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A series of speeches were given as residents and dignitaries gathered at the the Stevenage Proclamation Ceremony.
The town came together to mark the accession of King Charles III & wish him every success as he takes on the duties of sovereignty whilst also sending him our condolences.
At another ceremony the Mayor of Stevenage, Cllr Margaret Notley and Leader of the Council, Cllr Sharon Taylor laid floral tributes in the town centre by a portrait of Queen Elizabeth II. Sharon Taylor said: “I would like to express my sincere condolences to the Royal Family on behalf of Stevenage Borough Council.
“HRH Queen Elizabeth II has been head of state for Great Britain and the Commonwealth realms for 70 years. Her extraordinary commitment and loyalty to our nation and beyond will be sorely missed. It is only right that we express our deepest thanks to her for this life of service to our country.
I recall meeting Queen Elizabeth in 2012 when she visited Stevenage to officially open a brand new maternity unit at the Lister Hospital. I was honoured to spend a short time with her during the visit and delighted to see so many people from schoolchildren to pensioners waiting to get a glimpse of her.
“This reflects the town’s respect and admiration for her and the dedication she has shown the nation and Commonwealth. She officially opened Stevenage New Town and it was conceived and
has grown in line with her long period in royal service. As she developed as our monarch, so has our town and it’s fitting to have major roads such as Queensway, named after her. “The council has arranged a number of ways to acknowledge the death HRH Queen Elizabeth II at this poignant time. Council buildings will lower flags to half-mast. There will be detailed information on our website and social media channels for residents who wish to share their condolences. Our thoughts are with all of the Royal Family at this sad time.”
Stevenage MP Stephen McPartland said: “My thoughts are with the King and the rest of the Royal Family at this very sad time for their family. The passing of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II will be deeply felt by all of us here in the UK, the Commonwealth and across the whole world.
The death of HM Queen Elizabeth was marked in a number of ways in Stevenage.
“Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II was an inspirational figure, who I was very lucky to meet on several occasions, and a dedicated public servant. Her commitment, knowledge, kindness and dedication to helping others will be sorely missed by us all.”
A charity is seeking volunteers to help pack secondhand books into boxes, ready to be shipped to Kenya to create a library for a deprived community.
In 2013, Just Be a Child was set up by Stevenage’s Lenka McAlinden to send donated books to Kenya and transform shipping containers into libraries. The charity shipped a container filled with books in August, which will become its eighth library and will be dedicated to Alex Lang – a trustee of the charity, and a Stevenage stalwart, who died in June aged 78.
Lenka said: “What can I say about Alex? How can I express the loss that we all feel? If you knew him, if you ever met him just once, you know yourself how kind-hearted, generous and a wonderful human being he was.
“Alex lost his battle with cancer. He was a real force of nature, working tirelessly to make Just Be a Child succeed.
“He was a dedicated Rotarian and a wonderful friend.
“We will miss him dearly. We will celebrate his life and all his achievements by dedicating our library to him.”
Lenka has now travelled to Kenya to help create this year’s new library in Tiwi, a coastal settlement south of Mombasa.
The 40ft shipping container, which Lenka met at port for it to be inspected by customs before being transported to Tiwi, contains 50,000 books in 1,200 boxes.
In preparation for the 2023 library, the next bookpacking day will be held on Saturday, October 8, from 10am to 1pm at Dollimore and Christie Ltd on Stevenage Road in St Ippolyts. Tea and biscuits will be provided.
If you would like to volunteer to help pack books, email lenka.mcalinden@justbeachild.com Lenka said: “We hope that we can positively influence more young members of the communities we serve, one library at a time.”
She added: “If you would like to become a trustee, we would very much like to hear from you. Just email lenka.mcalinden@justbeachild.com “If you have an idea for a fundraising activity, please get in touch at info@justbeachild.com We need all the help we can get!”
A PE teacher at a Stevenage secondary school who had to have her leg amputated after a wall collapsed on her during Storm Eunice in February is preparing to take part in a charity run in October.
Lauren Cooper, 31, had ventured outside during the storm to check on the condition of her car, having already lost part of her garden wall due to the storm. Unbeknown to Lauren, a brick wall – which was providing structural support to an adjacent wall positioned behind her – was also in an unstable condition.
She said: “I didn’t feel the wall hit me. I was just suddenly on the concrete and my leg was trapped under the wall. In what I can only describe as a blur, I was just looking at my leg thinking ‘my leg’s under there,’ but I couldn’t feel it. It must’ve only been a second or so, but it felt like I was looking at my leg for a long time.”
Lauren had been knocked over by the force of the brick post and part of her leg was crushed underneath.
She was taken to A&E at Stevenage’s Lister Hospital, before being transferred to Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge, where she had her left leg amputated below the knee. She then started physiotherapy at Lister, to learn to walk again using her new prosthetic leg.
Of the Lister physiotherapists, Lauren said: “What they do is amazing. They have listened to me, laughed with me, fought my corner and given me the confidence to keep pushing on.
“They haven’t just helped me with the practical elements of learning to walk again, they have also helped me mentally and genuinely care about how I am.
“They know when I am down and can spot the signs if I’m not quite myself. Their help, guidance and messages of support have made all the difference.”
Lauren has now set her sights on completing 5km in the Rainbow Run on October 2 – an event organised by the East and North Hertfordshire Hospitals’ Charity, which supports hospitals including Lister. She said: “When I saw the Rainbow Run advertised,
I decided to give myself a challenge. I may not run it, I may walk it, but I have a great team of teacher friends who have signed up to do it with me so, one way or another, I will finish a 5k – just seven months after losing my leg!”
