Paul Crossley to stand for Police and Crime Commissioner

Paul Crossley, an experienced local community leader from Bath, has been announced as the Liberal Democrat candidate for Avon & Somerset Police & Crime Commissioner.

Local people across the Avon and Somerset force area will have the chance to vote for a new Commissioner in elections to be held on Thursday 5^th May 2016. The Commissioner’s role is to hold the service to scrutiny and account on their behalf,

Paul’s top priorities are to:

• improve the way public services and communities work together
• cut the costs of the Commissioner’s office.

Paul was the Leader of Bath and North East Somerset Council from 2002-7 and from 2011-15, turning it into one of the most successful Councils in the area with low unemployment, high investment, great schools and low crime.

Paul Crossley said: “I am delighted and honoured to have been selected as the Liberal Democrat candidate. My experience running a large Council enables me to improve efficiency whilst cutting waste and bureaucracy. I have the highest regard for the people who make the Police their career. I want to help Avon and Somerset Police be the best and most effective Police Force in the country. My full manifesto will be issued at the start of the election in early April and I encourage all residents to have their say in the vote on May 5th”

Police Officers, PCSOs and Special Constables want to make a difference and keep us safe. Paul believes that they need the personnel, equipment and resources to do this. Since 2010 the number of police in our area has reduced by over 500. And far too much police time is spent on issues that should be addressed by other services, for example for those relating to people who are vulnerable or with mental health problems. Paul believes this is a shared responsibility across the public sector and much more partnership working is needed.As your Police and Crime Commissioner Paul Crossley would prioritise five areas:

• Closer working with Councils, Health and Social Services to ensure that people with mental health problems get the proper care they need rather than ending up in a police cell because there is nowhere else to go.
• Rejuvenate community schemes such as Neighbourhood Watch and Farm Watch to ensure that communities feel involved and want to work with community based policing. Encourage the work of the 'Street Pastor' schemes that help keep our city and town centres safe at night and also help people who have had a good night out get home safely
• Increase the use of restorative justice and work to ensure that proceeds from crime are reclaimed from criminals and returned to victims and communities affected by criminal behaviour. We must improve the resolution rate in solving crimes so that victims of crime can get closure on the event and not feel blighted by worry.
• Ensure that young people at risk of getting into a life of crime are diverted into positive channels for their lives.
• Reduce bureaucracy, to enable our police to spend more time working in the community and less behind a desk, and cut the size of the office of the PCC to save vital funds.

You can  join Paul on Facebook.com/CllrPaulCrossley, email him at paul.n.crossley@btinternet.com and follow him on Twitter @paulncrossley

Ring road closure

The A4174 ring road will be closed east-bound between the Bromley Heath and Wick Wick roundabouts between 9pm Sunday 10th April and 5.30am Monday 11th April. Vehicles will be directed south on Bromley Heath road, left on to Cleeve Hill, then left on to the A432 Badminton Road to rejoin the ring road at the Wick Wick roundabout.

This will allow narrow traffic lanes to be put in, which will be in use until the end of October 2016, while a new bus lane for the upcoming MetroBus is built. During the work there will be a 30mph speed limit in place and wide vehicles will be able to use one lane only.

There is also expected to be heavy traffic on the ring road on Saturday night due to a closure on the M4.

Work on Halfpenny Bridge, Ram Hill

As part of the electrification works, Network Rail are extending the parapets on Halfpenny Bridge, Ram Hill to 1.85m to prevent access to the new electric power cables when they are installed. As the bridge is narrow, they will have to close the footpath to the general public while works are being undertaken, but most of the works will happen at night. Pedestrians and cyclists will be able to cross the bridge as normal when no works are being undertaken.

Work will take place between 22.00hrs and 08.00hrs on the following dates:

Weekend nights in April - 9th, 16th, 23rd
Midweek nights in April - 25th, 26th, 27th, 28th
Weekend nights in May - 7th, 14th, 21st, 22nd

They will do everything possible to minimise the impact on neighbours. For more information contact Toby Elliott, Public Affairs Manager at toby.elliott@networkrail.co.uk or 07734 648 408 or Claire McGine, Communications Manager at claire.mcgine@networkrail.co.uk or 07734 647 240.

Bus service changes

There are a number of changes to the 47/X47 services from 24th April:

• There will be two more X47 journeys departing Chipping Sodbury at 0620 and 0850.
• Extra time and an extra bus has been added to Service 47 to ease some of the current issues of poor punctuality and reliability.
• An additional evening journey from Bristol on Service X47 will also be added. The times of the departures of Service X47 in the evenings will change.
• Following customer requests an additional 0500 departure from Bristol Bus Station has been added to Service 47, this will allow customers to arrive into Yate before 0600.

Following agreement with the parish councils, a nightbus service will be running but it will be renumbered and will go straight down Badminton Road rather than round Frampton Cotterell (Beesmoor Road/Woodend Road/Church Road) as it used to.

Make sure you're registered to vote

If you want to be able to vote for the next Police and Crime Commissioner on 5th May but are not yet registered at your current address, you can do it online at www.avonpccelection2016.org.uk/register-to-vote before midnight on Monday 18 April.

If you can’t go to the polling station on Thursday 5 May, then if you have registered by 18 April you can apply to vote by post or you can appoint a proxy to vote on your behalf. The deadline for postal vote applications is on 5pm on Tuesday 19 April 2016, while the deadline for proxy vote applications is 5pm on Tuesday 26 April 2016.

Registering now for the elections in May will also mean you are registered in good time before the EU referendum on Thursday 23 June.

Short walks around Coalpit Heath and Frampton Cotterell

To help people enjoy the beautiful countryside surrounding Coalpit Heath and Frampton Cotterell, Village Action have provided a round-up of walks organised by local groups. These walks are around 3 to 4 miles in length and suitable for most people though at times they can be muddy and sometimes involve crossing stiles.

Lorries outside Sainsbury's - a reminder

Back in January Claire Young asked people to send her details of any problems caused by lorries parking on Badminton Road outside the new Sainsbury's store in Coalpit Heath. Thank you to those who have sent in emails, sometimes with photos and videos attached. It's important that highways officers understand what is happening to help them decide what, if any, action is needed.

Do keep on sending Claire your reports. It would be helpful if you could say if the lorry was unloading/loading or just parked so the driver could buy things from the store, but the most important thing is to know when it is happening.