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www.neathferret.co.uk Neath's Discussion Website & Private Eye Looking for Community Problems Blaenhonddan / Dyffryn Clydach Edition July 2010 Version 31.4 PRINTS THE NEWS THAT NEWSPAPERS WON'T Contact: News or Comments: news@neathferret.co.uk or use our new readers letters facility Welcome to the website that aims to inform everyone about what is happening in our community and to highlight problems in order to discuss them in a democratic way.
Councillor Tony Wyn-Jones at Carnival To meet the residents he represents Councillor Tony Wyn-Jones says that as ward member he will be in attendance on the Plaid Cymru stall from 11:00am to 1:00pm at the forthcoming Carnival at the Cwrt Herbert Playing Fields. He says that he will be delighted to meet the residents he represents. Llywn Helyg Homes are not 'affordable' Say Welsh Assembly Government For two years we have been trying to find out if the Welsh Assembly Government was helping to make the Waterstones Home at Llywn Helyg (White's Folly) affordable for first time buyers. The following reply gives the answer:- "We have conducted a brief meeting with Jocelyn Davies (Minister for Housing) regarding your concerns about Llwyn Helyg housing development. In the meeting, she said that as far as she knows, there are no affordable units on this site in the planning. Waterstones does not offer any shared equity properties. We have also received the following statement from the Assembly Members' Research Service:--" "Llywn Helyg is a private housing development in the Waunceirch area of Neath built by Waterstone Homes and is a mix of 2, 3 and 4 bed detached, terrace, town and coach houses. It is not receiving and has not received, any funding from the Welsh Assembly Government, neither will any such funding be provided as this is a purely private development." This puts the record straight following our allegations made in good faith about these houses. It also explains the relatively high asking price for the homes now being built. However, the matter does not end there, as we have asked the Welsh Assembly Government where the £35m allocated for affordable homes has gone to? Roman Way Road Changes Cllr. Tony Wyn-Jones a confronts angry residents 3rd July 2010 The July's councillors advice and forum meeting was conducted by Cllr Tony Wyn-Jones at the Owain Glyndwr Community Centre, where angry residents expressed their views about the proposed 'one way' road changes at Roman Way. Included in the proposals is a two lane configeration at Banana Island. Residents asked Cllr. Wyn Jones to arrange a meeting with the highway planning officials so that they can get more information and express their views and suggestions. Cllr. Wyn-Jones expressed his regret that Cllr. Janice Dudley was on holiday at the present time because she was on the Planning Committee and was more aware of the situation. At the same time at the Bryncoch Community Centre, residents expressed their views about a proposed LDP site that would cause added congestion to what is already considered a problem area for traffic. It should be noted that Cllr Janice Dudley holds her advice meetings at the Owain Glyndwr Community Centre on the the first Saturday of the month at 10:00am - except for the month of August. Short Cut to Tesco Express and Fish & Chip Bar Plans given to Cllr. Wyn-Jones for action. Details of a suggested short cut pathway from Fernlea Park to the Tesco Express Store near the Owain Glyndwr Community Centre were given to Cllr. Wyn Jones for evaluation by Waterstones, the developer constructing 38 new homes above the Tesco Store. The construction of the pathway could be done at no cost to the council by the developers while they are still on site. The proposed pathway would eliminate future traffic problems and would be environmentally friendly and an asset to the council who own the ground on the unused edge of the playing field. The suggested pathway would also help to make the new housing site more private and select - and would therefore be desirable by Waterstones. Sick Patients Ripped off with phonecalls to Doctors Surgeries Phone calls to doctors surgeries are being charged for - including those having exclusive 'no cost'contracts with their telephone provider. We refer to calls with 08444 numbers. A percentage of the cost of calls is alleged to benefit doctors who are said to be earning around £100,000* per year. One patient paid nearly £5 for these calls over a charging period and feels very annoyed about it. We think the Welsh Assembly Government should look into this as they have done with hospital car parking. We note that hospital patients are still being charged for car parking at the Baglan Moors hospital because of a long term contract with the authorities. *A Daily Mail report recently stated a higher figure. Alternative Voting System should be supported No candidate should be elected with less than 50% of the votes cast We hope that the proposed referendum next May will make our general election system more fair. At the last election Mr Peter Hain was elected with only 46.3% of the votes cast. We feel sure that Mr Hain is fair minded and will support the alternative voting system in his