Eloise Huddleston, director of the East and North Hertfordshire Hospitals’ Charity, said: “Lauren is a true inspiration. Taking on the challenge of the Rainbow Run just seven months after the amputation is incredible. She is awe-inspiring and we will all be right behind her every step of the way. Good luck Lauren!”
The Rainbow Run takes place on Sunday, October 2, at Ridlins End Athletics Stadium in Stevenage. There are 5km and 10km routes, as well as a 2.5km junior circuit, and participants are encouraged to wear rainbow colours.
To sign up, visit enhhcharity.org.uk/rainbow and to sponsor Lauren visit justgiving.com/lauren-cooper38
An emergency responder who had life-saving surgery at Stevenage’s Lister Hospital after suffering a heart attack while treating a woman in cardiac arrest said he will be “forever grateful for the amazing team effort which helped to save two lives that day”.
Jeremy Williams, a senior emergency medical technician with the East of England Ambulance Service, was resuscitating a 30-year-old woman at her home in Bedfordshire when he felt excruciating pain.
His teammates quickly realised what was happening and, while some continued to shock the original patient, others carried out an ECG on Jeremy and discovered he was having a heart attack.
The crews then worked side by side to manage both casualties and transfer them to separate hospitals. Jeremy underwent emergency surgery at Lister to have two stents fitted to unblock the arteries around his heart. Now he and the original patient are both making full recoveries.
Jeremy, 53, said: “It was one of those things which never, ever happens. I can laugh about it now because I’m glad to be here, but if it hadn’t been for my colleagues it would be a completely different story.
“We knew it was a bad job when we arrived because the patient’s condition was so serious, but it just seemed to get worse from there.
“I’ve come off a motorbike at high speed so know what pain is, but have never felt anything like I did on that day. It was so excruciating that the crew couldn’t dry my chest to attach the ECG. But once
they did get a reading, they knew what they had to do and transferred me straight to the specialist hospital at Lister where I had two stents fitted.
“I now feel fine, but shudder to think what the outcome would be if this had happened on a country road in the middle of nowhere with no one else around. But for me, everything fell into place –if I was going to have a heart attack, I couldn’t have had it with better people around me.
“I will be forever grateful for the amazing team effort which helped to save two lives that day.”
East of England Ambulance Service staff Mark Evans, Nadine Ward, Paul Neary, Dave Jadidi and Sophie Reynolds worked together to treat both patients. Shaun Whittington, advanced paramedic in urgent care, led the incidents and described the shift as one he will never forget.
“Jeremy’s heart rate and blood pressure dropped dramatically while we were on the way to hospital and, at one point, I thought he was going to go into cardiac arrest,” said Shaun. “I don’t know who was sweating more – him or me.
“We waited at Lister while he had the stents fitted and within just 40 minutes he was a completely different person. When we arrived, he looked like he was about to die, but after the surgery it was like he had just come home from a holiday.
“I’ve been in this job for 22 years and have never heard of anything like this happening before, and really hope it never happens again.
“The fact that Jeremy and the patient have both recovered is a testament to the skills and dedication of the team on scene on the day, who worked together brilliantly to manage two very challenging incidents.”
“I will be forever grateful for the amazing team effort which helped to save two lives that day.”
Planning permission to turn a Grade II* listed 14th century building into a home has been granted, after controversial plans to transform it into a children’s nursery and crèche were withdrawn.
Applicant John James had originally wanted to transform Chells Manor House, on Chells Lane in Stevenage, into a day nursery and crèche, but withdrew the application after dozens of people objected to the plans, on grounds including increased traffic and congestion, parking, noise and loss of heritage.
The currently vacant Chells Manor House is an imposing timber frame building built by the Wake family in the 14th century, with further wings added in the 16th and 17th centuries.
The building was originally a high-status house, that eventually became a farmhouse and then a gentleman’s house in the later 19th century. Commercial (office) use was originally permitted in 1987.
An application to turn the building back into a home was submitted to Stevenage Borough Council at the end of May, which has now been approved, with planning permission and listed building consent granted.
A report by a Stevenage Borough Council planning officer, recommending planning permission is
granted, says: “The proposed physical works involved in the conversion are relatively nonintrusive and would allow the architectural features of the building to be retained. As such, the proposals for returning the building to residential use are sympathetic to the original character of the building.
“The principle of the proposed development is considered acceptable, as it is in a sustainable location and helps the council to meet its needs to provide sufficient housing.
“The proposed development would have sufficient off-street parking and would not prejudice the safety and operation of the highway network. “There are clear benefits in bringing this building back into its original use and safeguarding its future.”
Acting on behalf of Mr James, property consultant Carter Jonas said the proposal to use the building as a children’s nursery was withdrawn because of access concerns.
Carter Jones said: “Returning the building to residential use, the use for which it was designed, is a heritage benefit, and the opportunity to remove unsympathetic adaptations and accretions resulting from the previous commercial use is also a benefit.”
The people of Ukraine mark their Independence Day on 24 August, which is also exactly six months since Russia’s invasion began, and 31 years since declaring independence from the Soviet Union in 1992.
To show both the UK’s continued support, and to thank the British public for their continued support and generosity, councils are illuminating buildings and landmarks across the country in blue and yellow.
“Stevenage residents have shown overwhelming support and generosity to the people of Ukraine this year, and this small act of lighting up our clock tower shows that we stand with the people of Ukraine on their day of independence.
