Brentwood's new recycling system has been blasted by Cllr Karen Chilvers over the woeful inadequacies offered to residents of flats across the borough. She has demanded that the Tory-controlled council find an alternate solution to fit, but her request was refused.

Karen says:

"Over the last few months I have made my displeasure clear over the roll out of the new recycling system of the blue and white bags that replaced orange bag recycling.

"It is Rollason Way, near Brentwood station, that I am particularly worried about. As a street consisting completely of flats - roughly 800 of them - a solution to the recycling problem does not exist under the new system. Frankly, the flat dwellers of Rollason Way have been forgotten by Brentwood Council, who are now trying to blame the management companies (they were given a fait accompli and they should not be blamed for not dancing to the council's tune) . Interaction with the companies should have happened months before the system was rolled out".

"It is abundantly clear that this system of blue and white bags is set up for people who live in houses with side access and a shed in which to store them. (I'm not even starting on the problems for disabled people or elderly residents to cope with the system).

"Rollason Way residents are now left with two options. 1) to independently try to use the blue and white bags or 2) to take their recycling to a "bring site" themselves. Both of these options are unacceptable and largely unworkable. This area has low car ownership due to the inadequate parking availability making it impossible to haul rubbish across Warley".

"To even imagine that the blue and white bag system will work here is laughable. There's a big difference between having one bag outside one house and 60 bags outside one front door of a block of flats. This has clearly not been thought through with the flats in mind. The very notion that 60 bags will be successfully returned to their owners in just one block at the end of the day is incredulous. Also, this is far from the extent of the problem with some blocks without a kerbside and accessed via a pathway. The layout of the interior of the flat blocks should also be considered with lengthy corridors, stairs and lifts to negotiate all the way to leaving rubbish sacks out".

Martin Cuthbert has been selected as our candidate for the Warley borough council seat in May 2021.

He is a director for a local IT company and has lived in Warley for over 35 years. He lives with his partner and 5-year-old son on the Brackenwood estate.

Martin said:

"I am delighted to have been selected to stand in Warley. Having lived here most of my life, I know the area well. I have already been involved with a number of issues in Warley, including a consultation I undertook on local parking schemes.

Laura Carey, Hutton Central candidate, has lived in Brentwood since 2013 and has two teenaged children, both attending local schools. Laura works as a Senior Lecturer in Psychology and as a Specialist Mentor for university students with physical and mental health issues.

Laura is also a school governor for two local schools and is writing her book 'The Independent Mum's Handbook'. Laura feels it's important to give back to society and also volunteers her time for various other organisations such as the Santander Breakthrough Women Business Leaders' Mentoring Programme and Parent Aid.

Way back in November 2018 the Tories voted for the version of Brentwood's Local Plan that they had been pushing to see happen. Their Plan contained (amongst other things) an excessively high concentration of sites allocated for housing development in Brentwood, Shenfield and Warley. The Lib Dems had, even then, been criticising these proposals for years because of our fundamental concerns about the impact that they would have on infrastructure in these areas - particularly roads, doctors surgeries and schools. And even in November 2018 the Tories knew that the version of the Plan they were voting for was not the version that could be submitted, because numerous pieces of work still needed to be finished (or even started), including the crucial studies which would show if these proposals could actually make sense. So, since it was the Plan they (and they alone) had approved they surely should have continued to pay close attention to the plan's evolution thereafter - in case any of the problems that the Lib Dems had pointed out for years (and they had ignored), should prove as insoluble as we'd always feared, and therefore a new approach would be required.

Good Evening Madam Deputy Mayor,

My Group would like to state that we have not wasted valuable officer time in submitting an alternative budget or indeed tinkering with amendments. Should our status change in May we would look to work within this budget - until we've set our own.

We would also state that we agree with keeping Council Tax to the recommended 0% increase. At the current time, this is the very least we can do
for our residents, especially those who have faced unexpected financial challenges through no fault of their own. We request a separate vote relating
to that part of the Agenda.

Extra funds for climate action in Essex, pavements, mental health + young people were proposed today by Essex Liberal Democrats. The proposals were tabled at the Essex County Council budget meeting on 23 February.

The Lib Dem proposals:-

Climate Change action

• Promote a sustainable approach to growth, development and a low carbon future.
• Implement measures to improve the green infrastructure of Essex and increase biodiversity.
• Improve the environmental quality, attractiveness and recreational potential of public spaces in ECC ownership.
• Implement measures to reduce waste, lower energy consumption and improve air quality in identified hot spots and introduce Clean Air Zones.

During a visit to "The Elms" development at the Mountnessing roundabout prior to the start of the covid pandemic, Darryl Sankeyand the Lib Dem team had discussions with many local residents about the serious environmental issues facing the local community and the excessive fees charged by the appointed management companies. We also spoke about the lack of support residents have had from Brentwood Borough Council and Weston Homes
who built the development.

Dedicated and experienced councillor Karen Chilvers is to stand in her beloved Brentwood West ward on 6 May 2021, having first won it in 2007. Karen has worked tirelessley with residents since then and has a strong record of action and achievement.

Karen, 49, a marketing manager turned children's author, said

Halcyon Place is the new name for the road off London Road, Brentwood, that formerly contained Brentwood Police Station.

Cllr Karen Chilvers came up with the name when on holiday with her dog on a farm in the Essex countryside. She explains:

"So many road names have links to the military or people long forgotten in the midsts of time. Perhaps I felt partiularly relaxed the day officers asked ward councillors to approve a road name but I decided to resist some spurious suggestions that had been made about medievel custom and look forwards to, hopefully, a better future.