Royal Wedding and Social Media

YOU CAN WATCH THE ROYAL WEDDING 2011 in many ways thanks to the advent of new social media.

The Official Royal Wedding 2011 website is the portal through which to access everything about the wedding.

There is the official Facebook Page to share your Royal Wedding Stories (it seems it's now compulsory to have a FB page for any event!) and The British Monarchy has its own Facebook Page with a special 'wedding' tab.

You can follow on Twitter at @ClarenceHouse. There is the official Royal Channel on YouTube which will be showing events live as they happen.

The British Monarchy's Photostream on Flickr will gather and collect the photographic record from the big day.

So I think this can quite rightly claim to be the top social media event of the year as well!

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"Unfettered by petty politics" says veteran election campaigner

HU12 is commenting on each election leaflet issued during the South West Holderness election campaign:
ANN SUGGIT has represented the local area for 17 years and during that time, she says in her local leaflet issued for the East Riding Council elections, has gained much awareness, knowledge and experience of local government.

As a non-political candidate then Mrs Suggit, a Hedon Town Councillor and former Hedon Mayor, says she is "unfettered by petty political policies that shackle sound judgement on local issues".

Mrs Suggit's leaflet says boldly that "People are more important than party politics" and lists "Social Wellbeing" as her top main issue during the election.

See the campaign leaflet and find out more about the election over on the Ward Election News pages.

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Rats! Is the rodent problem about to get worse?

RATS ARE A PERSISTENT PROBLEM in the East Riding. But while complaints about rats are falling - possibly due to severe winters killing many off - there is a real fear that the problem may be about to get much worse!

Official figures from the East Riding Council show a downward trend in the number of overall complaints received by them about rats in recent years. There were 2,443 complaints in 2007/08, 1,148 in 2008/09 and only 626 complaints in 2009/2010. However, there is a concern from public health professionals that problems with rodents - and other pests - will increase as public expenditure cuts bite into local authority budgets.

The Royal Society of Public Health brings together practitioners involved in championing public health and on the issue of Pest Control has warned:

Local Authority cuts will bring about widespread changes to the way pest control is delivered across the country. New and different approaches need to be found if we are to continue going forward in the way we deal with the pest problem, which remains at the forefront of the fight for improving public health.

Hull has seen an increase in rat infestation in its city centre and riverside areas in recent months - but the Council's ability to tackle this will be severely hampered due to the public spending cuts that the authority is facing. Is this a scenario - an increase in rat problems, and a decrease in funding to tackle them - one that we are likely to face in the East Riding?

Rats are considered a public nuisance. They can carry a wide range of diseases that are potentially harmful. Leptospirosis (Weil's disease) can be fatal to humans. Other diseases, such as Toxoplasmosis and Salmonella, affect both humans and animals, and parasites living on rats can present a further hazard. Rats are omnivores and will eat almost anything and they contaminate everything they encounter with droppings, urine and hairs.

Rats use the sewers as a convenient route to travel through - a rats 'tube system'. Yorkshire Water are responsibile for keeping them clear of rats, but there is also a duty on local authorities to ensure land and buildings in their district are kept free from the rodents.

The East Riding Council says on its website that it has no statutory duty to investigate or treat any pest infestations, and therefore only provides a chargeable pest control treatment service. It says that it can take up to 8 weeks to treat an infestation. Further information is available at: East Riding Council - Pest Control.

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Did you know...? 

BRIDLINGTON HAS SEEN MORE COMPLAINTS about rats than any other area in the East Riding over the last two years! 

With 111 complaints about rats reported to the East Riding Council then the seaside resort has emerged as the area with the most problems. Beverley was next in the 'rats league' with 88 complaints, Hessle had 85 complaints and Cottingham had 72.

This compares to only 13 complaints in Hedon over the same two-year period, while in Hull, between August 2009 and July 2010, there were 592 total rat complaints.

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Talks fail, protests continue at Vivergo Fuels

TALKS AIMED AT ENDING the industrial dispute at Saltend have failed and protests at the Vivergo Fuels site are set to continue.

Trade union members involved in the dispute met last week and rejected the latest proposals on the table offered via the arbitration process. The deal involved the workers being offered a payout to cover unpaid wages since the dispute began - according to the Yorkshire Post Redhall Engineering Solutions, who originally 'employed' the men through a national industry agreement, deny any liability but agreed to contribute £1.2m towards such a deal.