“Residents are also encouraged to take part in the #SunflowersForUkraine social media campaign, which aims to get members of the public to show their support for the people of Ukraine by posting a photo or video with a sunflower using the hashtag.”
Stevenage’s iconic clock tower was lit up in yellow and blue to mark Independence Day of Ukraine (Wednesday 24 August).
Councillor Richard Henry, Deputy Leader and Portfolio Holder for Culture, Leisure, Children and Young People, said:
A pharmaceutical company in Stevenage has been fined more than £6 million for overcharging the NHS for a life-saving epilepsy drug.
An investigation by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) found that Flynn, based in Stevenage’s Primett Road, and Pfizer charged unfairly high prices for phenytoin sodium capsules for more than four years.
NHS costs for the drug rose from £2 million in 2012 to £50 million the following year. The firms de-branded the drug, previously known as Epanutin, meaning it was no longer subject to price regulation and the firms could set prices at their discretion.
Given Pfizer and Flynn were the dominant suppliers of the drug in the UK at the time, the NHS had no choice but to pay the inflated final price for this important anti-epilepsy medicine. Over four years, Pfizer charged prices between 780% and 1,600% higher than previously.
Pfizer supplied the drug to Flynn, which then sold the capsules on to wholesalers and pharmacies at a price between 2,300% and 2,600% higher than the prices previously charged by Pfizer.
In December 2016, the CMA issued an infringement decision, finding that the companies’ behaviour broke competition law.
Pfizer and Flynn challenged this decision at the Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT). The CAT upheld the CMA’s findings on market definition and dominance, but set aside its conclusion that the companies’ prices were an unlawful “abuse” of dominance. The CAT referred this matter back to the CMA for further consideration – known as a remittal.
The CMA and Flynn then appealed to the Court of Appeal. In March 2020, the court dismissed Flynn’s appeal in its entirety and upheld aspects of the CMA’s appeal relating to the application of the legal test for unfair pricing. Following this, the CMA decided to re-investigate the matters remitted by the CAT and opened its current investigation in June 2020.
Following additional evidence gathering and analysis, the CMA has determined that the companies’ behaviour was an abuse of their dominant positions in their respective markets and that both Pfizer and Flynn charged unfair prices for phenytoin capsules.
“A whole new demographic is falling into crisis” due to the rising cost of living, Citizens Advice Stevenage has warned.
Citizens Advice is a charity offering free and independent advice on a range of issues, including benefits, housing, work and immigration. Staff and volunteers at Citizens Advice Stevenage say they have seen a significant increase in people seeking their help.
Latest statistics show they helped 944 people in July, seeing a total of 2,714 issues.
Charlotte Blizzard-Welch, chief executive of Citizens Advice Stevenage, said: “We’ve got a whole new demographic that is falling into crisis. People who were just making ends meet before, people who were getting by, are now really feeling the impact of the cost-of-living crisis, the rise in inflation, and they need us more than ever before.” New analysis by Citizens Advice has found that 1 in 4 people in the UK won’t be able to afford to pay their energy bills in October, and this could jump to 1 in 3 in January when prices are set to rise again, the charity said.
A Citizens Advice spokesman said: “Our latest data continues to show how demand for our help is unprecedented.
“People on the lowest incomes face significant shortfalls in their budgets and may not have savings to fall back on, but a new group of people, who would otherwise be more financially stable, will fall into hardship.
“We estimate that over half of the people who won’t be able to pay their bills aren’t eligible for the government’s targeted support to people on
means-tested benefits. Most of these households earn less than £30,000 a year and are in work.”
Citizens Advice has highlighted how households have seen prices increase over the last 12 months, but their incomes have remained the same, and how lifestyle changes made in response to price increases have impacted people’s mental wellbeing, with many foregoing things that used to bring them pleasure, including socialising.
The Citizens Advice spokesman said: “Looking ahead to the winter, many households who are now ‘just about managing’ see the price cap increase as a significant turning point into real hardship. It’s vital that the government and regulators keep these households in mind when designing solutions to address the cost-of-living crisis.
“While the focus needs to be on boosting the incomes of the poorest households through benefits, we know that huge numbers of people will fall into financial stress and are not eligible for support via benefits under current thresholds.”
Citizens Advice says options for supporting these under-reached groups could include targeted support via a child benefit grant, or rebate to basic rate taxpayers.
Citizens Advice is also calling for a winter ban on energy companies forcibly switching customers to prepayment meters, which should protect anyone who falls into arrears.
“Ultimately, support needs to target those who need it most and meet the scale of the challenge — and that means new ideas on the table to boost incomes and reduce costs,” the charity said.
Are you struggling to pay your bills? Visit stevenagecab.org.uk or call Citizens Advice on 0800 144 8848.
By Paul FryI once got a lift home from former Mayor Ken Vale after a social function in town. I was a junior reporter on the old Gazette and he was going my way.
It was the posh car, adorned with the official flags and town crest. Our arrival at my doorstep in the small hours probably kept the neighbouring curtain-twitchers in Shephall busy for a few moments.
Such trappings and fripperies are long gone for Stevenage mayors: it’s an Uber to and from official functions these days.
But, says Sandra Barr, who held the office for a ceremonial year until recently handing over to Margaret Notley, that is not a bad thing. Public money is limited, a shrinking pot, and needs to be spent wisely.
Mind you, she did get rather attached to her chain.
“I loved wearing it,” she says as she reflects on a whirlwind of social events and functions at which she pressed the flesh, supported countless good causes and did much good work for charities. It gave her the chance to dress up in fancy frocks and meet people from all walks of life, in a red carpet upgrade on her staunch work as a ward councillor for St Nicholas, where she was recently re-elected.