safe Neath seat. For the full election results, have a look at General Election News before the website is taken off-line at the end of this month. Coming shortly..... A new format for this website A new format is planned for this website which will make it more interactive. A menu will help you to select different sections and make it more interesting. Links to other local websites will help to keep everyone more informed about local affairs. Many items currently left on for first viewers will be put in the archives - but will still be accessible for those who want to see them. Going shortly..... Two websites that have served their purpose - gone past their sell by date, so to speak, will taken off-line at the end of this month, they are:- www.generalelectionnews.tk which was put on-line to inform local residents about the candidates for the General Election held last May. It currently shows the voting results and the percentage of votes for each candidate. www.voteno.tk This was put on line to discuss the council housing stock transfer to a housing association. Anyone interested in their content is advised to download the information or to print hard copies before they are removed from the Internet. Police warnings about scams and crook activities. Warnings to residents have been put on a local Neighbourhood Watch website: Rhiwlas Neighbourhood Watch The website also give information about an open day at Neath Police Station and the date of the next PACT meeting. The website's GUESTBOOK contains a message from County Councillor Tony Wyn-Jones. Residents Upset over Council's email An apology is made Further Candidate Sites Consultation. Last year 424 sites were submitted for consideration as potential development sites in the LDP. There is no need to comment again on these sites. Another opportunity to submit additional sites will start on 15th June and end at midnight on 27th July 2010. When an email regarding this was sent to around 250 residents it revealed the email addresses of all concerned. This upset many residents who are aware of spammers and how advantage is taken over careless actions like this. Several emails were sent to the council, including the following:- "Individuals have a wide range of rights under the Data Protection Act, including access, compensation and the prevention of processing. I shall be contacting both the Local Authority and the Information Commissioner's Office to report this flagrant disregard of confidentiality." The council has now apologised for its action in the following email sent to those concerned:- "Following the circulation of an e-mail regarding the Neath Port Talbot Local Development Plan (LDP) it has come to the authority’s notice that this e-mail inadvertently displayed a number of other e-mail addresses as well as that of the proposed recipient. These addresses are already available and in the public realm. However, it was not our intention to circulate them in this way. As such the authority unreservedly apologises for the error and has taken steps to ensure that such an error does not occur again." In future we feel sure that the council will in future use the email BCC facility (Blind Carbon Copy) where no addresses are revealed. No water scam Warning about an apparent water failure Information has been received from a NHW co-ordinator of a possible SCAM being operated in our area. Some elderly people have experienced having no water and it appears that the supply has been turned off at the Stop Cock outside the house by person or persons unknown who latter call at their home to investigate the problem with a view to gaining entry to the home. If anyone experiences this problem they should check if their Stop Cock has been turned off and report the matter to the Police and Water board. Can you please notify elderly persons living near you. GAS and ELECTRICITY Those with outside meter reading facilities should be aware that it is also possible for a crooked person to turn off supplies in a similar way. If anyone suffers a loss of any utility service it would be wise to check with a neighbour - at night use the telephone. Any suspicious behaviour should be reported to the Police on telephone number: 101. Emergency calls should be made by using the 999 facility. OTHER SCAMS There are several websites on the Internet that give information and advise on scams of various sorts. One example is: www.safefromscams.co.uk Public Sector Pay Some surprises coming soon The new Govenment is looking at the pay that officials are getting in the public sector. The intention is to reveal what these officials are getting. Local council tax payers may have some surprises when the information is available. We will wait and see. Welsh Assembly now opening their eyes at Neath eye sore We can reveal that the research department of the Welsh is now looking at the new housing development near the Tesco Express store at Waunceirch and the alleged claim that they are 'affordable' homes. More will be said about this when we know all the facts. In the meantime have a look at the Neath Eye Sore website - it is an eye opener! www.neatheyesore.tk Police Notice Be alert for scam callers On the 5th May 2010 a 93 year old male living in the Pontardawe