The latest statement from the GMB union says that the dispute is about jobs, maintaining national agreements and not just about money. Paul Kenny, GMB General Secretary says:

"The decision by the workforce to continue to protest about their unlawful treatment shows their determination for both justice and to show Vivergo and BP that their jobs and rights cannot be bought for a few measly pounds."

National Shop stewards are meeting on Wednesday April 27th to discuss further action in support of the workers and have raised concerns that if the deal had been accepted it would have led to employers been able to cherry-pick who worked at the site with fears that union activists may have been intimidated or blacklisted.

Vivergo Fuels - which is a consortium of BP, Du Point and British Sugar - made calls last week, via a letter leaked to the Hull Daily Mail, for the deal to be put to a secret ballot of the men involved.

Meanwhile, the dispute - and ongoing traffic hold-ups for local residents heading into Hull during each protest - is set to continue from this morning.

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Humberside Police are all a Twitter!

PC Darren Kirkwood Tweets about having to police his favourite football team!

HUMBERSIDE POLICE are conducting an experiment using Twitter. Each Division of the Force has its own account - East Riding C-Division is on @Humberbeat_ERY - and different types of officers are Twittering on their affairs.

Officers are using their accounts to tell us about patrolling the busy streets of Hull on a Friday and Saturday night. They are commenting on neighbourhood policing, burglary and vehicle crime investigations, and responses to incidents as they occur.

Find out more about the experiment including a list of the officers you can follow on Twitter, over at the Humberside Police Website - Social Network.

In response to low attendances at Police Community Forums then the Hedon Blog has suggested that 'virtual online meetings' may be a good idea to bring communities and officers together.

Services like MyPolice described on HU12 might be piloted in this area to encourage greater online collaboration between people and the police that serve them.

When some of these ideas were suggested in 2010 they perhaps seemed quite radical and far-fethched, but the appearance of Twittering police officers are probably a sign that these ideas are being looked at with new internet eyes!

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IT Explained - Useful free handbook

"making the most of IT – particularly by smaller firms – could boost the UK economy by an additional £50 billion over the next five to seven years"

E-SKILLS UK - the Sector Skills Council for Business and Information Technology – has produced a Business IT explained handbook for businesses that are getting started with IT.

Whilst the Handbook is light on the benefits of new modern social media it does offer an expert guide on getting started with IT including choosing your computers, securing your data, getting online, and marketing and selling online.

The handbook has been reproduced here on Scribd - but it is well worth small businesses (and voluntary organisations) having a look at the other free resources available on the www.businessitguide.com website.

Thanks to the Federation of Small Businesses for the 'heads up' about this publication.
Business IT Guide - IT Explained Handbook

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Guest 'Bloggers' debate the AV (Alternative Vote)

HU12 IS DELIGHTED to have two guests writing articles for our debate on AV over on our Ward Election News pages.

Writing for the YES! to Fairer Votes Campaign is Hannah Arnold who is the Chair of the Campaign in Hull. In her article Hannah explains what she sees as the unfairness of the current FPTP system (First Past The Post) because MPs are elected with only 35% of people voting for them in some cases. She claims the AV system is as simple as counting up to three.

The NO to AV campaigner is Conservative MP Robert Goodwill. He claims that AV is unpopular and complicated with only three countries in the world using the system. He says that the only parties to benefit from a change in the system would be Liberals and extremists.

Thanks to our guest 'bloggers' for contributing to this important national debate. If you want to know more about the Referendum and the local South West Holderness Elections 2011 then visit our Ward Election News pages.

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The Hedon Local News Hub - The Concept

So I rang up my local swimming baths. I said 'Is that the local swimming baths?' He said 'It depends where you're calling from.' Comedian Tim Vine

'LOCAL NEWS' is something that matters or is of interest to you in your local area. What matters to you, depends on your perspective and community that you are active in at that particular time. We are all active in communities even if we don't think of it that way - we're active in communities as neighbours, as workers, as travellers and at leisure. And as our lives interact with these communities then 'local news' takes on a different relevance. If you're stuck in a traffic jam then the relevant and useful local news is that which will inform you of how long you will be stuck - and what you might do to get out of the jam.

So the term 'local news' really does depend on where you're calling from and in which particular 'community' you are active in at that particular time. This is important to clarify because 'local news' is something that a new project proposed for Hedon hopes to discuss in some detail.

