www.telford.gov.uk

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Budget 2013/14Jobs, growth and services – we’re on your sideOver the last three years, Telford & Wrekin Council has faced unprecedented cuts in Government grant. But despite the financial difficulties, our mission is clear.

We’re attracting new jobs, growth and investment and promoting growth in the borough, while protecting as far as possible council services.

While many other councils are slashing services and stopping major building projects, look what is happening here:

n Our £250m Southwater scheme – this time next year new bars, restaurants an 11-screen cinema and hotel creating around 200 new jobs will be about to open, creating a big regional leisure attraction

n £200m Building Schools for the Future programme will see seven new secondary schools and community leisure facilities built

n Completion of £4m Parks for People project

n We’re making it even easier for businesses to come here and grow, offering support to attract new firms and help create new jobs

n We’re working to make Telford and Wrekin an attractive destination for businesses and visitors

n Investing in land stability schemes to protect the Ironbridge Gorge – the area’s biggest tourist attraction and the region’s only World Heritage Site

n We are continuing to regenerate areas such as Brookside, Hadley and Oakengates (see page 4-5)

We’re also protecting as far as possible key services we provide.

n High quality waste collection and recycling services

n All of our car parking spaces in the borough towns are free to residents and we’re committed to keep it this way

n We’re enhancing our leisure centres so that everyone in the community can use these

n We offer free swimming for under 16s

As funding is cut by Government, your Council is stepping in to help keep Telford and Wrekin growing and supporting business and new jobs.

But we need a fairer deal for Telford and Wrekin.

We also need your views on the very difficult budget decisions ahead. See pages 8-10 for how you can do this.

A new covenant has been created aimed at further strengthening positive relations between Telford & Wrekin Council and the Armed Forces, their families and veterans.

The official signing of the Armed Forces Community Covenant was attended by leading councillors, representatives of the Armed Forces and voluntary sector organisations.

It is a voluntary statement of support between the local civilian and Armed Forces communities.

It aims to encourage local communities to support the service community in their area and help the public understand issues affecting the Armed Forces community.

It is being developed in consultation with the Army and RAF Community Engagement Teams based at Copthorne Barracks, Shrewsbury, and RAF Cosford.

Supporting our Armed Forces

our voiceyyoyoYour guide to what’s happening in Telford and Wrekin

Winter 2013

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Leader’s View:

Happy New Year!Welcome to the first edition of Your Voice in 2013

It certainly has been a landmark few months for Telford & Wrekin Council with the authority going through some of the most major changes it has ever experienced.

Chief among all this is that we have finally moved out of Civic Offices and are now housed in a number of other buildings, including the refurbished Addenbrooke House and Darby House on the other side of the Telford town centre and Wellington Civic and Leisure Centre.

Civic Offices will be demolished in the coming months to make way for a new ASDA supermarket, which will be a major change in Telford town centre. All this will release huge savings as well as enabling us to introduce systems to enable staff to work ever more efficiently.

This together with our decision to abandon plans to build new Council offices will save this council £2m a year - money that can be used to protect services.

This all complements the fantastic developments that are taking place in the Southwater area of the town centre – including the construction of 11 bars/restaurants, an 11 screen cinema, hotel, multi storey car park and Southwater One – a community building featuring a new library, customer contact point and information from a range of organisations.

After years of waiting, Southwater is coming alive, giving Telford town centre a living heart that will attract thousands of new visitors.

We have also opened the refurbished ice rink following significant council investment. The skating is second to none and now the new soft play area is completed, we have a facility that is a real draw for people from across the region.

The day we left Civic Offices was also marked by another significant event as we made a public commitment to support the Armed Forces by signing the Armed Forces Community Covenant. This will show how we are committed to supporting the Armed Forces in the borough in a variety of ways. The military has long and strong links with Telford and Wrekin and it is only right that we do this.

Finally, thanks to everyone who has sent their ideas to me on ways we can improve things in the borough and who came to our first Conversation with Kuldip session in Wellington in November.

Cllr Kuldip Sahota, Council Leader

Soft play opensThe new soft play area at Telford Ice Rink has now opened to complete the £4m refurbishment and extension of the facility.

The soft play area is suitable for children aged eight and under and prices start at £2.50 for using just the soft play. A range of party packages will also be available.

Prices do vary dependent on the age of the child. The soft play facility can house up to 97 children in the junior area and 30 toddlers in the toddler area.

Opening times are 10am-6pm daily.

Facilities include tunnels, ropes and ball pits. The soft play area is also available for parties and exclusive hire.

During January, a half price discount will be offered via the Ice Rink’s Facebook page, where you can print off a voucher to produce at reception.

The refurbishment has seen major internal and external improvements carried out by contractor Morgan Sindall as part of the broader £250m redevelopment of the Southwater area of the town centre.

The rink, which opened in 1985, is one of only 56 in the UK and is a facility of regional importance.

