GWH serves us all, homes make cash

First, my motivation. I have lived and worked in Chiseldon for most of the last 30 years, enjoyed the many walks from the village including that to Coate Water, and put my concern for the village’s rurality into practice by becoming a member of its parish council.

However, when it became apparent that Princess Margaret Hospital was outgrowing its site and needed to move, I was never convinced that the various sites within the town would be adequate, not just for its current needs but future ones.

The fact that GWH has secured further land adjacent to it (which the Savecoate coalition did not oppose) rather proves the point. The site at Commonhead seemed eminently sensible, being sited on the edge of town and adjacent to Junction 15 of the M4. People think of GWH as Swindon’s hospital, but in fact about a third of its patients come from outside Swindon, as was the case with PMH.

So it also made sense to locate the hospital so that everyone had better access, and its traffic was taken out of the unsuitable roads in town.

Of course there was the concern that it might set a precedent. I would point out that at the time the land around Coate was designated as a ‘rural buffer.’ A suspiciously short time before Coun Mike Bawden ‘brokered a deal’ with the University of Bath and developers, the land was redesignated as ‘urban expansion’, despite strenuous objections from Chiseldon Parish Council and its rural neighbours.

Clearly the reassurances given at the time that it wouldn't make any difference were worth no more than those given that GWH wouldn’t set a precedent.

The saga of Coate started very soon after that.

At least the hospital actually serves the community; the new development serves only to line the pockets of the developers.

Having said all that, it is essential that we must now all work together in making the best of a bad job, particularly protecting the line of the canal.

At present the plans put a new road right across the supposedly protected line, without incorporating a bridge but that’s another story.

Chris Barry The Bramptons, Swindon

Priorities wrong?

I do wonder about the Adver’s priorities in deciding which stories to place in front of its readers. It seems to be pandering more and more to the downmarket tabloid market, with a front page which is all headline and no story. The real stories are relegated to the wilderness of the last pages before the telly schedules.

Last Wednesday’s front page was typical: A sensational headline about a court case involving a knife attack on a woman sitting on a toilet – the sort of thing the News Of The World would have carried in all its squalid, sordid detail.

A court case, not even breaking news, and a story affecting just one more broken family.

Meanwhile, relegated all the way back to page seven was a story of far wider significance, another tragedy and one which potentially affects the entire population of Swindon, its heritage, its health and its wildlife.

Fifty thousand people, maybe a quarter of the people of Swindon, signed a petition pleading for refusal of plans to concrete over vast swathes of the last of Richard Jefferies’ beloved countryside, which he wrote about so evocatively in the 19th century.

How he must be turning in his grave at what has already been done, and what is likely to be done now in the name of progress.

For years the battle has been raging over the proposed development at Coate Water and, in the past the Adver has championed Jean Saunders and her gallant band, who have been trying to prevent or limit the amount of damage, likely to be done to the green oasis between Coate Water and the mayhem of the motorway.

But this time what has happened to the Adver’s sense of community and priority?

Coate Water itself may remain, but with its peace destroyed for many months by the din of machinery and then hemmed in by hundreds of houses.

It’s the sense of space, the peace and tranquillity that draws people to Coate and this is what will be lost, if this development goes ahead.

And what of the teeming wildlife in those fields? Where will all those displaced creatures go?

And what price democracy? Council leader Rod Bluh is quoted in the article as saying how he and his colleagues ‘have fought every inch of the way to get the very best development we could... in order to protect the country park and the surrounding area’.

With so many people against the plans, why is it being allowed to go ahead at all? Again – what price democracy?

I suppose we should be pleased at least that the proposed number of houses has been reduced by half from 1,800 to ‘just’ 900.

So perhaps after all we should be thankful. Hollow laugh!

Kathleen Browne Ashford Road, Swindon

We are not fools

What an ignorant bunch of fools Swindon Borough Council must think we are regarding the area surrounding Coate.

Rod Bluh claims “we fought every inch of the way to get the very best development we could on this site in order to protect the country park and the surrounding area. We have succeeded in doing that”. Really Mr Bluh?

So in 2003 when Coun Mike Bawden was quoted in The Guardian as ‘brokering a deal’ to get ‘free’ land for a university at Coate (a housing development) that was fighting every inch of the way?

When I suggested to Coun Peter Greenhalgh that Coate should best be removed from Swindon Core Strategy, he spouted gobbledygook against doing so.

Was that fighting every inch of the way to protect the area? The Planning Inspectorate declared they could not object to the development because “it is in the Core Strategy for Swindon.”

Should we accept this as evidence of fighting every inch of the way to protect the area?