Hyperlocal news-gathering websites like the Hedon Blog, the Paull Village Hall website and Beverley's HU17.net concentrate on our 'community of place' i.e. where we live. Their 'niche' is our street, neighbourhood, village or town and they strive to bring together everything useful about that place under one virtual roof. How well they do that is open for discussion. But the fact they exist and are increasingly becoming a source of internet based information for local residents within those places means that they are a factor that can not be ignored.

The people behind the growing number (hundreds!) of hyperlocal websites across the country are varied and have different motivations. Some are redundant or student journalists, others are community activists or groups with a sense of civic duty - but all share a passionate belief that reporting the local news and providing local information can play a useful part in improving our communities of place.

Hedon Blog founder and Editor, Ray Duffill (that's me!) hopes to build on the hyperlocal model by establishing a Hedon Local News Hub which will have definitive aims to build a 'local news' infrastructure that can lead to better informed, engaged, and active local communities in Hedon.

The Hedon Local News Hub would aim to be a constituted partnership body bringing together volunteers, local communities, voluntary groups, local business, training providers that can draw in funding to provide a dedicated news-gathering and news-sharing service in the town - and a network of community citizen-journalist reporters with access to training and technical support opportunities. This network would dig out and investigate local issues - hold local authorities to account and strengthen local democracy, and be a source of positive press around which community action could ferment.

The News Hub would research what the local news-needs of the Hedon community actually are and then plan to meet these while providing a community newswire service to link those with news to share with existing media organisations that can do this.

This is the first in a series of articles exploring this concept. If you would like to get involved, have advice or information to share, or otherwise wish to express an interest in this idea, then please e-mail hu12@gmx.com and put "News Hub" in the subject line. 

In writing this article I have been inspired by the Media Trust document Meeting the news needs of local communities (published on Scribd).

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Fix My Street works - but replies not always received

Typical FixMyStreet Map

THE FIX MY STREET website is becoming an increasingly popular way to report neighbourhood problems in the HU12 area. It was relatively unused in the area two years ago, but an article on the Hedon Blog in February 2009, and residents using it since then, have helped bring the website to wider attention.

However, following using Fix My Street, some users have said that they do not hear anything back from the Council. But an East Riding Council spokesperson insisted earlier this year that: "FixMyStreet certainly does remain a website that the Council continues to take seriously and we act on all requests as soon as we can."

Fix My Street is an easy-to-use website to report a neighbourhood problem - you simply enter your post code, then scroll along the map using the arrow keys until you find the location of your problem or issue (be precise as you can), then 'click' and a flag will appear and you can fill in a box with the problem details. You are asked for your e-mail and asked to verify it by clicking on a link sent to you - this proves you are a real person and not a 'spam' robot.

On this website

Minutes later your problem is sent to the East Riding Council and you should get an acknowledgement from them about receiving your notification of a problem. However, occasionally a reply direct to the customer is not always sent.

E-mails from FixMyStreet automatically go through to the Council's myeastriding website. Only then are they sent through to Customer Services to be actioned. But occasionally (due to an incompatibility issue with computer software) they are received by Customer Services with an automated message from the myeastriding website that says 'PLEASE DO NOT REPLY TO THIS E-MAIL' which staff comply with.

The council spokesperson said:

I can assure you that any contact we receive from FixMyStreet via 'myeastriding' is recorded and actioned as soon as possible and if a response/acknowledgement is not received, that can only be due to the (automated) message at the end, which really means to NOT reply to the 'myeastriding' web address! There should always be at least an instant automated response/acknowledgement back to the customer, pending a full reply from either Customer Services or the individual Service Department concerned.

A map of the South West Holderness area is used on the HU12 website to record the last 20+ issues reported on Fix My Street. It can be found by looking on the right-hand, side-bar.

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Saltend: Vivergo Fuels dispute update

Solidarity Demonstration for Saltend workers

TALKS ARE TAKING PLACE at ACAS (the arbitration service) today to try and find a solution to the dispute at the Vivergo Fuels construction site at Saltend.

The engineering construction workforce at Saltend was employed by a range of contractors under a National Agreement for the Engineering Construction Industry. Redhall Engineering Solutions Ltd was awarded the contract for mechanical piping but had that contract terminated by Vivergo Fuels.

Vivergo and Redhall are in dispute over who is legally responsible for the displaced workforce.