The refurbishment is expected to lead to an increase in visitor numbers which will support other leisure developments including an 11 screen Cineworld cinema and restaurants including Wagamama’s, Nando’s and Zizzi’s.

our voice 3yoyo

Southwater One!

A key part of Telford & Wrekin Council’s £250m vision to transform the heart of Telford will be the planned community building - Southwater One or SW1.

Something big is happening in Telford

SouthwaterEVENT GROUP

Keep up to date at www.heartoftelford.co.uk

Southwater development plan

Winter 2013/14Cinema, hotel, bars/restaurants and multi storey car park completed, Southwater Event Group’s 120 bed hotel starts, completion of Visitor Centre landscaping and new play areas

Spring/Summer 2014Southwater One - the new Library, Council First Point and Contact Centre building completed and open

Spring 2014Mixed use development site adjacent to Southwater Square available for development

This community building brings together a host of public services in a vibrant environment.

Ground Floor: This will house the new First Point, which is the one stop shop for handling residents’ enquiries and includes Council and partner agency information. The ground floor also includes self service library facilities and quick choice books including popular reads and quick reference and tourist information. It will also offer views of other key attractions such as the cinema, hotel and restaurants, retail units in Southwater Square and the new lake.

First FloorThe first floor includes the main library service where individual environments will be created using colour, fabrics, furniture and IT for a

variety of spaces including a children’s area, digital area, teen area and a ‘chill out’ space.

Second FloorMore detailed residents’ enquiries are dealt with by staff on the second floor. The design of this floor retains some continuity of the preceding floors but have a more sleek and sophisticated business environment. Third FloorThis floor comprises of contact centre staff supporting the daily operations of the First Point service as a whole.

The images shown here are still in development but reflects the overall atmosphere to be created. Construction of SW1 will begin on site shortly with an opening scheduled for early 2014.

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1 Charlton School is planned to be rebuilt as part of the £200m Building Schools for

the Future (BSF) programme

2 Wellington Civic & Leisure Centre is now open following an £8.5m investment, including state of

the art leisure facilities, a new modernised library, council offices, community cafe and Register Offices.

3 Ercall Wood Technology College is the first school in the second phase of our BSF programme to

be totally rebuilt on its current site. Outline planning consent has been granted. Construction of the £14m new school will start in early 2013.

4 Hadley Centre revamp is now under way. The first phase of the £2.2m

development will include a Tesco Express supermarket and six new retail units to be completed spring 2013. A further three units will be provided  by  2014 and affordable housing to follow in 2015.

5 Telford Co-operative Academy will provide 1200 places for 11-16 year olds - located on the

same site as the Oakengates Leisure Centre and the new £2.2m Telford Tennis Centre. Anticipated opening date is the academic year 2015.

6 Oakengates £1.3m regeneration includes new paving, street furniture and traffic management in

Oxford Street and Market Street. Market Street has been linked back with Stafford Road.

7 Lawley Village major new

housing development with over 3,300 new homes across four areas together with a new Local Centre, including a new supermarket.

8 Priorslee new school will be a faith school which will draw pupils from

the existing Blessed Robert Johnson Catholic School and the local area.

9 Malinslee has reopened a new one stop shop, fish and

chip shop, hairdressers and opened a new play area.

10 Telford Town Park includes a new teenage activity area which

contains two multi use games courts, seating areas and stage.

11 Parks and open spaces Telford Town Park will soon see new heritage

and nature trails with new gateways and signage for the park along with water play, a ropes course, crazy golf and disabled play facilities.

12 Dawley Town Hall is a community project where partners are

working together to try to restore this historic building.

13 Southall School will gain a new sports hall and other

modernised facilities.

14 Mount Gilbert School has been refurbished to include a new

skills centre and raised terraces to provide a secure play area. A new ICT room and external dining facilities are also part of its refurbishment.

Mapping a reborn borough

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15 Phoenix School work is now under way to provide new buildings for the Phoenix

School on a new site in Dawley. This £16m learning community will include a BMX track, eight court sports hall, floodlit artificial pitches. It is expected to open its doors this September. Construction firm Kier is now operating on site. Anticipated opening date is the academic year 2013.

16 Lakeside Learning Campus will be built to include a new 600 place secondary school, 420 place primary

school, 32 place nursery and 100 place post 16 facility. Shepherd Construction Ltd are currently producing detailed designs that will be submitted as part of the full planning application. This will replace the existing Lord Silkin School and Grange Park Primary.

17 Brookside Co-operative Pilot £6m community masterplan to redevelop the local centre.

18 Abraham Darby Academy has now moved into its new building and the final phase of the project to

demolish the old school and create sports pitches is being completed.

19 Adams’ Grammar School will undergo significant refurbishment late 2014.

20 Burton Borough School is set to gain from an extensive refurbishment including some new build class

bases. Detailed designs will be developed for this scheme 2013.

