Friday, January 18 – Snow

As predicted, snow blanketed the country. Waste and recycling collections, transport and general day-to-day life were severely disrupted. When bad weather strikes, or during a major emergency such as flooding, councils and the emergency services work closely with radio stations and newspapers to get important messages out. In the age of the twitter and Facebook it’s much easier to get messages out promptly, but not everyone is online. So when the time comes we rely on those who are to pass on information to their neighbours to spread the word. Thank you to everyone – the media and residents - who help.

Wednesday, January 24 – Council Meeting, 7pm Ebley Mill

This is the first council meeting of 2013, and includes a vote on the our spending plans for the year ahead. A freeze on council tax is proposed along with over £2million of extra spending over the next few years. The bulk of the money is to promote jobs and growth so that we have a strong local economy. There is also extra funding for those in fuel poverty, housing difficulty and poor health. Over the next few weeks we’ll provide more details on specific projects, but in the meantime, if you want to watch the meeting online, you can view it at www.stroud.gov.uk/webcast

Friday, January 25 – Collective energy switching – Dursley & Stroud

Two opportunities today, one in Stroud and one in Dursley to find out more and sign up to a Gloucestershire County Council initiative to help people reduce their energy bills. Centred on obtaining cheaper prices through bulk buying, the aim is get a large number of people to sign up to the scheme and consequently benefit from lower gas and electricity bills. The events run from 9.30am to 1pm at Stroud Library and 2pm to 5pm at the library in Dursley. The deadline to sign up is Monday, so if you can’t make it to the events you can sign up at www.gloucestershire.gov.uk/fairenergy or by phoning 01452 425757.


Saturday, January 26 – Leisure Centre upgrades

Good news for users of both of the council’s main sports centres. This weekend sees Stratford Park Leisure Centre holding an open weekend after £100,000 of extra investment in its gym, which included 18 new pieces of gym equipment and the redecoration of its activity hall. Swimmers at Dursley Pool have also seen improvements following an £80,000 refit of its changing rooms. Usage of both facilities has increased significantly over the last year.

Geoff Wheeler
Leader, Stroud District Council