The GMB union has started a hardship fund for the workers and say that they will "bring the injustice of this situation and the workers protest to a wider audience of public and civil institutions." Nationally Shop Stewards (site-based union organisers) are meeting to discuss the "deterioration in industrial relations in the industry" resulting from this dispute.

If the meeting today does not deliver a mutually acceptable solution then there is a strong possibility that the dispute will escalate with protests continuing at Saltend.

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Flytipping costs us at least £68 per hour!

TO CLEAR AWAY FLY TIPPED RUBBISH - illegally dumped waste - costs the council £68 per hour! And to dispose of such waste correctly at a landfill site can cost a further £56 per tonne - and if asbestos is included in the waste this can rise to £1,500 per tonne to be collected and disposed off!

In the period between April 2006 to February 2011 the East Riding Council dealt with 4,717 reports of fly-tipping on its land and investigated each incident. These investigations - which also incur costs to the Council - led to 59 successful prosecutions, 11 formal cautions and the issue of 232 formal warning letters.

These figures have been released by the East Riding Council following a Freedom of Information request.

The Environment Agency has said that on a national basis, dealing with the problem of fly tipping can cost £100-£150 million every year. This cost falls on taxpayers and private landowners. Fly-tipping adversely affects local environments, threatening the health of rivers and recreation areas and even reducing property prices in the area.

You can report fly tipping to the Council online at the East Riding Council website.

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ERYLINk seeks new leaders

THE ERYLINk is watching the health and social care providers in the East Yorkshire area on behalf of patients and the public. But new blood - sorry for the pun! - is needed for the community network's Lead Group.

The Local Involvement Network's Lead Group is the body elected by the ERYLINk members to manage and steer the organisation. A key part of the role of the Lead Group is to ensure that the organisation is representative of, and accountable to local communities.

The ERYLINk is seeking 2 individual members and 4 organisational members to join the LINk Lead Group and nominations from members have to be in by Wednesday 4th May.

If you want to join the ERYLINk, or find out more about the Lead Group elections then have a look at the ERYLINk website or contact Susan Oliver at the organisation's Driffield HQ on 01377 232135.

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A Public Meeting will be held at The Spa, Bridlington on 20 April 2011 from 6.30pm to 8.30 pm to facilitate the questioning of the Chief Executives of Scarborough and North East Yorkshire Healthcare Trust and York Hospital Foundation Trust. Patrick Crowley (York) and Mike Proctor (SNEY) will be present to give an update on the merger between the two trusts and to answer questions from the floor.

Come along and hear about it from the men who know.

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New Adult Education Courses for Summer

DETAILS OF SUMMER COURSES offered by the East Riding Council Adult Education Service. Contact jayne.wilcock@eastriding.gov.uk for further information.

Introduced verbally! by Seaside FM 105.3

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"No coalition at County Hall" say Liberal Democrats

HU12 is commenting on each election leaflet issued during the South West Holderness election campaign:
"THERE IS NO COALITION AT COUNTY HALL" say the Liberal Democrats as they challenge for the three seats available in the South West Holderness election battle.

The coalition that operates at a national government level is not reflected at County Hall say Liberal Democrats Janet Selkirk, Steve Sloan and Ken Wilson in their Focus on South West Holderness - Election Special leaflet. In fact the Liberal Democrat leaflet is very critical of the party's national allies; one of their priorities is to "End the culture of secrecy and spin" at the Conservative-led council. It declares: "With 46 out of 67 councillors the Tory leadership has been able to push through its own agenda as we know to our cost in this area."

The Liberal Democrats also say that controlling the salaries of senior council staff is a priority. This obviously refers to the highly public case last year when over £360,000 was approved by the council so that a senior officer could take early retirement.

They will also tackle the "backlog of footway and road repairs" and pledge further flood protection measures for South West Holderness.

The leaflet also includes a statement from (previous Ward Councillor) Carole Lynn who explains why her name does not appear on the current list of candidates, and that she is retiring from the council.

On the referendum? The Liberal Democrat Leaflet clearly campaigns for a "YES" vote.

There are 7 other candidates standing in the Ward - 2 Conservative, 3 Labour, and 2 Independents.

Read the Liberal Democrat leaflet and find out more about the Election over on our Ward Election News webpages.

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Independent publishes priorities for election campaign

HU12 will be commenting on election leaflets issued during the South West Holderness election campaign:

ADAM LONSDALE has started his campaign for election to the East Riding Council to represent the South West Holderness Ward.