21 Newport Girls’ High School has been extended to create a multi-purpose hall, four new classrooms and a

changing room.

22 Sutton Hill completed in summer 2011 - £7m investment in the Local Centre, construction of

two new shops with four flats, new road links and improved parking arrangements. Work is also planned to create new, high quality housing in the area.

23 Jackfield major land stability works from a £12m Government grant and additional Council

funding to treat the highest priority area in the Gorge. Work due to start in early 2014.

24 Southwater £250m development

programme with permissions granted for 11 screen cinema, four retail units, refurbished Telford Ice Rink, Premier Inn hotel and multi storey carpark.

Telford Ice Rink £4m refurbishment including the extension of the rink, soft play children’s area, café and bar.

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Student wins top awardYoung engineering student David Scott won a regional award at the Midlands Engineering Employers Federation (EEF) Future Manufacturing Awards 2012 celebration event at the Heritage Motor Centre, Coventry.

David, studying an Engineering Young Apprenticeship programme at Telford

College, won the Midlands Regional Highly Commended award in the Rolls-Royce sponsored category of Outstanding Achievement by Young Engineering Student.

The judges said: “This applicant is quite unique in that they followed a Young Apprenticeship pathway via an unorthodox route, and yet is still only 15.

“This student displayed a maturity and level headedness that will stand him in good stead as he finds his ideal role and vocation.”

David’s tutor Jim Welch said: “David was successful in obtaining a work placement with Iconsys Independent Control Systems on Hortonwood who were impressed with his high capacity of ability and good technical initiative. At College, David studied for an NVQ 2 in Engineering where his assessments were of a very high standard.”

Ahead of the game!Telford College students Joel Antonsen and James Basford are celebrating the early completion of a suite of qualifications that they began as part of their College course.

The BTEC National Extended Diploma in Mobile and Network Technology provides the opportunity for students to undertake for free, Cisco CCNA industry standard qualifications which would normally cost in the region of £400-£600 each.

These qualifications will enhance their CVs and make them much more attractive to employers as potential advanced level apprentices and also for their applications to universities. They have now successfully completed all of the online tests and passed the final exam early.

The aim of this programme is to provide students with the knowledge and practical skills to design, build and maintain computer networks. The Diploma is a demanding but hands-on course and is equivalent to three A Levels. Students learn to set up and maintain PCs, servers and networks and to install and configure software. They also develop a range of practical, trouble-shooting skills and work with the latest network technology. For more information on the range of computing qualifications available at Telford College, call Learner Services on 01952 642237.

our voice 7yoyo

REDUCE

REUSE

RECYCLE

REDUCE

RECYCLE

REUSE

n Some pastry cutters, 7cm in diameter and 6cm in height

n Left over mashed potato (or other mashed veg – try mashed carrot, cauliflower or sweet potato)

n A selection of colourful cooked vegetables (boiled carrots, broccoli and green beans, or roasted red and green peppers, courgettes and aubergines)

Instructions...1. Preheat the oven to 190C and grease a baking tray and baking rings.

2. Place the baking rings on tray and press a layer of mashed potato into the

base of each one. Cover with a layer of cooked vegetables. Cover the vegetables with a layer of mash, and press down firmly.

3. Add another layer of veg, and finish with another potato layer. Use a fork to rough up the tops of the stacks and brush with a little oil.

3. Bake for 25 minutes until the tops of the stacks are golden brown.

4. Let the stacks sit for five minutes and loosen them up, if necessary, by going around the edges with the tip of a knife. Use a fish slice to lift them off the baking tray and onto individual plates, then carefully lift the baking rings and ease the stacks out.

5. Add a sprinkling of cheese or toasted sunflower seeds. Stand them on a pool of tomato sauce to make a very presentable light meal.

Mashed Potato Stacks You will need...

Happy New year from Ted and Flo!It’s the new year and time to think about what you can do to help reduce, reuse and recycle more in 2013. Remember we need to drastically lower the amount of rubbish we send to landfill, so do your bit to help save us all money in 2013!

Flo says...Reduce your waste!When going to the supermarket make sure you pick up items that have the least amount of packaging and use refill packs wherever possible.

One of the biggest things we waste every day is food. Far too often people use half a packet of something or half a bag of potatoes and let the rest rot. Try to organise your meals around what you have in your cupboards so that you throw less away.

Reuse your food leftovers to make something tasty for the next day. Try our tasty recipe (see right) for a yummy way to use up your leftover mashed potato.

Ted says...Reuse your carrier bags!Going shopping? Keep a supply of carrier bags in your car so they are always available for your weekly shopping trip, this way you never need to add more carriers to your collection that then get thrown into landfill.

Flo says...Recycle your Christmas tree and packagingPut your old Christmas tree into your green bin, don’t forget that the lid must be closed so trim it down if it’s too big.