Guess what Mr Bluh? I do not believe it and I’m pretty sure I’m not the only disbeliever.

What a shocking way to address the electorate. We are not all ignorant fools.

Jason Reeves Dean Street, Swindon

Stop land grab

Thank you for printing my letter rebutting Haboakus’s Mr Mcwhirter's inacurracies about the opposition to his development on our park, However, by the time it was printed there had been another presentation and the plans had changed.

They are no longer going to put a footpath into Malvern Road, so the chapel is safe. Also they are not going to build on Southbrook Rec so the football is safe.

All this shows the power of local people objecting to their parks and allotments being taken from them and given to developers. So I urge you all to keep up the good work and keep the pressure on councillors and the council cabinet and we could yet stop this land grab.

Steve Thompson Norman Road, Swindon

Stop Coun Bluh

We are now told that a meeting has been held with council officials and the builders of Mr McCloud, to sign off the contracts for Pickards Small Field this land and house building on the site.

Full permission for the planning application has yet to be even seen, yet agreed, so how is this possible? Where is the CEO and has he agreed to this ‘giveaway’?

When is someone going to call this council leader to account and put a motion of no confidence in him before he gives away all of Swindon.

T Reynolds Wheeler Avenue, Swindon

Thanks for aid

Following a recent accident I had outside Sainsburys, at Bridgemead, I would like to use your letters’ page to express my sincere gratitude and thanks to everyone who has helped me over the last few weeks.

Firstly, I would like to say a big thank you to the first aid staff at Sainsburys, Kayleigh Robinson, Sandra Moore, Pam Kaur and Kath Whittaker, who were very quick to respond after being alerted by a member of the public. Their care and kindness in keeping me warm and comfortable while waiting for an ambulance was wonderful.

Thanks also to the two paramedics who came to whisk me away to the GWH. They did an amazing job of looking after me and later even popped back to A&E to see how I was doing.

Having broken my ankle in several places I spent a few hours in A&E, underwent surgery, a week on Kingfisher Ward, several appointments at fracture clinic (still ongoing) and a visit to day surgery for another operation. I would like to say a big thank you to all the doctors, ward and clinic staff involved in my care. Too often we read negative stories about GWH, so a really big thank you for looking after me so well.

Thanks also to John Hunter (deputy store manager at Sainsburys) for his continued support since the accident.

Last but not least I would like to say thank you from the bottom of my heart to my family, friends and neighbours for helping me make molehills out of my mountains. What would I do without you?

Sara Greaves Raybrook Crescent, Swindon

Scooter woes

I have recently been confined (if that is the right word) to a mobility scooter. I have now realised why so many mobility scooter users are in the road and not on the pavements, especially in East Walcot.

The council has blocks of garages behind houses in Lennox Drive with road access to them but guess what – no disabled drop kerb has been installed. I either have to cross the road, drive pass the “obstruction” and then cross over again or go along the road and hope that some resident has paid for a kerb to be lowered so they can park their car in the front garden. I know that some people complain about the number of people parking their cars in their front garden, and I was one of them, but thank God they have, otherwise I would be permanently in the road. I have found that I have the same problem in Maitland Road with the parking area – again no disabled drop kerb. Some of the pavements are very uneven so I am bounced about, making it very painful. I recently tried to get to my local shops in Sussex Square but guess what, yes you've got it, access to garages with no dropped kerb!

The other problem I have encountered, especially in Frobisher Drive is drivers parking on pavements. On March22 two cars were parked on the pavement so I had to reverse back to a dropped kerb, go in the road until the next dropped kerb. But, guess what, only two meters further along was a layby that these cars could have used! So drivers please think before you park.

Carolanne Bond Lennox Drive, Swindon

Thanks players

Like all Swindon Town FC supporters I get frustrated when things do not go to plan and on Sunday I was disappointed.

However, although I feel the players let the occasion get the better of them they have all done us proud this year.

I want to take this time to thank them all for a great day out and also thank Jeremy Wray and the board for making it possible for Paolo to get us there. Well done all and let’s put this upset behind us and win the league.

Craig Halliday Mulberry Grove Swindon

Fans were great

After the Swindon Town football match against Millwall, I wrote to you about the lack of support by our fans. We went again to Wembley and the fans were brilliant, really brilliant.

And the match? Well that could have been the icing on the cake but we need to just concentrate on the cake.

Keep going lads. You’re a really great team and I know you can do it! We’re going up!

Sue Reid Ely Court Wroughton

Getting it wrong

What was it that Dr John Reed said about our involvement in Afghanistan? “We’ll be out without a shot being fired”, I think it was. Four hundred dead soldiers later.....

C J Meek Cloche Way Swindon