In a leaflet submitted to the Ward Election News page yesterday, Adam Lonsdale listed free parking, practical speed limits and flood defence as his priority issues in the ward election.

The issue of the East Riding Council charging for car parking caused a storm of protest last year and the candidate has picked up on this by saying in the leaflet:

"The council is currently trying to implement car parking charges in the area which could cost you up to £350 a year in extra fees. This is wrong with the economic climate. Lets scrap the idea."

Adam Lonsdale is the youngest candidate standing in the Ward - and in the entire East Riding Election! - so perhaps it is not surprising that he is the first of the candidates to announce that you can follow him on Twitter!

There are 9 other candidates standing in the Ward - 2 Conservative, 3 Labour, 3 Liberal Democrats and 1 other Independent.

Find out more about ALL the candidates and Ask them Questions over on our Ward Election News webpages.

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Citizens' right to inspect council finances to be spotlighted

Open book government!?

THE GOVERNMENT is to introduce new transparency rules which will require councils to publicise to the press and public the "little-known rights" to inspect councils' detailed financial accounts, ledgers and records.

This move, announced by the Communities and Local Government Department yesterday, is designed to increase scrutiny of councils' spending decisions by armchair auditors and local investigative journalists.

Every year councils are required to open their accounting records for public inspection and challenge over a set time period. Yet the public often do not realise that these citizens' rights include checking not just the accounts but also "all books, deeds, contracts, bills, vouchers and receipts related to them". These rights allow the public to check any spending under the £500 online transparency thresholds.

Councils will have to publicise these rights and where and when they can be carried out - and where on Council websites the relevant information is.

Eric Pickles MP, DCLG Secretary of State said:

"An open Government is vital for good democracy and that's why councils have to open their ledgers to the public - everyone has a right to know how their taxes are spent. But it's not enough to just publish them quietly, armchair auditors and local journalists need to know exactly where to find that information and these new changes will make sure they are not just out in the open but under the spotlight too."

Read the full press release on the DCLG website.

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Elections 2011 - Mid Holderness Ward

THERE ARE SEVEN CANDIDATES standing in the neighbouring Mid Holderness Ward (which includes Burstwick, Burton Pidsea, Withernwick and Aldborough).

3 Conservative, 3 Labour and 1 Liberal Democrat are contesting three seats:

• Jan Davis - Labour
• Judy Dickinson - Labour
• Mathew Grove - Conservative
• John Leeman - Liberal Democrat
• Brian Skow - Conservative
• Peter Turner - Conservative
• Trevor Whatmore - Labour

It is not possible to vote without being on the electoral register and the deadline for registering in time for the May elections is TODAY Thursday, 14th April, which is also the last day for requesting a new postal or proxy vote.

For further information on the Local Elections see the East Riding Council - Local Elections web pages.

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Elections 2011 - South East Holderness candidates

COUNCIL ELECTIONS 2011 are also being held in neighbouring Wards. South East Holderness Ward, which includes Keyingham, Withernsea and down to Spurn, has 12 candidates standing for 3 seats.

One of the candidates is Charles "Chuck" Hunter who was one of the sitting Conservative councillors but was not placed on an approved shortlist of candidates and is standing as an Independent.

Following action by an internal Conservative party Selection Committee in November last year, 10 Councillors - including the Leader of the Council - were initially not approved as candidates for these elections, but following appeals 7 were accepted. However, Chuck Hunter had his appeal rejected.

Also standing for election in the Ward is Holderness RAID campaigner and former BNP general election candidate Neil Whitelam. Now not affiliated to any party, Neil Whitelam is standing as an Independent.

The full list of candidates in the South East Holderness Ward are:

• Dave Beech - Labour
• Patricia Beech - Labour
• Brian Cloke - Liberal Democrats
• Jackie Cracknell - Conservative
• Tom Fisher - Independent
• Arthur Hodgson - Conservative
• Chuck Hunter - Independent
• Jed Lee - Labour
• Patrick Spicer - No description
• Richard Stead - Conservative
• Neil Whitelam - Independent
• John Windass - Independent

It is not possible to vote without being on the electoral register and the deadline for registering in time for the May elections is TOMORROW Thursday, 14th April. The last day for requesting a new postal or proxy vote is also Thursday, 14th April (by 5pm).

