Letters to the editor

I am writing with regard to a previous Swindon Advertiser article regarding current internet provision in Wichelstowe. This is one of the issues that has been most raised with me by local residents in Wichelstowe. They feel the lack of internet provider competition leads to them not getting as good value from their internet deals as other Swindon residents can.

For example, the main internet provider in Wichelstowe offers a more expensive internet deal than the larger internet providers and the larger providers will throw in additional TV coverage as well.

As the recent Adver article made clear, currently Wichelstowe residents only have access to one main internet provider, Seethelight; though other small scale, specialist internet providers are now also available to Wichelstowe residents.

The fibre network in Wichelstowe is open access, so additional internet providers can sign up to use the network as long as they can reach a commercial arrangement with the network owner. However, because BT use their own fibre network to provide internet and telephone provision, they have said their internet service would not be available to Wichelstowe residents until their own network was installed.

Back in 2009, before I was a local councillor for the Wichelstowe area, it was Swindon Borough Council together with Taylor Wimpey who decided to jointly procure the current internet network owner, rather than BT. It is disappointing that at the time the decision was made regarding internet provision, how to get future Wichelstowe residents the best value for money deals doesn’t appear to have been a consideration.

However, there is little point in blaming past decisions for the current difficulties Wichelstowe residents face in getting the most competitive internet deals for themselves.

What is needed is collective action. That is why I am urging the main Wichelstowe developer, Taylor Wimpey, the current Wichelstowe internet network owner and mainstream internet providers to come together and reach an agreement on a way forward, so that current Wichelstowe residents have more choice in who their internet providers are.

Wichelstowe will eventually become a development with up to 4,500 homes. These households will no doubt wish to have an internet service, so there is a lot of potential business internet providers will be able to attract and I’m sure in time this will lead to the main internet providers eventually coming to Wichelstowe. All I am asking for is that they do what is in the best interest of Wichelstowe residents and offer a service to Wichelstowe residents now, which I’m sure will pay dividends for them in the future.

Nadine Watts Old Town & East Wichel Councillor

I was also bullied

CAN I wish Josh Johnston luck in his anti-bullying venture? Years ago I was chased all the way home from school by our Sandford School boys. I was chased along Canal Walk down to Fleet Street, getting kicked and punched so badly I spent a week in bed telling my mum I fell over.

Years after I saw one of the boys, who had lost part of his arm. I hoped it was the one he had hit me with.

In case any of the boys are still around, my school was College Street, the year was 1943 and my name was Drew and it has taken me 70 years to tell anyone, so I can understand how it is so hard for youngsters to tell anyone about their problems.

So once again Josh, good luck.

LILIAN SPENCER Thames Avenue Swindon

History lesson

Regarding Robert Buckland MP’s letter (SA, August 7) about the extension to Thamesdown Drive, oh Robert, how misguided you are. Also the 57 councillors, and your colleagues Eric Pickles MP and George Osborne MP.

It all began at the end of the 1970s, when a consortium calling themselves the Haydon Dev Co put in a planning application for what is now known as the Nothern Expansion Area. The planning committee of the then Thamesdown Borough Council refused permision. They then lodged their planning application with the Government’s Planning Inspectorate, who granted the application with the following conditions. No costs where awarded for infrastructure charges for schools or community centres. He laid down the following conditions: 1. To construct a single carriageway from Groundwell Farm to what is now ASDA after the construction of 2,500 houses; condition 2 comes in, that is the dual carriageway as far as Purton Road, up to 5,000 dwellings. Now condition 3 kicks in – to construct a dual carriageway extending from Cirencester Way up to Groundwell Farm junction. At the same time the construct a flyover at the Moonrakers junction. Condition 4 – now all 10,000 houses are built to construct the link from Purton Road to B&Q junction.