You can also recycle all your leftover packaging from Christmas. Rip all cardboard down to the size of your blue bag. If you have filled your recycling containers then put out your sorted materials into plastic bags with the rest of your containers and we will take it away.

www.telford.gov.uk/recycling

Flo says...

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The Government has targeted local government with over three times the cuts in other public services during the period 2011-2015 (27% v 8.3%).

Over the last four years, we have made £42 million of savings to deal with these grant reductions with pressures like inflation and increasing numbers of people needing care and support.

Grant cuts haven’t been made equally across the country. Some areas like the South East of England have been much less affected.

The impact of the cuts is worse in Telford and Wrekin than in many other parts of the country and worse than our neighbouring areas of Shropshire and Staffordshire.

We also believe that the Office for National Statistics (ONS) has understated our population by around 4,000 people. This means that the Government pays Telford & Wrekin Council around £1.5 million less than it should.

For many years, the Government has given some of the money that it calculates Telford & Wrekin Council should receive to other parts of the country. This system is known as ‘grant damping’.

This year, the Telford & Wrekin Council has lost out by £3 million as a result of this – money that the Government has calculated should be paid to but which has been withheld and allocated to other parts of the country.

How this affects us:n Local government as a whole receives a funding cut of more than

three times the average for the public sector

n Grant reductions are unevenly allocated across the country – hitting some parts of the country like Telford and Wrekin much harder than others

n The undercount of our population

n The grant damping mechanism

All combine to mean that Telford & Wrekin Council and its residents are being unfairly treated and

losing out by over £10m a year. We are therefore lobbying for a ‘Fair Deal for Telford and Wrekin’.

Rising costs and falling grantWe expect that the Council’s grant from Government will be cut by £27 million over four years. We also have growing demands for many services and inflationary pressures are increasing our costs. Next year we expect to have to find at least another £11 million of savings.

Just like every household we also have to deal with rising prices while inflation has gone up by 13.3% in three years.

There’s also a surge demand for our services.

n We have more and more older people who need care and support. (cost of an average care package is £8,000)

n Due to the recession, more people are in financial difficulty and need council support. The numbers claiming council tax or housing benefit has gone up by 1,348 extra claimants since March 2010

The budget continued from page 1

The cost of having a low council taxFor councils with a low council tax (our is the third lowest in the region) the funding gap created by Government cuts is even more difficult to find.

If Telford & Wrekin Council charged the same council tax as the whole Midlands

region, it would receive £5.6m a

year more

Walsall

Coventry

Warwickshire*

Wolverhampton

Herefordshire

Worcestershire

Staffordshire

Stoke-on-Trent

Shropshire

Sandwell

Solihull

Telford & Wrekin

Dudley

Birmingham

£1,384.64

£1,323.80

£1,318.91

£1,316.72

£1,205.09

£1,202.42

£1,184.02

£1,183.46

£1,179.36

£1,175.73

£1,173.72

£1,126.09

£1,125.38

£1,113.67

West Midlands authorities 2012/13 Band D council Tax for equivalent unitary services (excluding Police, Fire and Parish precepts)*Includes fire expenses

our voice 9yoyoWhere your money goes

£5mEducation, Culture & Skills

£13mOther Services

£4mCustomer & People

£15mFamily Cohesion Services

£18mSafeguarding (Adult & Children)

£28mNeighbourhood & Leisure

£43mCare & Support

(Adult & Children)

Involving youLast year we listened to over 7,000 comments and ideas from residents which helped us shape our budget plans and spending priorities until 2014.

You told us:

n You support our priorities for services for example helping businesses to create jobs in the borough, ensuring that neighbourhoods are safe, clean and well maintained and supporting our vulnerable children and adults.

n You want us to find better ways to run services and avoid wasting money.

n You agreed with our plans for major areas such as children and family services, adult services and environmental services.

n Nearly 2,300 people gave us their views on whether to raise council tax or accept a one-off grant from Government available to ‘freeze’ Council Tax but only for one year.

n 63% wanted us to increase council tax by between 2.5% and 3.5% and to reject this short term grant.

We opted to reject the grant and increased council tax by 2.5% and agreed to do so for the next two years.

This year the Government says if we raise council tax by 2% we must carry out a local referendum to see what you think. This would cost us about £250,000.

We have also been offered another grant, equal to a 1% council tax rise, to freeze council tax for two years. If we accept this it would leave a hole in our budget when it stopped being paid and would mean even more cuts.

Our plansBased on what you have already told us, we propose to:

n Increase council tax by 1.9%

n This is equivalent to 32p a week for the average (Band B) home in this area

We propose this because we want to:

n Encourage investments to help growth and create more jobs for local people

n Protect important council services for residents

Alongside a 1.9% increase in council tax we would continue to find better ways to run services and avoid wasting money.