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Local bus service to be reduced - Withernsea to Keyingham route

EYMS PLANNING DEPARTMENT (East Yorkshire Motor Services) have confirmed that bus services on the Withernsea to Keyingham route are to be reduced at off-peak times from 15th May 2011.

This comes after a rise in bus fares in January this year followed by strong criticism by Peter Shipp, EYMS Chaiman, of successive governments "for forcing the issue by increasing fuel taxes and cutting payments to bus operators for the concessionary travel scheme."

The details of the actual changes have not been published yet but Bus Call has advised customers to keep checking the EYMS Website at www.eyms.co.uk for updates.

The company is also promoting its Discount Cards and states that 10% can be saved on all single and return fares. The card itself is free and they're available to everyone - you can apply online at the EYMS Website.

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Conservatives start Elections 2011 leaflet campaign

SOUTH WEST HOLDERNESS CONSERVATIVES have started their East Riding Council election campaign with key commitments to; tackle flooding, smells from the Saltend waste water treatment works and to prevent future "monstrosities" such as the waste incinerator from being sited in the Ward.

These commitments and others were made in a special Election issue of Conservative InTouch which is currently being circulated in the Ward area. The two candidates, John Dennis and Mike Bryan, both former Mayors of Hedon and local businessmen in the town, say that they want to "promote, preserve and protect the interests of residents" of the area and say it is about "local decisions being made by local people".

On public spending cuts - possibly an emotive issue during this election - the candidates say that they will "endeavour to lessen the impact felt by residents in cuts to essential services".

On the issue of the Alternative Voting system referendum? - the vote on which also takes place on Thursday 5th May - InTouch clearly bears the logo of the Vote NO to AV campaign.

The Conservative candidates will be holding a street surgery in Hedon Market Place on Saturday 30th April from 10am - 12noon.

There are 8 other candidates standing in the Ward - 3 Labour, 3 Liberal Democrats and 2 Independents. Despite early indications otherwise, there are no candidates from the new East Yorkshire Independents Party standing.

Find out more about ALL the candidates and Ask them Questions over on our Ward Election News webpages.

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Updated: Ward Election News

HU12 HAS UPDATED ITS WARD ELECTION NEWS PAGE and will be writing to all the candidates in the East Riding Council's South West Holderness Ward, with an offer to write up to 500 words statement and answer questions from the local public.

You can begin to ask your questions of the candidates NOW!
Tweet

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"Bleakest week for a generation" for Housing Services claims magazine

Voluntary Sector Cuts map - Yorkshire & Humberside

INSIDE HOUSING has written a stark assessment of Housing Services this week in light of the impact of spending cuts with the onset of the new financial year. Scores of housing providers across the country face funding cuts of up to 45%. It said:

"Housing professionals have experienced the bleakest week for a generation as hundreds of projects closed or had their funding slashed as the new financial year started."

The weekly magazine for Housing Professionals cites cases in Hull where 20 elderly residents are having to move out of their sheltered housing scheme after Sanctuary Housing’s funding was reduced by £23,000 by Hull Council. Also the homeless charity Doorstep has made 10 members of staff redundant after the council cut its funding by £240,000.

The National Council for Voluntary Organisations published a list of charities facing cuts. Of the 454 cuts it listed - worth £74 million - "149 were housing related" says Inside Housing.

Read the Inside Housing article: Dark Day for Housing Services.

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Police Marketing and e-Communications contract worth up to £3m - yet some advice is free!

HUMBERSIDE POLICE have joined with three other police forces (North Yorkshire, South Yorkshire and West Yorkshire Police forces) to procure a contract to deliver its marketing and communications service (see publicTENDERS.net).

The contract, which could be worth anything between £600,000 and £3 million, has been put out for public tender and work is expected to commence by 13th June this year. It will cover four key areas: Public and Media relations, design services (brochures, booklets, newletters and adverts to new logos and advertising campaigns), campaign planning and e-Communications / social media.

The publication of the public tender has predictably caused outrage amongst those scrutinising police budgets and opposing cuts in police services and jobs.

However, if the Humberside Police Authority's "BIG Conversation" is anything to go by, then there is definitely scope for the authority and the police force to learn a bit more about the use of e-communication and social media! The 'online conversation' held last year was painfully slow using a static website and software rather than the dynamic converstional software that is currently available - and available free of charge! HU12 advised at the time:

The technology used to conduct the question and answer session is quite slow and laborious - those used to using near-instant conversation services such as Facebook and Twitter will find it frustrating! So those wanting to ask questions are encouraged to post them in advance.