“It was a wrench, giving it up. It was like an old friend. It was ‘my precious’...
“The first thing Margaret did when she took it over, though, was to get it repaired at the jewellers. When it was given to me there was a problem with a couple of the links. Margaret used to work for a jeweller in Hatton Garden, so she knew what to do. I had tried to mend it and cracked one of my teeth... so I can assure you it is definitely gold!
“I don’t know how many functions I attended in the year but it was well over 100, and the time flew by. I met some amazing people and made a lot of new friends in the process, so it was a very positive experience.
“I generated a few of my own engagements. I am one of those rare people that actually enjoy children’s company and wrote to all the primary schools so I got to meet some of the next generation. They ended up being some of my favourite visits.
“Children are honest but they are also very welcoming. They loved the chain. I sometimes let them try it on! I’d say ‘if you work hard you could end up like me...’.
“It is a ceremonial position but you are always very aware of representing the townspeople and the council at these events. It is a big responsibility. “Quite often you mix with mayors from other towns and get to know them. You learn a lot by exchanging views and ideas, even with those who do not share our own political agenda.”
Sandra loves musical theatre and recounts how she was once the Queen in Sleeping Beauty. ‘I ended up having a full-blown row in stage with my friend over which side of the stage we were supposed to exit. I stamped my foot!”
All good preparation for politics, as it turned out. “I once spoke at a meeting and hadn’t been told that I had to stand. The minute the mayor stands up in the chamber all the council have to stop talking and stand too, as they can’t remain seated if the mayor is standing!”
One of the unwelcome byproducts of being mayor, and indeed being a councillor, is the criticism officials attract. Even for things that are not their responsibility at all. People are unclear of the roles performed by the town council, which is Labour-run, and the county body, which is strongly Conservative. Or how the council does not own the shops in town and yet frequently gets attacked over the redevelopment and lack of retail offerings. Stevenage Borough Council does not set rents; economics alone determine who sets up and trades in town.
“There is a knee-jerk reaction from people to blame the council for everything,” says Sandra. “Often it is out of ignorance about how local democracy works, who does what, who gets what funds - and a lack of understanding at how the Government has slashed our funding since austerity to just money that we raise for ourselves: council tax, parking fees, etc. “Yet people expect things to be as they always were when the money isn’t there. They notice when things not functioning, as they should, or services closing and we don’t get every funding decision right but we are having to do ever more with less money every year.
“For instance, people don’t realise we get to keep very little of the business rates we take. It goes elsewhere under a government’s ‘fair-funding’ arrangement.
“Costs rise, the demands on us keep growing and we have to be inventive. But we do act for the good of the public, who have recently voted for us again. ‘There is a tension with the county council because of party loyalties, and with the MP, especially over the town centre redevelopment. The Regen is something I think we will all be proud of when it is completed.
“It is taking shape all the while, with the new bus interchange being a prime example. A lot of work is
going on behind the scenes to bring the town vision to life.
“You have to have broad shoulders to take the criticism. But it goes with the territory. It is wrong of course when it strays into the personal, though. I do correct some people but you could be at it all day on social media. Usually, it is the same critical voices.”
Sandra was born in Hampstead, northwest London, but grew up in Royston and was schooled there.
“My dad was caretaker at the Royal Soldiers’ Daughters Home. It was a boarding school run by the church army for the daughters of officers posted abroad.
“Dad was a socialist and atheist, which didn’t go down too well with the Bishop of Hampstead, who oversaw the school.
“He told my dad I had to be baptised by the bishop and my dad had to take Confirmation classes before that could happen. So he told the bishop it wouldn’t be happening, probably in not very Godly terms!
“Dad then got a job in Kennington and my mum cried every day about being dragged south of the river. My uncle later got my dad a caretaker job in Enfield and then Royston. He lived in digs for a year while we lived at my nan’s.
“We eventually got allocated a house in Royston a few doors down from my cousins, so we had a support network. I think that is why my heart goes out to Eastern Europeans and indeed any immigrants who come over here, leaving that close support behind. It must be very tough for them.”
In some ways, she says, we are now repeating the same mistake with the younger Stevenage generation. “It infuriates me. I am on the planning committee and the property developers say ‘we will
give you 20pc affordable homes’ but they are never genuinely affordable.
“The Government has made it incredibly difficult to build council homes, so we have had to be creative in taking on the role of a private developer and reserving some of the stock for our own tenants. But these are small wins.
“The housing market is broken and there is nowhere near enough focus on sorting it out. They announce grand schemes that often amount to nothing other than short-term headlines.
“I feel for the younger generation. They are being denied properly affordable homes and have had free higher education taken from them. Their access to the NHS has been affected and there are very few jobs for life now; all things our generation took for granted.”
Sandra has worked closely with special needs schoolchildren, for which financial support from the county via the Government has been slashed.
“We are seeing larger school rolls, with many more pupils needing help. It is so hard to get support for disabled children. Many wait for a long time but you can’t get that time, that precious childhood, back.
“There are also a lot of teenage kids with profound learning issues not getting respite care.
“Some young kids we see need to be socialised, such as being taught to use knives and forks. I tell you, when you get small boys dishing out meal portions, they are so incredible. I could never repeat what they do that accurately! Many have autism, so they really focus on details.
“There is a crisis with special needs transport now, too, but we have been pointing out issues for 40 years and little is ever done. The county does seem
to have woken up at last, though, to the fact we need a new day centre.