area reported that a male person had called at his home stating he was from ‘care and repair’ and had come to measure up for a new door at the house. This person was allowed into the house and after he left it was found that two gold chains had been stolen. The male is described as being White, 5’10”, clean shaven, wearing a black baseball cap back to front, black woollen gloves and carrying a tape measure. Should anyone have information in respect of this incident or similar incidents please ring 101 or use the 999 system in an emergency. Everyone is requested to be extra vigilant and report any suspicious behaviour to the Police immediately. Yellow Pages Delivery Warning The Police have advised us that the annual delivery of the Yellow Pages telephone directory is due shortly. Everyone is advised to ensure that their copies are not left outside to give the impression the owners are away. If your neighbour is on holiday you can do a favour by keeping their copy safe until they return. Election shambles Electors highlight the need for a new voting system No candidate should take a seat in the House of Commons with less that 50% of the votes cast. Peter Hain, the MP for Neath, had 17,192 votes, that is, 46.3% of the votes cast. Others, those who opposed him had 19,960 votes, that is, 53.7% of the votes cast. In other words, more voted against Peter Hain than for him. This cannot be considered fair. Clearly the voting system should be changed. This is just one example of what has happened in many places in the UK. Electors deserve a better system. We feel that any fair minded MP, including Peter Hain, will agree to what seems plain common sense to the majority of electors. Full details of how the votes were cast in Neath are on the following website from which the above information has been extracted:- www.generalelectionnews.tk Notice Mystery at Owain Glyndwr 
Councillor Janice Dudley is mystified as to why the notices about her monthly surgery amd advice meetings are being removed from the Owain Glyndwr Community Centre notice board. The monthly surgeries offer a service to the community as a whole - and to anyone with a problem. Councillor Dudley said she represents all residents irrespective of their political preferences and can't understand why anyone is small minded enough to remove her newsletters which contain the dates of her monthly meetings that are scheduled for the first Saturday morning of each month.Councillor Dudley pays the community council £10 to hire the hall for each meeting and is one of the few councillor to hold surgeries this way. She said that there was a good response from the questionaire in the last Newsletter and that the relevent matters are being dealt with. NEXT SURGERY and ADVICE MEETING -- the first Saturday in June -- 10:00 to 11:00 am. NEXT PACT MEETING at Bryncoch The Police have informed us that the next PACT meeting will take place at the Waunceirch Community Centre - as shown on the website mentioned below. PACT meetings give residents the opportunity to meet local community police officers and council officials in an effort to sort out local problems relating to crime and security. PACT meetings for other areas can also be found on the following website:- www.ourbobby.com TENANTS VOTE YES TO TRANSFER TO NPT HOMES Is vote valid? Welsh Assembly Member asked to investigate Tenants in Neath Port Talbot have voted to transfer their homes to NPT Homes, a new community housing mutual set up with the help of Neath Port Talbot Council. Independent organisation Electoral Reform Services, which ran the ballot, have released the results of the secret ballot of tenants in which 61.6% voted, 56.6% supported the transfer proposal and 43.4% did not support the Council’s transfer proposal. Questions that remain unanswered:
We understand that this matter has been referred to the Welsh Assembly. Further views and comments can be seen on www.voteno.tk NB... It is on recored that council officials are in favour of the housing stock transfer. It is also on record that many tenants currently living in Housing Association properties would prefer to live in a council owned property. Other facts and figures can be seen on the Internet. Questions that residents are asking their councillors
Response Councillor Tony Wyn-Jones said that although he is not 100% fit after his recent illness he will make a big effort to get answers to the above questions. He added that residents have a right to know the answers. PACT MEETING Monday, 22nd March 2010 - report At the Owain Glyndwr Community Centre - South Bryncoch. No county councillor attended this meeting, which lasted less than half an hour. The Police reported a reduction in crime figures and there were no relevant complaints from those who attended. County Councillor Tony Wyn-Jones said he was unable to attend due to the fact he was at another meeting. He said he is making every effort to get answers to the questions raised by residents, which we printed above. Moblie Phone Scams Beware of rogue sale-persons Residents are advised to be aware of mobile phone offers from rogue firms and individuals acting independently from the well known brand names. They give the impression that they represent a brand name