Advice and information on the implementation of the social media part of the public tender is currently available at little or no cost from 'open-source' communities. In today's cost-cutting environment it would have been good to have seen the police forces using these community resources.

Image c/o eWeekEurope

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Preston Parish Poll contest

PRESTON RESIDENTS (North ward) will have a range of candidates to choose from as 19 candidates stand for only 10 seats on Preston Parish Council from Preston North.

The following are all standing in the poll on Thursday 5th May 2011:

Martin Acey
Geoffrey Bell - Not standing
Adrian Bullock
Lynda Carmichael
Geoffrey Catterick
Julian Clappison
Nigel Clarkson
Michael Fenwick
Pamela Fortnum
Helen Harrison
Frank Mainprize
Mandy Masters
Barbara Mendham - Not standing
Paul Obernay
Valerie Randerson
Michael Read
Pam Swann
Janet Weatherill
Elizabeth Whatling

It will be interesting to discover what issues and concerns have prompted such interest in what was an uncontested election in 2007.

The image © Copyright Paul Glazzard and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence.

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Hedon Town Council Elections are being contested!

HEDON TOWN COUNCILLORS were elected unopposed in 2007. But the 2011 Election will see a contest ensue as 14 candidates compete for the 12 seats available.

The candidates list published today consists of the following local residents:

Allen Marshall
Frank Harold Norman
Diane Storr
Ann Suggit
David Thompson
Gordon Thurston
Neil Black
Mike Bryan
John Dennis
Brenda Goldspimk
Thomas Henry Goldspink
Sarah Jordan
John Ledger
Jim Lindop

The poll takes place on Thursday 5th May 2011.

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Candidates: South West Holderness - East Riding Elections 2011

THE STATEMENT OF NOMINATIONS with details of all the candidates standing in the East Riding of Yorkshire Council local elections on Thursday 5th May 2011 has now been published.

There are 10 candidates standing, in alphabetical order, they are:

• Mike Bryan, of Hedon - Conservative 
• John Dennis, of Hedon - Conservative 
• Adam Lonsdale, of Hedon - Independent 
• Janet Selkirk, of Ryehill - Liberal Democrats 
• Steve Sloan, of Preston - Liberal Democrats 
• Brian Stockdale, of Hedon - Labour 
• Ann Suggit, of Hedon - No description submitted 
• Neil Watts, of Sproatley - Labour 
• Carol Williams, of Preston - Labour 
• Ken Wilson, of Ryehill - Liberal Democrats

You can follow Election News for South West Holderness Ward at Ward Election News.

It is not possible to vote without being on the electoral register and the deadline for registering in time for the May elections (including the town/parish council elections and the national referendum on the AV voting system which are also on 5 May) is Thursday, 14th April.

The last day for requesting a new postal or proxy vote is also Thursday, 14th April (by 5pm).

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Ask the Anti-Social Behaviour Team

THE EAST RIDING COUNCIL'S Anti Social Behaviour Team is inviting residents to discuss any problems they maybe having with anti social behaviour.

Monthly sessions are being scheduled for Hornsea and Withernsea Customer Services. But generally residents with concerns are encouraged to book one-to-one appointments with officers at their local Customer Service Centres.

Examples of anti-social behaviour that may concern you:

Harassment of residents or passersby
Verbal abuse
Criminal damage
Vandalism
Noise nusiance
Writing graffiti
Engaging in threatening behaviour in large groups
Racial abuse
Smoking or drinking alcohol while under age
Substance misuse
Joyriding
Begging
Prostitution
Kerb crawling
Throwing missiles
Assault
Vehicle crime

For further information or to book an appointment call the Anti Social Behaviour Team on (01482) 396380 or email safe.communities@eastriding.gov.uk.

Find out more at the Safer Communities - East Riding website.

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South West Holderness Election Results - 2007

IN THE EAST RIDING ELECTIONS in 2007 the 3 councillors elected in South West Holderness Ward from 10 candidates were:

• Carole Ann Lynn - Liberal Democrat, with 1,963 votes
• Ann Mary Suggit - Independent, with 1,645 votes
• Stephen Edward Sloan - Liberal Democrat with 1,300 votes

There was a turnout of 31%.