Staff n Since 2009, the Council has shed around 850 jobs

n This saves over £20 million

n Staff pay has been frozen since 2009

n We have cut the pay of the Council’s most senior post by almost 20%

SAVING £20m

We’ve reduced office space

by one thirdslashing running costs

Around

£8.50 out of every £10the Council spends is

on services for

children, vulnerable adults and the environment

Council buildingsn We are disposing of 24 council

properties

n We have reduced our office space by one third, slashing running costs

n After paying for the new smaller offices in Telford town centre, which have lower running costs and leaves us with several million pounds of capital money to reduce council debt and our debt repayment costs

n Overall this will help us save a further £2 million a year

Where we are saving money

850jobs cutBY THE COUNCIL

since 2009

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How can you get involved?Find out more by visiting our budget pages on www.telford.gov.uk/budget

Public budget eventCome along to our budget event where you will find out more information and have an opportunity to have your say. The event is on Wednesday 16 January 2013 at 6pm at Oakengates Theatre @ The Place. Please reserve your place by telephoning or emailing us.

We will regularly post up comments received on www.telford.gov.uk/budget

YourViewsMatter

Do you broadly support our plans to encourage jobs, growth and protection of services? If you don’t agree with our plans, please tell us through one of the methods on the right hand side.

Do you support the Council’s campaign for a Fair Deal for Telford & Wrekin?

If you would like to attend the public budget event on Wednesday 16 January at 6pm at Oakengates Theatre @ The Place, tell us your details below.

Do you have any access requirements to enable you to attend the meeting? If so please contact us and let us know.

Tell us what you think. Complete this FREEPOST form then cut out and return it to us. We look forward to hearing from you. Please tick 3 your preferred option below. We need your comments by 10 February 2013

Write to us at:Freepost RRAX – TLKS – UZSS

Co-operative Delivery Team

Telford & Wrekin Council

Addenbrooke House

Ironmasters Way

Telford TF3 4NT

Email us: yourviewsmatter@telford.gov.uk

Telephone us:Tell us your budget comments by calling 01952 382131

By text message:Text your message to 07797873893. Messages sent will cost your usual network rate and are anonymous unless you put your name in.

By Facebook or TwitterYour views and comments will be presented to Councillors to help them in their budget decisions.

Yes No Don’t know

Yes No Don’t know

Name:

Tel/email:

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Where we are saving moneyn Since 2009 we’ve cut ‘back office’ costs by

35% reducing central functions – saving over £6m a year

Service reviewsn All Council services have been reviewed

to find more efficient ways to provide their

services – saving £3.4m a year

Cutting Government council tax benefit n The Government is cutting the grant it pays to

the Council for council tax benefits equivalent to a further £3.1m cut

n From April 2013, we have to reduce the level of council tax benefit paid to working age people by around 21 per cent but are protecting pensioners and disabled people

n This will affect more than 11,000 borough households

n To help offset the Government’s cut, we’re also reducing council tax exemptions and reductions for people who have empty properties or second homes in the borough

Councillorsn Cabinet members have voluntarily reduced

their allowances by 10%.

Buying better value servicesn We will save more than £2.5 million this year

by working with suppliers to get more for less. We expect to save even more next year

Charging more for some services n Charging more for some services, for

example low level preventative care, increasing some leisure charges and reducing exemptions

What services are we protecting for residentsWe will also be putting extra money into these areas

n Highways

n Winter gritting

n Improvements to Telford Town Centre

n Keeping vulnerable children safe

BACK OFFICE COSTS

cut by 35%SAVING £6M

Return the FREEPOST form to the address below:

To make sure we have the views of a cross section of local people across the borough, please complete the following section. You do not have to complete all of this section if you don’t want to.

Please tick 3 What gender are you? Male Female What age group are you? 0-11 12–18 19- 25 26-39 40–64 65+ What is your postcode? You can not be identified by this information.

our voice 11yoyoGovernment welfare reformThe Government is introducing major changes to Housing and Council Tax Benefits as part of its Welfare Reform agenda. This will mean cuts to the amount of benefit the Council will pay to many people of working age. Pension age customers will not be affected.

Telford & Wrekin Council has had its council tax benefit cut by Government by approximately £3.1m.

The key changes from April are:

n Council Tax Benefit will be abolished and replaced by a new reduced local scheme called Council Tax Support

n A reduction in Government Housing Benefit for working age social housing tenants (renting from a housing association or trust) who are living in a property that has more bedrooms than their household needs

n A cap on the total amount of benefit that any household can receive

Council Tax Support Scheme From 1 April, the amount of Council Tax Support you receive will be reduced by around 21%. The final percentage will be announced once the Council’s budget is set at the beginning of March. You will be expected to pay the difference between the amount of Council Tax you are charged and any support you receive.