when, in fact, they do not. Many residents has been accosted on the streets of Neath town centre with offers to change their phone or their service provider. Another scam is a telephone call that gives the impression that it is from the company that you have an account with. One of the first questions asked is if you are happy to remain with the same company (giving the name of firm). If you answer 'yes' it is recorded and taken as an indication that you want to proceed with the deal they are about to make. We think it wrong that established phone companies allow these subsidiary firms to act on their behalf in this manner. One resident tells us he was disconnected as a result of one such deal which involved a so called updated phone that was never delivered. Remember that these are cleverly trained sales people who avoid telling you the name of the company they represent - and that it is easy to be conned by them. No signature is required for the deal - just a verbal 'yes' to a question that is cleverly asked. What is more annoying is the fact that these subsidiary firms (what we call rogue firms) are paid commission by the phone companies to sell phones. When the transaction is done, the rogue firm hold the 'deeds' of your mobile phone number for the duration of the contract, which is usually for 18 months. During this time your phone number is tied to them whether you like it or not. This applies independently to the account with your service provider to whom you pay your monthly bills. It's time this minefield was sorted out and a stop made to people being tricked into an upgrade (which is sometimes a phone not so good as the old one) that they did not really want. It is particularly annoying to anyone wanting to keep the same mobile phone number, which is controlled by an unwelcome third party on a so called contract basis. Money talks at Rowan Tree Close, Bryncoch ...and a black mark for the Welsh Assembly A refusal of a planning application for environmental reasons at Rowan Tree Close, Bryncoch, by Neath Port Talbot County Borough Council, was overturned on appeal to the Welsh Assembly. The result was that applicant sold the ground for development for an alleged £125,000. It seems that making money was the prime objective - and this was done at the expense of the wild life in the hedgerow that has now been removed. It is sad that the Welsh Assembly disregarded the local council and the environment. Residents are unhappy about this and say that there should be an inquiry. Should the Welsh Assembly have the last say? How can one appeal against them when an apparent injustice is done? Keep in touch with the local scene The following websites will help readers to keep in touch with what is happening in our community:- Blaenhonddan Community Council - in the hands of Mrs Mavis Hewitt - Clerk to the council Bryncoch Environment Group Concern for our area. Neath Eye Sore 'Whites Folly' named after the council's chief planning officer. Voting on council house transfer The facts of the matter. Factual info on the LNG pipeline Facts about the dangers of LNG. Anti-corruption Facts and figures for the record. General Election News Details of forthcoming candidates. Lina Ware Speaks for the environment. Dai Dust Controversial words from an old sage. Neath Community News It should be noted that Neath Community News is under development as a general news media for the area. It has been acknowledged that a non-political website of this nature should be available for the community. Local business people are invited to sponsor this new venture. News From Councillors at South Bryncoch Councillor Tony Wyn-Jones has to have further tests in his treatment. He wishes to thank everyone who has sent him get well wishes. He wants everyone one to know he is making every effort to get better in order to serve the residents in South Bryncoch. Cllr. Janice Dudley is taking his calls and is taking care of matters on his behalf. Surgery Dates Cllr. Dudley has just circulated a newsletter with her contact details and reminds residents that she holds monthly surgeries in South Bryncoch on the first Saturday of the month at the Owain Glyndwr Community Centre 10:00am - 11:30am. Assembly Member, Bethan Jenkins,attended the last meeting on Saturday, 6th March. Yellow Pages have a limited future? A report in a national newspaper suggests that Yellow Pages (the telephone directory) has a limited future because so many people are using the Internet to find out what they want. According to an official source, unwanted phone books create 75,000 tons of waste paper each year and disposing them costs taxpayers over £8million a year. All UK directory publishers maintain an opt-our scheme that enables consumers to choose not to receivea printed directory. It is useful to know that the directories can be cancelled on-line. www.junkbuster.org.uk Council Tax News Dyffryn Clydach Good news from Dyffryn Clydach Community Council - there is no increase in the precept for the third year running. Their financial position is looking healthy and the councillors are pleased to announce no change for the forthcoming year. Blaenhonddan Financial matters are not so good at Blaenhonddan Community Council and it is alleged