The current state of the Parties in EAST YORKSHIRE: 45 Conservative, 13 Lib Dem, 3 Labour, 4 Independent, 1 Social Democrat, 1 Conservative (not affiliated locally).

The Hedon, Preston and Paul parish elections were all uncontested and returned 12, 11 and 6 councillors respectively.

Source: East Riding Council.

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Tenth Holderness Art Show

THE 10th HOLDERNESS ART SHOW takes place in St Peter's and St Paul's Church, Burton Pidsea on the 17th, 18th, and 19th June 2011.

This is a display and sale of art by local artists.

An Evening reception on the Friday 17th June at (£8 a ticket) will be opened by a well known Yorkshire Artist Ashley Jackson who was on tv a few years ago in 'A Brush with Ashley'.

If anyone would like tickets or to Hang pictures to sell in this event or any further information please phone Alexis on 01964670269 0r Jennie 01964670610.

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Election 2011 - getting ready for news coverage on HU12

PARISH, TOWN AND EAST RIDING COUNCIL ELECTIONS are taking place on Thursday 5th May and HU12 hopes to capture most of the news - the candidates, the issues, the discussions - on this website.

The closing date for nominations is today (Monday 4th April) and by the end of the week we will know who are the nominated local candidates.

HU12 will republish the statement of nominations of candidates for the East Riding Council elections, but will also set up a web page for each candidate which will link to statements, news and leaflets issued by that candidate.

For those candidates that wish to take up the offer, HU12 will publish a (up to) 500 word statement from each about their campaign for election.

To start we have set up a Ward Election News page and will gather all our election coverage material there.

Leaflets General Election 2010

HU12 will also be keeping a record of all leaflets delivered during the election campaign and will be uploading them onto ElectionLeaflets.Org. As a member of the public you can do the same! Scan in your leaflets and upload to the Beverley and Holderness constituency and 'tag' them with the name of the candidate, 'South West Holderness' and the name of the Party issuing the leaflet. See what was collected during the General Election 2010 campaign: Local Election Leaflets.

This is not just about improving local election news coverage, but is also aimed at achieving greater transparency and accountability. The more information we get about our candidates, the easier it will be to hold those elected to account for their promises over the next four years.

Send your election news to hu12@gmx.com.

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Royal Wedding Blues?

THE ROYAL WEDDING of Prince William and Kate Middleton does not seem to have captured the imagination of people locally. Those who remember the Queen's Silver Jubilee celebrations in 1977 will remember the street parties that seemed to be held in almost every neighbourhood. Compare the mood then with the apathy that seems to exist today for the Royal Wedding.

There are two parties being held locally. The Station in Hedon is hosting a Royal Wedding Gala in its beer garden, whilst the Paull Village Hall is teaming up with the The Crown to hold a celebration in the village. However, despite these two events there has been a noticeable lack of interest in celebrating the Royal occasion.

Local community and independent political activist in Keyingham Neil Whitelam says that he hopes that people will pull their fingers out to make "a massive show for the wedding" but warns that Britishness seems to be becoming "politically incorrect":

It does seem on the face of it that people are not that fussed about a royal wedding. It comes as no surprise to me, after all, for the past 12 years patriotism, flying our national flag and promoting Britishness has become unpopular and politically incorrect. Yet when it suits they want us to roll out the colours and sing Rule Britannia!

On the other side of the argument singer and songwriter Paul Heaton (former Hull frontman with The Housemartins and Beautiful South) is an anti-royalist and said in the Guardian recently:

The royal wedding will strike many people from the area as the worst kind of excessive wastefulness: a festival of pomp, circumstance and religious platitudes. How am I planning to spend the day? I think I'll celebrate in a manner appropriate for a son of Hull and go down to the pub. What's so fancy about bloody bunting anyway?

Whatever you think - the Royal Wedding takes place on Friday 29th April 2011. And we have a day off work to celebrate - or not!?

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New "dynamic" views of the HU12 website

THERE ARE NEW DYNAMIC WAYS to view HU12.net from today. Have a look at the website from this point of view  http://hu12net.blogspot.com/view/. 

Each story can be viewed from the list on the left. Also, look for the button marked Sidebar and click it and you will see lots of different ways of viewing HU12, its content and photos.

These views require modern browsers such as Internet Explorer 8+, Firefox 3.5+, Chrome or Safari. Many elements of these views will not work should you have an older browser.

We like this! We hope you do!?

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