“Special schools are just not able to function the way they need. Some of these governing academies focus on pupils in terms of the payment they get for them, rather than as individuals. So the children get a poor deal.”
She turns her attention to a broader issue many will face this winter: the cost of living crisis.
“I am on the poverty group at the council and we are planning to release a map of all the places people will be able to go to keep warm. It is a sad thing to have to do.
“One of our councillors is a librarian and will tell you that people have been going there to keep warm in winter for a few years now - long before these latest rises in fuel prices, which are going to inflict untold harm on people. Even those who have thought themselves reasonably comfortably off.
“But especially the elderly and those with young families. There is a tsunami of poverty-related problems coming if the Government does not intervene properly. Nothing discussed in the Tory leadership campaign gets close to addressing the problems we can see.
All the Government is doing is putting its finger in the dyke.
“As a council, we have a very small budget for communities and as part of my portfolio I have been holding back money because I can see that every community centre is going to have to look at ways it can help feed the population this winter.
“Nothing is in place yet but there is a possibility that we may have to feed significant numbers. It is beyond shocking.
“I am especially concerned for young children. We know that because of low pay and benefits and fastrising prices, some mums are skipping meals – and even people you think can cope, such as nurses, are going to food banks.
“I worry about those on low pay and zero-hour contracts. Those on benefits at least know how much money they have coming in each week. Those on zero-hours don’t. They can’t plan, or budget they can’t claim housing benefits if they are a penny over the limits.
“It will be almost like going back to Victorian times, with people having to wear lots of layers to keep warm.
“I read certain people saying: ‘well, when I grew up we had ice on the inside of the windows’. I
remember that, too - but you’d like to think we have moved forward from that. It is not a badge of honour, surely? You would have thought we had moved on from those days.
“I remember coming home from school and having to light a paraffin heater. We could only have a fire on at the weekend and we’d effectively live in one room.
‘I was brought up in a time when the boys did woodwork, metalwork and mechanics and the girls did domestic science. I can make three meals from a pound of mince but the generations who had that education changed don’t have those skills and that resilience.
“Communities handing out spag bol is going to be the way forward, sadly.
“People amaze me, though. I remember the election in 2019 and a guy in Hartlepool who said on TV: ‘I voted for Boris because under the Labour government we had no foodbanks. You can’t argue with stupid.
“We in this country don’t ask who is paying the piper when it comes to the media and their reinforcement of messages like this that get lapped up by a small but easily influenced minority.
“People accept things for what they are and don’t question who is behind the big newspaper groups and why this sort of stuff is put out there. People swallow it without question. And it is difficult to argue with such people.
“Even the local paper is not immune from this. The Comet recent printed two letters from people when a resident and prospective councillor, Alistair Gordon, thought he’d do a really nice thing by giving small certificates to people who had pretty gardens.
“But there were letters of complaint. One said: ‘How dare the Labour party judge her?’
“It was just a public acknowledgement of people trying to brighten their community. It infuriates me. Who goes out of their way to actually write that sort of thing and send it in?
“I know Alistair, who lost in May’s council elections by 16 votes, was upset when he read them. I told him there would be many more people out there who would appreciate his gesture and just roll their eyes at the criticism.”
Sandra may have handed over her chains of office... but as a councillor, the burdens that come with the job, it seems, never get lighter.
A decision on whether to grant planning permission for a new secondary school to be built in Stevenage has been deferred over concerns regarding increased traffic.
Plans submitted to Stevenage Borough Council (SBC) include demolishing the vacant former Collenswood School and Barnwell campus buildings in Collenswood Road and Redwing Close and building the Michaela Community School, with capacity for 1,260 pupils aged 11 to 19.
The proposed main entrance is on Redwing Close, which was historically only used for limited purposes and not as the main
entrance to Collenswood School or Barnwell campus.
A SBC’s planning officer’s report said: “The proposed development would have some significant adverse impacts on the living conditions of neighbouring residents.
“It would attract a significant amount of traffic to the site, resulting in noise disturbance, impacts on air quality, and inconvenience for local residents in finding on-street car parking spaces.
“These impacts would be felt particularly acutely by the residents of Redwing Close, which would host the new
main entrance to the Michaela Community School.
It is recognised that there is an existing access to the site on this road but it was historically only used in limited circumstances. “Accordingly, these harms carry significant weight against the proposal.”
The report also highlights that the proposed acoustic screening to mitigate noises from the proposed multi-use games areas would “also result in adverse impacts”, overshadowing a home’s garden on Marlborough Road and appearing “overbearing”.
The council’s planning and development committee has deferred a decision on whether to grant planning permission or not, requesting that the applicant first provide detailed information on the mitigation for Redwing Close, including marshalling conditions and a potential traffic order for the road, “to protect the residents of Redwing Close from the increase in traffic”.
The committee also said it would like the applicant to provide increased pedestrian access to the site, coming “from the Marlborough Road, Collenswood Road or Cromwell Road, amongst other options”, and has requested further information regarding the impact acoustic fencing would have on the nearby residents on Marlborough Road.
If approved, the new school building will extend to four storeys, split over three interlinked blocks. The existing Stevenage
Education Support Centre (SESC) on site, which remains in use, would be upgraded with a new single-storey building to replace the dated buildings, which would be demolished. One existing accommodation block would be retained. The SESC provision is for 36 students at Key Stages 3 and 4.
The proposed development will create 141 direct jobs and 212 indirect jobs during the proposed 1.8-year demolition/construction period.
