the shortfall from the grant from Government.

We have been able to keep Council Tax down to the rate of inflation through making savings by becoming even more efficient, increasing some charges and making some reductions in services.

Even with the limited funds available it has been possible to plan improvements for some important services, including:

We are planning to invest £179 million in the next three years to improve services, by building new schools, improving roads and providing new facilities.

Castle Rock High School

Our main projects include:

Measham Library

For more details on the budget call 0116 305 7831 or e-mail: leics-matters@leics.gov.uk.

We want to maintain our reputation for delivering high quality services. To help us achieve this, we have developed a three-year programme of change that will ensure we continue to deliver services that are cost-effective and targeted to your needs.

We’ve listened to what you have told us through the recent budget consultation and are focusing our resources and efforts on what really matters.

The four parts to our programme of change are:

Please visit the councils programme of change for further information, call 0116 305 8016 or e-mail: cmu@leics.gov.uk

Leicestershire is changing and so are we.

We are reviewing our home to school transport provision. This costs £9 million per year – £7 million of which is met by the Council Taxpayer.

We are consulting on:

Currently free transport is provided for 1,600 pupils attending faith schools and 4,200 students aged 16+ benefit from subsidised transport.

Many councils already charge for denominational school transport, and others are preparing to introduce charges.

If we decide to make these changes, the income received will be used to improve security on school buses and to provide vouchers for young people to use public transport out of school hours.

Visit our school transport page to fill in the consultation document, or call 0116 305 6615 to request a copy through the post.

The Decisions at Life’s End (DALE) project will be established from May, in Leicestershire and Rutland. It will give people the choice, whenever possible, to die at home rather than in hospital.

The initiative involves the County Council working in partnership with Rutland County Council, Leicestershire County and Rutland Primary Care Trust and local voluntary sector agencies and older people’s groups.

A successful bid for funding was made to the ‘Partnership for Older People Project’ (POPP), which is a national programme targeting services to support older people at home.

Barry Wilford, from Oadby, has helped with the campaign for funding.  His mother died in hospital when he believes she could have spent her final days at home.

He said: “I am delighted the funding has been awarded for such a worthwhile project.

“The scheme will help to give older people tremendous comfort knowing they will be able to make a choice about where they would like to spend their final days.”

For more information about the DALE project call 0116 305 4458 or e-mail: adultsocialcare@leics.gov.uk

Councils across the County are holding elections to vote for councillors to serve for the next four years.

Your vote will help to decide how services are delivered in your area.

If you are eligible to vote your local district or borough council will provide you with information on when and where voting will take place.

To find out more about the elections please contact your council.