Following extensive public consultation, the final Council Tax Support scheme in Telford and Wrekin is broadly based on the Council Tax Benefit scheme with the following changes:

n Claimants with savings or capital of £6,000 or more will not be entitled to claim support

n Anyone who is entitled to less than £2.50 per week in Council Tax Support will not receive any assistance

n Customers who have a good reason for failing to apply for help immediately will be entitled to apply for Council Tax Support to be backdated for a maximum of one month

n Second Adult Rebate will no longer exist under the new scheme

All working age people who claim Council Tax Benefit will be affected by the changes unless you are considered to be severely disabled. More information is available on our website www.telford.gov.uk/counciltaxsupport

Social Sector Rent Room RestrictionsFrom 1 April 2013, if you rent your home from a social landlord (a housing association for example) you will only be able to claim Government Housing Benefit for the number of bedrooms that the Government says that you and your family need.

If you have more bedrooms than you need, your Government Housing Benefit may be reduced by:

n 14% if you have one extra bedroom

n 25% if you have two or more extra bedrooms.

Your landlord may be able to offer you a range of support including help with moving home, money advice or help with employment. If, after speaking with your landlord, you would like some further advice and guidance on your housing situation please call the Council’s Housing Options and Advice Team on 01952 381925.

We have written to everyone who will be affected.

Benefit CapFrom 1 April 2013, the Government is introducing a cap on benefits, limiting the total amount of benefit that a single person or family of working age can receive to:

n £500 a week for couples (with or without children living with them)

n £500 a week for single parents whose children live with them

n £350 a week for single adults (who don’t have children living with them

If you are affected by this change, your Government Housing Benefit will be reduced. You can find more information by visitingwww.gov.uk/benefit-cap

How many bedrooms do I need?The Government says that you are allowed:

n One bedroom if you are a single customer or part of a couple, plus

n One bedroom for a child or one bedroom for two children under 10

n One bedroom for two children of the same sex up to the age of 16

n One bedroom each for children aged over 10 of the opposite sex

n One bedroom for other single people or couples aged 16 plus

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Keeping yourself warm and wellCold weather can be dangerous, especially for the elderly, very young or those with existing health conditions. Each year the NHS sees people admitted to hospital or in serious cases dying with conditions aggravated by the cold weather.

Top tips for keeping warm and welln Have regular hot drinks and at least one hot meal a day

if possible. Eating regularly helps keep energy levels up during winter

n Look after yourself and check on older neighbours and relatives to make sure they are safe, warm and well

n Wrap up warm if you need to go outside on cold days, but wear layers and wear shoes with a good grip if you need to go outside

n Keep as active as possible

n Keep curtains drawn and doors closed to block out draughts

n Keep your main living room at around 18-21°C (64-70°F), and the rest of the house at least 16°C (61°F). If you can’t heat all the rooms you use, heat the living room during the day and the bedroom just before you go to sleep

n Get financial support. There are grants, benefits and sources of advice available to make your home more energy efficient, improve your heating or help with bills. It’s worthwhile claiming all the benefits you are entitled to and to access these before the winter sets in, visit www.nhs.uk or contact the Council’s Home Improvement Agency for advice on 01952 381855

n If you are aged 65 or over, pregnant, have an eligible long term condition or are a carer for an elderly or disabled person whose welfare may suffer if you fall ill, make sure you get your free NHS flu jab

n Watch out for icy conditions- icy pavements and roads can be very slippery. Take extra care if you go out and wear boots or shoes with good grip on the soles

n Useful links: www.metoffice.gov.uk www.npower.com/health

www.gov.uk/warm-front-scheme

our voice 13yoyoBack The Bucks! AFC Telford United: you may have heard the name but what do you really know about the Blue Square Bet Premier Club?

The Bucks - as they are nicknamed - play in the 5th tier of English Football. Their New Bucks Head Stadium is based just off Watling Street in Wellington, just behind the now disused Bucks Head Pub.

It’s a fantastic venue to watch football with a capacity of just under 6,000 including 1,800 seats and over 3,000 spaces under cover. The stadium has hosted England Under 16, 17 and 19 Internationals and is due to be a host venue for the Uefa Womens Under 17 European Championship in 2017.

But the club is more than just about flying the flag for Telford every week - pitting their wits against some of the great old names of the Football League days gone by such as Luton Town, Stockport County, Lincoln City and Wrexham.

AFC Telford United was founded by loyal fans in 2004 after the financial collapse of the former Telford United who had been ever present in the 5th tier and had played at Wembley five times between 1970 and 1989.

The reborn club started life three divisions further down the football pyramid and in the eighth tier of the National game. The club is owned by the fans and the Stadium is owned by the community, with over 89 games played on the pitch last season including a number of community and schools finals.

The club has a thriving youth system, the Telford and Wrekin Football Partnership, which is sponsored by Wolverhampton Wanderers and the Greenhous Group.

Under the leadership of chairman Lee Carter, the club has enjoyed three promotions, two in front of capacity crowds at the New Bucks Head. The Bucks have also been a pioneer nationally for community engagement and have enjoyed as many successes off the field as they have on it, winning a number of awards including the BBC Power of Sport award and LGC Award for Community Involvement.