Opened in 1962, Collenswood School closed in 2006 and the site was then used by the Barnwell School as its ‘middle campus’ until 2014. The one and two-storey school buildings are currently largely disused.
In a supporting statement submitted with the planning application, Bowmer and Kirkland, on behalf of the Department for Education, says: “The proposed development will
provide much-needed school facilities for pupils aged 11 to 19.
“It seeks to bring a vacant, neglected site into viable use and redevelop an existing school site to provide enhanced teaching facilities.
“It will enhance the education offer within the borough by providing high quality specialist education provision for families.
“The proposals will result in a significant amount of investment into education provision in Hertfordshire, which will benefit families in the area.”
If approved, the Michaela Community School will open with an intake of 180 Year 7 students, growing with the same intake each year.
Traditional subjects will be given additional lesson time within a longer school day.
To view the planning application, visit stevenage.gov.uk and search for 22/00369/FPM on the planning portal.
August marked the start of a new dawn for thousands of junior doctors up and down the country, as an estimated 50,000 medics across the UK moved into new posts in NHS hospitals to train in a range of specialties.
Doctor Victoria Selwyn, a Foundation Year 1 doctor, tells us about her experiences in her first week at Stevenage’s Lister Hospital.
Describe your role in one sentence
A Foundation Year 1 doctor is the most junior doctor, in the first stages of training after graduating from medical school. The role entails working as part of the multidisciplinary team to treat patients – by seeing them on a ward round every day, ordering and carrying out investigations, prescribing treatment, liaising with other staff and specialities – and to help them recover, and prepare them for discharge from hospital.
What did you do in your first week?
My first week was action-packed, filled with inductions and mandatory training sessions, as well as working out where everything is, getting to grips with new systems, seeing patients on ward rounds and ensuring all of the medical jobs are completed for the day.
It has been fairly overwhelming and exhausting, meeting a whole new team and the 59 fellow FY1s who started at Lister at the same time as me, but so far everyone has been very friendly and welcoming.
I’m so thankful to the nursing team, pharmacists and senior doctors within the diabetes and endocrine team who have already been so helpful and very patient with me.
Did you have any fears prior to your first week and, if so, were they as bad as you had thought?
Yes, I was worried I would have forgotten everything I had learnt at medical school, and that I would be too rusty to be of any use, especially during my first week. However, the only real issue I encountered was with the blood tubes, which were different to those I had previously encountered on wards in Norwich.
What are you most looking forward to about working at Lister, and what will you find most challenging?
I am most looking forward to putting everything I have learnt over the past five years into practice. It’s a little stressful knowing the amount of responsibility that comes with the role, the importance of doing things correctly, making sure patients, and their relatives, feel they are being looked after the best I can.
What, if anything, are the differences from studying at medical school to working with patients in a hospital environment?
Working with patients in a hospital environment is quite similar, whether you’re a medical student or a junior doctor. The biggest differences would be that, as a doctor, you get to know patients better as you spend a lot more time with them.
What advice would you give to someone considering a career in your profession?
I have three pieces of advice:
• Pace yourself: There is no rush. If medicine is your passion, then you will find a way to pursue it.
• Gain some work experience: Getting some experience in a different clinical setting will give you an idea of what the job is actually like day-today. Shadow doctors at different stages of training, and across different specialties, such as community settings, care homes and hospices, as well as medical and psychiatric ward settings.
• Don’t lose track of life outside of medicine: After all, medicine is a career, so should complement your life, rather than take control of it. Keep taking part in your hobbies. This will help you unwind outside of the medical world, whether it be arts and crafts, sport or performing arts.
Medicine is a long and challenging profession to pursue. Are there any regrets or life lessons that you have which you feel may benefit others interested in a career in medicine?
Yes, I would encourage individuals to ensure they have a good support network. At times, especially
around exam season, the medical school journey can feel overwhelming. When you feel stressed, reach out to the people in your life who care, whether that be family, friends, a partner, fellow students or pets. Cats and dogs are always up for a cuddle, which is guaranteed to cheer you up!
What is the best piece of advice you have been given?
If you are ever in doubt, ask for help. Working in healthcare is a team effort. There will always be someone around who has a different knowledge base or skillset, who may know the answer that you are looking for.
What do you wish people knew about your job?
It gets very real, very fast! One day, you’re a medical student shadowing doctors and clinical staff while feeling, for the majority of time, like you are just in the way or being a nuisance. And then, the next day, you’re being addressed as ‘doctor’ by all of the team, on-call or carrying bleeps on a night shift – stressing about whether you’re going to get parked!
Who is your inspiration?
My dad always jokes that it is him! While studying at Norwich Medical School at the University of East Anglia, I had the most inspiring mentor - consultant psychiatrist Dr Julian Beezhold - who was dedicated to teaching and supporting medical students such as myself, working collaboratively with his patients within clinical practice, while also promoting psychiatry as the fantastic specialty it is.
Finally, what would your colleagues be surprised to discover about you?
I have recently been on TV, radio and featured in newspapers talking about graduating from medical school, working as a STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) tutor for schoolchildren, also focusing on student mental health.
I won some national awards, including The Diana Award 2022 for my work around mental health education and advocacy with the Headucate UEA society and creation of the national Headucate UK charity.I have also acted as Sharpay in my secondary school’s High School Musical production!
There are celebrations all round as this year marks 20 years of the Austin’s Charitable Fund.
The fund was set up back in 2002 by the Austin family to support and benefit charities and organisations in the local community, and includes a local Annual Charity selected by the family alongside some significant other financial support to local causes.
