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Wotton Chamber says give road repairs priority and keep centre open

March 7th 2010

The Wotton-under-Edge Chamber of Trade is to press for a delay in the installation of a new traffic calming system in the town following protests at the short notice given to traders and residents of closure of its main street to enable the work to be carried out.

Chamber President Alex Wilkinson said: “The notice given about this work is just not enough. For Gloucestershire County Council to say that they followed the standard process is ridiculous. Letters hand delivered on a Friday saying the town’s main street is going to be closed for five days as of the following Monday is just not acceptable, even if the closure is only partial as they hope. The same thing happened not long ago with another road in the town. Something has gone very wrong with the Council’s communication processes.

The week leading up to Mothering Sunday can be one of the busiest of the year for some of our businesses and to have had such little notice is beyond belief. If our traders had been given reasonable time, even the week that the Council claims, then they would have had a chance to consider alternative plans and stock accordingly.

To be fair we were notified last December that the work was planned for this week but since it was never confirmed, as we were promised we would be, we naturally assumed that priority had been given to repairing the county’s weather damaged roads.

This is why I am going to press for a delay in the work. It is much more important at this stage that our roads are repaired. Traffic calming in the town can wait until a better time when the proper notice can be given.”

Red Door training issues warning to small businesses

February 22nd 2010

Red Door, based in Charfield, has discovered that grants of up to £1000 which are available through the Learning and Skills Council’s Leadership and Management Advisory Service could be withdrawn if a general election is called.

The scheme is available to any businesses with between five and 249 staff (including volunteers) and provides an initial grant of £500 for training and development of staff and another £500 if the business chips in with the same amount to take things further.

Red Door Director Tracy Francksen said: “It is very difficult to determine whether funding is going to be maintained. It has been suggested that a new Government might well change some of the existing arrangements. We just don’t know. Therefore we have to assume that it will be stopped which means that if anyone wants to take advantage of this great offer then they need to act quickly. It really is a gift. If a small business wants to conduct staff development of any kind and improve on skills such as customer services, marketing or leadership and management then this is too good a chance to miss.”

One such business which has already taken advantage of the scheme is the Edge Health and Beauty Salon in Wotton. Salon owner Penny Ling said: “The impact that the training this money has enabled us to have was quickly evident in the increased sales and repeat bookings.”

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Parking in the town - Your President needs your feedback

February 22nd 2010

Wotton-under-Edge Chamber of Trade President Alex Wilkinson is seeking the views of traders prior to a meeting this week with architectural design consultants Quattro to discuss parking in the town. This follows the decision last week by the Town Council to fund a feasibility study into the purchase and development of the plot of land formerly occupied by Stokes Bakery.

The scheme which was originally put together by Alex Wilkinson and now being considered is for the Town Council to purchase the land from its current owners, Renishaw, and develop it into a car park with 50 spaces; mixed short and long term along with a limited amount of housing.

One element for consideration is how best the council could finance the scheme and arrange so that as much as possible can offset the purchase price. Some parking slots could be leased or sold to businesses in the town for their exclusive use. In addition to the cottage at the entrance to the land, there is space for the building of between four and six houses or possibly eight to ten apartments. There is also the potential for more apartments and perhaps a couple of shops where the old bakery shop was located with, perhaps, some sort of thoroughfare from the car park.

Alex Wilkinson said: "As our members will be aware I have been struggling with the problem of insufficient car parking space in the town for some time. It has been a thorny issue for many years and this could be the last opportunity we will ever have to acquire a plot of land in a central location. There is a long way to go and we have much to consider, such as access to the site. This is where our members can play a vital part. I need their feedback. Perhaps they might be interested in buying one or more of the spaces; in which case, what would they be prepared to pay? Do they think it should all be made over to long term parking with the Chipping being dedicated solely to short term? Should there be a charge put on the local community tax for this facility? I want to hear from them as soon as possible."

Alex Wilkinson can be contacted by email through the Chamber’s web site at www.wotton.biz.

This story has prompted considerable interest in th elocal press. See how the Gazette is following the story in the pdf below

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