that there will be up to 1.7% increase on the precept. It is also alleged that there will also be cut backs to charities and other organisations. It is also noted that the council's website now contains advertisements (put on by Google) to support the hosting service because it appears that the annual hosting fee has not been paid. The website itself has not being updated and does not contain information that was promised earlier last year. This means of communication would be useful in the absence of the Neath Guardian newspaper. The council's finance committee was disbanded earlier last year sometime after six Plaid Cymru councillers resigned from the council following the U-turn by some Labour members after an attempt by PC to reorganise and restucture the council's financial affairs. However one bright piece of news is that we understand that the community clerk's office will be moving from her home to to a community centre to make the council's administration more efficient. Click for previous version and recent updates Some quick links for other items are given below. LDP - Bryncoch Action Committee Chairman writes to Council Planning Department View Councillor's Continued Concern over energy saving lamps View Bats now take second place at Rowan Tree Close, Bryncoch View Alcohol Free Zones in Neath Port Talbot? View How safe are emails? Security alert View Bryncoch Environment School children featured on website View LDP - Local Development Plan Great concern in Bryncoch & Dyffryn Clydach View New General Election Website For Neath Port Talbot View News in brief from other websites Public money to be spent on private property owned by unknown people. See report Council are annoyed with the number of tenants who want to VOTE NO See details Concern about corruption grows - read about "Get Snouts Out of the Trough Party" See details Websites Censored by Newspapers? Press fail to tell readers about serious content View Neath Abbey and District Older Peoples Forum Meeting report View Dyffryn Clydach PACT August Meeting Police And Communities Together - Meeting Report View The Letter the local weekly newpaper did NOT print Was there a good reason? View Community Councillor runs to Police - about a joke! View More sneaks at work in Neath - Warning to shop owners Sneak reports shop owner For listening to his own radio View Neath Eye Sore Development 4 more houses to be crammed in View New Anti-corruption WebSite www.anticorruption.tk
Watchdogs and our code of practice A few words from our editorial team View New VOTE NO website A website that looks at the forthcoming ballot on council house stock transfer to a housing association www.voteno.tk Controversial website launched - Pipeline Twitter Highlights grave dangers of LNG at high pressure www.pipelinetwitter.co.uk Welsh Assembly to look into eyesore Dr Dai Lloyd investigates A letter from Dr Dai Lloyd AM stating the question of the Welsh Assembly paying the developers of Neath's Waunceirch eyesore 20% of their costs for building 'affordable homes' is being looked into. Link to Dai Lloyd's website
Tell your friends about this website - or send them a copy by email, our website address is:- www.neathferret.co.uk Email news and comments to: news@neathferret.co.uk or use our readers letter page. Go to LATEST version view version 23/27 - October to December 2009 News updates View version 22 - September 2009 Concern over energy lamps View version 21 - August 2009 Mobile Phone information View version 20 - July 2009 The tomato plant issue. View versions 18/19 LNG Pipeline and its dangers. Back to version 17 Is Health & Safety going over the top? Back to version 16 Neath Ferret v BNP, Environmental award. Back to version 15 Bryncoch Environment Group new website. Back to version 14 BNP insult our MP, Community centre news. Back to version 13 Tesco disappoints, Colourful website for BCC, Chairperson change over at BCC, Peter Hain, MP. offers help. Back to version 12 The Caewern Community Hall issue. Back to version 11 What Tesco wants Tesco gets. NOTE. Issues in version 10 are included in version 11 - including details of the Council's new complaint procedure following our item in version 9. Back to version 9 A Case for Public Services Ombudsman? Back to version 8 Liberal Councillor's website leads the way. Back to version 7 £5,000 reward for information Back to version 6 Councillor put in the picture. Back to version 5 PC Councillors scold Neath Ferret Back to Version 4 Neath Port Talbot dentist leaving NHS Back to Version 3 Anger over Neath Guardian Back to version 2 Planning consent for eye sore? Information for this website is accepted and printed in good faith. It is gathered from various sources and may, or may not, reflect the views of the webmaster or any member of the community council or its officials. No responsibility is accepted for any errors that may occur from time to time. Sources of information must be made known to the editorial team but will not be divulged to any third party We aim to put the community first and make the residents of Neath aware of unjustances. The website is hosted for and on behalf of the editorial team on the understanding fairness prevails and there is right to reply on any issue. |