Managing Director, Claire Austin, explained that, prior to the Fund being set up, they would always have a lot of people writing to them with small charity requests, such as sponsorship for the London Marathon and other challenges; so they decided to focus their efforts and raise even more money for a few, select causes each year instead.
Each Annual Charity is promoted through their branches, website and social media.
Funds are raised through families donating to the cause after losing a loved one, a percentage of profits, annual events such as the Christmas Carol Service at Harwood Park, and donation boxes in all of the branches.
Claire said: “The original concept of the Austin’s Charitable Fund was to find a way to ‘give back’ to the community we serve. The bereaved families we look after live and very often work locally.
Jackie Lawrence and Maggie Bashforth hand over the cheque to EHAA
Many of them have been supported by local hospices and care providers. Therefore, we feel we are creating a ‘circle of giving’.”
Over the last 20 years the fund has raised an incredible £242,385.54, after the most recent donation of £5,709 was made to 2021 Charity of the Year, the Essex and Herts Air Ambulance (EHAAT).
A representative from Austin’s always visits the charities to hand over their cheques and this year it was Jackie Lawrence and Maggie Bashforth who were delighted to present the donation to EHAAT at their base in North Weald.
“We chose Herts Air Ambulance as our 2021 charity because they provide an amazing, but largely unseen, lifesaving service to our community and are
Austin’s raise almost £250,000 over 20 years of their Charitable Fund
funded purely by charitable giving,” said Claire.
A blog published last year by the Charity Commission stated that over 90% of charities had experienced some negative impact from Covid-19,
“whether on their service delivery, finances, staff, or indeed on staff morale, resulting from the months of frustration and uncertainty”.
Furthermore, 60% saw a loss of income, and 32% said they experienced a shortage of volunteers.
While charity fundraising is always vital to their survival, the last few years have been particularly tough for everyone and highlights the impact something like the Austin’s Charitable Fund can make.
Just some of the charities represented by the Fund over the years include: Riding for the Disabled (2005), Hertfordshire Young Homeless Group (2007), Cancer Hair Care (2014), North Herts Samaritans (2015) and Resolve (2018), as well as local hospices, hospital charities and bereavement charities.
They’ve all received donations between around £5,000 and £7,000, and some even more. Alongside the Charitable Fund, there are other avenues of fundraising that Austin’s finds to raise more essential funds.
Claire herself has had her fair share of challenges, visiting India in 2010, Vietnam in 2015 and, most recently, the Arctic Circle just before Covid hit, to raise funds for Home Start Hertfordshire.
In fact, Home-Start Stevenage (as it was called back then) was Austin’s first ever Charity of the Year back in 2002.
Another avenue is the recycling scheme at the crematorium at Harwood Park.
The metal that is left over after a cremation (hip joints etc.) is collected and sent over to Holland who then send some money back.
Around every 4-6 months, Austin’s submit an application to the Institute of Cemetery and Crematorium Management with a suggestion of who this money should be donated to.
We will shortly be donating £15,000 to the Rennie Grove Hospice.
This year’s chosen Charity of the Year is the Anne Robson Trust.
Austin’s look forward to raising funds for this wonderful charity and another 20 years of fundraising, because, in the words of Helen Keller, “alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.”
a special note from Race Director, Marc Hagland
Where do I begin? The past 12 months have been an interesting time within the club. But today proved what I’ve always known. This club is amazing and whether you volunteered today, helped in the planning or organising, took part in the race, or any combination of those, you have done yourself and your club proud.
The day started at 09:30 with the Mini Mile. Wow. What a success that was. Loads more than we expected, so much so we had to use our backup medals, and we ran out of Haribo. Rather than let that discourage, we directed the kids to the cake stall, I believe that was a great move, they loved it. Their faces as they crossed the “real race finish line” (genuine quote I heard from one of them) was an absolute joy to see. That’s why we do this. Give these opportunities to children in the town. Amazing.
Whilst entrants were lower than last year, 294 crossed the start line bang on 10:30 for the main event, the 10k. Some first timers, but many repeat participants, the challenging course was “enjoyed” by all. Even my Dad at 72 completed his first race in a few years, and survived!!!! All the comments and feedback I’ve heard or received have been positive, and another hugely successful Stevenage 10k is over.
I’ll be opening entries for 2023 within the next 7-10 days I guess, we’ll do it all over again. Don’t forget if you entered to run it virtually, get me your screenshot of your 10k and you can have your medal and t-shirt If you haven’t entered but want to, just pay £18 into the club account and let Paula Sparks and myself know.
Full planning permission has been granted for the first phase of a controversial development that includes building more than 600 homes on the outskirts of Stevenage.
Outline planning permission for 618 homes, a primary and pre-school, an 80-bed care home and up to 50 assisted living homes on agricultural land to the east of Stevenage, off Gresley Way –between Fairlands Way and Lanterns Lane – was granted by East Herts Council in 2020.
Housebuilder Redrow has now secured full planning permission for the first phase of the development – 253 homes – after the council said it had “considered the applicant’s proposal in a positive and proactive manner with regard to the policies of the Development Plan.”
The development also includes shops, a community centre, a site for travelling showpeople and a spine road.
The council received more than 1,200 formal objections to the plans, with concerns including insufficient infrastructure, traffic congestion and loss of the Beane Valley view.
The development lies wholly within East Herts Council’s boundary, but there is widespread concern from residents that it will have an adverse impact on Stevenage, particularly in terms of infrastructure including the schools system and healthcare.