It has also forged excellent links with some very important local employers including Capgemini, Pryce Builders and TTC. Bucks Chairman Lee Carter (pictured below with Councillor Shaun Davies) said: “We set out to achieve the same things as Telford United, but we always promised we

would do it in a different way, a way which was truer to the values of community ownership. Our strength is very much built on how much effort we put into the relationship with our community, not how rich the owner is.

“We have been committed to encouraging young supporters, we have a huge volunteer force and we are extremely proactive whenever it comes to engaging with the community.

“Telford is the third largest town in England without a Football League club and we have ambitions to get there, but not to the detriment of our relationship with the community.”

The Bucks regularly run offers for all Telford and Wrekin Flex Card holders. Visit www.afctelfordunited.co.uk

Upcoming games at the New Bucks HeadDate Against Kick off19 January 2013 Alfreton Town 3pm22 January 2013 Gateshead 7.45pm2 February 2013 Cambridge United 3pm12 February 2013 Hyde 7.45pm16 February 2013 Tamworth 3pm9 March 2013 Macclesfield 3pm30 March 2013 Nuneaton Town 3pm6 April 2013 Dartford 3pm20 April 2013 Hereford 3pm

Admission pricesSeating: Adult £15; concession (over 60s or in receipt of council tax or housing benefit ) £12; 14-18 year olds £7; under 14s £2Standing: Adult £14; concession (over 60s or in receipt of council tax or housing benefit ) £11; 14-18 year olds £6; under 14s £2Disabled spectators with a carer: Carer gets in free, spectator pays concession rate.

For more info visit www.telfordutd.co.uk or call 01952 640064

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Tap the appThe free Council web app, suggested by the independent Co-Operative Commission, is proving a hit with website users and is already accounting for one in 25 people accessing the Council’s homepage.

The app displays up to nine buttons, which can be changed by the user, containing information and quick links to the Council’s most popular web pages.

The app does not collect or transmit any personal data or information from a user’s Smartphone or mobile device to the Council.

As part of the move to Addenbrooke House, a new cafe has now opened to the public on the ground floor.

Café Go! Is conveniently located on the route between Telford Central railway station and Telford Shopping Centre. Visitors can enjoy a range of hot and cold drinks and food freshly prepared on site and where possible from locally sourced produce.

So whether you’re popping into First Point or just passing by, why not have a cup of freshly ground coffee and cake or enjoy a warming plate of chilli con carne.

Work in the area? You can get a sandwich, drink and bag of crisps for £3.75.

First Point in libraries Telford & Wrekin Council has made it easier for residents to access Council services by extending its First Point in to two borough libraries.

Telford & Wrekin Council’s staff have now completed a series of office moves as part of the authority’s drive to reduce the office space that it uses.

The council has now completely moved out of Civic Offices, which will be demolished in the next couple of months and replaced by an ASDA superstore.

Civic Offices have been the Council’s main base since the mid 1970s. Council staff are now working from a small number of key buildings including refurbished offices at Addenbrooke House on Ironmasters Way on the other side of Telford Town Centre, which will house the Council’s First Point customer centre, Darby House and the upper floors of Wellington Civic and Leisure Centre.

The Council has reduced the space it uses by around a third in the past year, helping it make significant savings in running costs and saving around £2m a year.

First Point is now available in Madeley and Newport Libraries and these facilities are an extension to the existing First Point located at Wellington Library and in Telford town centre.

First Point has already proven successful in bringing many organisations together in one place to provide a more joined up service.

The idea behind opening the additional branches in the chosen locations is that it will mean this service is now closer to many more people.

Some of the services offered include:

n Apply for a Concessionary Travel Pass or a Blue Badge parking permit

n Pay council tax or any other council invoice by cheque or card

n Request a service e.g replacement bins and recycling boxes

n Report faulty street lights, potholes, graffiti and fly tipping

n Telephone council services for free

n Get help completing council forms

n Use a computer to access other council services

Madeley is also offering a Citizens Advice Bureau service on Mondays from 10am–1pm. At Newport, residents can make a Citizens Advice Bureau appointment for Wellington or Telford to complement an existing service at the Guildhall in Newport . Some First Point services can also be carried out online via our website or mobile phone app.

The libraries also have computers available for free use by the public who may want to access services or search for jobs and plasma screens are now bringing the latest information to residents.

Telford & Wrekin Council’s staff have

We’vemoved!

If you’re wanting to access

the Council’s website when

you’re out and about, our

new mobile app will make

this much easier.

Anyone accessing

www.telford.gov.uk

using a mobile device

will see a prompt asking

them to bookmark the app

and follow the on-screen

commands. It can also be

accessed via www.telford.

gov.uk/mobileweb

Now open - Give it a Go!

our voice 15yoyo

New year, new schools!It’s a happy New Year for pupils in Telford and Wrekin as work moves ahead to rebuild two more secondary schools. Not only this, but there are many more plans in the pipeline for schools across the borough.