Since then, permission has been granted under pressure from the Planning Inspectorate to construct houses on the old circus site in Purton Road with one condition – all traffic leaving the site to turn left only, no turning right. Also, Eric Pickles MP has gone ahead and granted planning permision for a further 700 houses on Ridgeway Farm, Purton Road. With no conditions pertaining to the above conditions laid out in 1980, we have another 30,000 extra cars on our highways since then. Also, the officers of the council have gone ahead and given out a further outline planning application for another 1,700 houses on the Tadpole Farm and Grange Farm, knowing the above conditions have not been met.

As a former member of the plannining committee, from 2000 to 2005, I mentioned several times to the officer concerned about the deviations made to the planning agreement by allowing many accesses onto Tadpole Lane at his discretion.

I must say this, the officers run the council, the elected councillors rely on the officers to lay out the true facts so as they may make the correct decisions. Now, there are 10,000 dwellings that have had the infrastructure charge factored into the price of their houses, these householders should go to the trades descriptions office and lay a complain against the developers. I suggest more research is required before decisions are made. They say short pencils have long memories DLC STEWART 43 Common Platt Swindon

Royal Mail shares

As one of the largest employers in the UK, your readers may be interested in understanding what the recent announcement by the Government on Royal Mail Free Shares for employees means for postmen and women and other Royal Mail staff.

The Government said it intends to dispose of a majority of its shares in Royal Mail through a flotation of the company on the London Stock Exchange. It will automatically give 10 per cent of all the shares in the business free to eligible Royal Mail employees in the UK at the time of the flotation.

This is the largest free stake of any major UK privatisation. The overwhelming majority of Royal Mail’s 150,000 employees in the UK, including employees working in Parcelforce Worldwide, will be eligible for free shares if they have worked for the company from July 10, 2013 and continue to do so until flotation.

Eligible employees will automatically receive an equal number of shares, irrespective of their grade. There will be a pro-rata allocation for part-time employees. This will mean that our employees will have a meaningful stake in the company.

Tony Fox Operations Director, South West Royal Mail

NHS disaster

Martin Webb (SA, August 14) in his response to my letter (August 9) is obviously unaware that the use of care assistants as a substitute for nurses is widespread in the NHS, resulting in inferior quality of care for patients.

Many of these care assistants are immigrants with no medical qualification. Uncontrolled immigrations is devastating the UK with 973,000 young people unemployed, over-crowded hospitals, roads and railways and a resulting deterioration in the quality of life for the indigenous population.

The scoundrels in Government responsible for this disaster are insulated from its effects.

I am tired of being told by your correspondents of the contribution made by many immigrants to this country of which I am completely aware. He also displayed a total ignorance of the devastating effects of uncontrolled immigration into our small, already over-crowded island.

Widespread reports confirm that the NHS is being overwhelmed by weight of numbers using its services and expects major problems this coming winter.

Finally my apologies to HE Smith (SA, July 26) for repeating his truism: “There are none so blind who don’t want to see’’ which most certainly applies to M Webb.

Frank Avenell Beckhampton Street Swindon

Numbers game

I read with interest national media reporting that local authorities across the country are being given a share of £11.8m by the Department of Health, as the way data collected on social care shifts to focus more on results.

New data on staff qualifications will be collected, for example. And the way social care activity and finance data is collected will also be changed. The Government claims that this new data will help hold councils to account and make authorities answerable to local people for the quality of local care and support.

I applaud any review of data strategy, however I am struggling to see where the real strategy is here. To focus on the collection of a new type of data is really only half the story. It’s important to have the right data, sure. My concern is how that data is stored, updated and then reported on in a secure, compliant and meaningful manner. Because without that bit of joined up thinking, we will be merely harvesting millions of additional data records that will allow politicians to hide behind mindless statistics or even worse, which they may lose.

What is really required is a targeted ‘exception’ reporting approach which tells busy managers what has gone wrong, when, why, and who was involved. Sensible actions can then be taken. This exceptional approach to data strategies would ensure that the focus is on identifying problems, quite often before they actually happen, rather than explaining disasters with statistics, after they have happened.

Bridget Stidworthy Customer Services Director Chorus HR