However, Stevenage Borough Council’s planning department wrote to East Herts Council in June
to confirm that it “raises no objections” to the planning application.
The 93-acre site, known locally as Gresley Park, has been named Hazel Park by Redrow. The housebuilder’s original name for the development - Hamilton Park, after Stevenage-born Formula 1 driver Lewis Hamilton - received backlash from residents in the town, with many citing Hamilton referring to Stevenage as “the slums” during a BBC interview in 2018.
The site will contain homes and apartments ranging in size from two to five bedrooms, with 40 per cent affordable homes through a mixed tenure of shared ownership and affordable rent.
Redrow says large areas of the development will be designated green open space, including wetland habitats and trees planted throughout the northern and southern sides of the site.
Construction on the first housing phase is due to start in the autumn.
Kerry McCoubrey, sales director at Redrow Eastern, said: “We are excited to be delivering the first phase of homes in Stevenage. This is a significant milestone for the business, meeting local housing need and providing a wide range of options in terms of size and affordability, catering for a diverse mix of buyers across the property ladder.
“Benefitting from excellent connections and surrounded by an abundance of green open spaces, we anticipate that Hazel Park will be an incredibly popular place to buy a home and we look forward to starting construction work.”
waste, increasing social and affordable homes, and supporting the community during the cost-of-living crisis are all highlighted in Stevenage Borough Council’s Annual Report 2021/22.
“Reading this year’s annual report makes me so proud of what we as a council have managed to achieve in 2021/22,” said Sharon Taylor, the council’s leader.
The council says it responded to 235 anti-social behaviour cases and served 32 Community Protection Warnings and Community Protection Notices.
It also details removing 165 tonnes of illegally dumped waste, as well as reusing, recycling or composting 13,591 tonnes of household waste - the equivalent of filling Stevenage Swimming Centre’s pool eight times!
In terms of housing, the council says 2,175 online housing applications were received - an increase
secure tenancies to 232 new council tenants and temporary accommodation to 362 new tenants. The report says: “We will increase the number of social and affordable homes in Stevenage and improve access to the housing market for a greater number of local residents.”
To help tackle the cost-of-living crisis, the council says it has provided food bank stock to 14 voluntary groups, provided two charities with funding to help their vulnerable clients pay heating and fuel costs, and supported 16 schools to supply lunch, healthy snacks, shoes and clothing to children.
Other council actions highlighted in the report are that the local authority has:
• Provided 52 new homes, of which 24 have been allocated to council tenants.
• Prevented or relieved 225 cases of homelessness and housed three Afghan families.
• Responded to 1,369 referrals though the Stevenage Against Domestic Abuse (SADA) service
• an increase of 74% on the previous year - and
provided 53 families with support and safe space accommodation.
• Undertaken 315 food safety interventions at food businesses, registered 98 new premises and inspected 75 new businesses.
• Investigated 444 noise complaints, served nine noise abatement notices and successfully concluded two noise prosecutions.
• Investigated 53 complaints of accumulations of rubbish at residential properties, and successfully concluded eight enforcement notices requiring clearance.
• Investigated 4,733 reports of anti-social behaviour and environmental crime and successfully obtained three prosecutions.
• Collected 20,201 tonnes of household waste (37,780 bins).
• Paid out £44.4million in Housing Benefit in 2021/22.
• Secured funding of £133,000 to convert “tired shrub beds” to grassed areas.
• Opened a new bus interchange, launched the Town Square regeneration, and delivered the Queensway mixed use scheme – including 110 homes, 12 retail units and eight commercial/office units.
Councillor Taylor said: “This year has been challenging for us all – the restrictions of Covid, the impact of the cost-of-living crisis, the horrors of the war in Ukraine. The difficulties we face now are very different to those we faced when I became leader of the council in 2006.
“I am very proud of the last 25 years I have spent serving Stevenage as a councillor, and never more so than during the past year where we have continued to deliver the priorities we know are important to residents.
“We know from talking to residents on the doorstep that the cost-of-living crisis is having a significant impact on everyone, especially the poorest in the community.
“Through the Stevenage Together Partnership, we have worked tirelessly to provide food and clothing to those who need it most.
“We will continue to lobby government to make
sure that more funding is provided so that no-one in our community must choose between feeding their families or heating their home.”
She added: “We will continue to progress our town’s regeneration so that Stevenage can deliver social housing for residents, provide a wonderful home for residents, be a great place to do business and a fantastic place to visit.”
In the annual report, the council sets out how it will progress regeneration work next year, including:
• A new multi-storey car park and cycle hub based to the north of the railway station.
• A new Garden Square with cafés and bars, independent enterprise, co-working premises and a new evening time economy.
• A new Public Sector Hub offering a one-stop location for public services including health, voluntary, council and charity services all under one roof.
• A new purpose-built learning facility called Stevenage Innovation and Technology Centre located in the heart of Stevenage town centre.
• An enhanced Cycling and Pedestrian Connectivity and Heritage Trail that will link new developments in the town centre and other growth schemes within the town’s 45km cycling network.
• A modern cultural and arts New Towns Heritage Centre, with adjacent flexible space providing a key resource for events, performances, education and leisure activities.
• A new Stevenage Sport and Leisure Hub with a 10-lane swimming pool and teaching pool, as well as a 200-station gym and health and wellness spa in one facility.
Matt Partridge, the council’s chief executive, said: “We have made significant progress in our regeneration programme through the successful opening of the Town Square and the new bus interchange.
“During 2022/23, we will continue to deliver against our key priorities, listen to the views of our community and ensure our residents remain at the heart of what we do.”