Pupils and staff at Ercall Wood Technology College have just received the news that the full planning application to completely rebuild their school has been approved.

Artist’s impression of the newErcall Wood Technology College

Telford & Wrekin Council has approved the demolition of existing Ercall Wood school buildings and the erection of a new 900 place secondary school and sports facilities.

Shepherd Construction Ltd is now on site and will start work immediately to rebuild the new £14m Ercall Wood Technology College.

Meanwhile in Dawley, work is full steam ahead to rebuild the Phoenix School on land adjacent to Dawley High Street.

This £16m state of the art learning community will include a BMX track, eight court sports hall and floodlit artificial pitches. The new Phoenix School is expected to open its doors this September.

What is a learning community?Learning communities will not only incorporate schools and community facilities on the same site, they will also function differently to traditional schools – working more closely with other learning providers and schools the same area.

Other schemes planned as part of our £200m Building Schools for the Future programme that will be seeking planning approval this year are as follows:

n The Lord Silkin and Grange Park Primary School which, if given full planning approval, will see the existing Lord Silkin site transformed into a modern learning community incorporating a 32 place nursery, 100 place post 16 centre, 420 place primary school and 600 place secondary school. It will also feature community leisure facilities.

n A 900 place Christian faith Academy for ages 11-18 in Priorslee to replace the existing Blessed Robert Johnson Catholic College.

n A 1,200 place Co-operative Academy for ages 11-16 on the Oakengates Leisure Centre site with community leisure facilities. If approved, this would see the existing Wrockwardine Wood Arts College and Sutherland Business and Enterprise College replaced.

Our extensive Building Schools for the Future programme will provide high quality educational facilities for young people across the borough.

No matter which part of the borough you live in, one thing is sure - there will be excellent secondary schools to choose from.

For more information about our Building Schools for the Future programme, call: 01952 380991, email: info.bsf@telford.gov.uk or visit www.telford.gov.uk/futureschools

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Contact us:Telford & Wrekin CouncilYou can book, apply, report or pay for services anytime atwww.telford.gov.uk

General enquiries 01952 380000

Anti-social behaviour hotline 01952 384384

Council tax and benefits 01952 383838

Leisure centres and sports 01952 382621

Libraries 01952 382915

Planning 01952 380380

Recycling, rubbish and litter 01952 384384

Roads and footpaths 01952 384000

Schools and family information 01952 385385

To contact your local councillor visit www.telford.gov.uk/councillors

Telford College 01952 642200 www.tcat.ac.uk

West Mercia Police 0300 333 3000 and

101 (the new non emergency number)

If you have any comments onYour Voice send these to

yourvoice@telford.gov.uk

Your Voice is published by Telford & Wrekin Council and distributed to every household in the borough, providing information on Council services and its partners.

Every effort is made to ensure that all information is accurate at the time of going to print.

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01952 382402

Town Park gets a faceliftWork on a new all inclusive play area, sensory area and landscaping around Telford Town Park Visitor Centre has been completed.

Planting is under way and includes trees, perennials, bulbs, wildflower meadow and grassed areas in which to sit and enjoy your visit.

The construction of the water play area has also started and will be open for Easter. This new play experience will operate throughout the summer months.

The Town Park has also received funding from a programme, known as Parks for People, which is a joint initiative between the Heritage Lottery Fund and Big Lottery.

It consists of more than the play areas around the visitor centre - the park extends over 170 hectares of green space and 62 hectares of this is designated Local Nature Reserve with significant areas of ecological and historical interest.

Footpath construction/improvements will start in spring, creating two educational trails - a Nature Trail and a Heritage Trail extending across the park tying in places of interest.

The trails will boast new signage, colour coded trail finger posts, interpretation boards, picnic areas, learning zones, play activities and sculptures.

New neighbourhood and local gateways/entrances will also be constructed.

These will be installed around the perimeter of the park and within the park itself this summer. The structures will include information boards and signage all aimed at improving visitor access.

FutureFocus launchedTelford & Wrekin Council has launched a new careers advice and information service called FutureFocus.

The service is provided to young people over the age of 13 who are looking for impartial advice and guidance on careers, employment and training and planning their future. It has replaced the old Connexions service, which has been disbanded by Government.

FutureFocus is based at various locations where young people and their carers or parents can drop in for a one to one discussion.

The opening hours are:Madeley (12-14 Court Street)Monday, Tuesday and Thursday 9.30am-12.30pm and 1.15pm-4.30pm.Closed Wednesdays and Fridays.

Wellington LibraryMonday to Friday 1-4.30pm.

Oakengates Theatre @ The PlaceWednesday 1-4.30pm.

FutureFocus careers advisors offer confidential advice and can help with n Choosing the right courses n Finding the right careers information n Advice on new legislation

You can contact a FutureFocus advisor to discuss any career advice on 01952 388988 or visit:www.telford.gov.uk/futurefocus