Cllr Alan Connett

English Heritage is now considering ‘Listing’ four telephone boxes in Teignbridge – three of them in our area at Kenton, Mamhead and Cockwood, writes Cllr Alan Connett.

Teignbridge Council has objected to a number of the boxes BT wish to remove and submitted a list of eight to English Heritage, who are giving more detailed consideration to four of them. The other one which may be listed is at Coffinswell.

In my view, the cost of maintaining the national public payphone network shouldn’t fall just to just BT. With the now much bigger telecoms industry, including all the mobile firms, perhaps it’s time for the rules to be changed so the whole telephone industry (rather than just BT) shouldered the cost of maintaining the payphone network.

We wait to hear a final outcome from English Heritage on whether these four boxes will be ‘Listed’. I’ll keep you posted.

I continue to support Kenton Primary School in seeking an immediate response when they need help in the event of a flood, as happened earlier this week. I’m also pursuing Devon highways over the very extensive pooling of water on the A379 between the golf course and the Old Vicarage.
Currently, Highways say this is not caused by the recent cycle track works. That may be the case but to me, and others, we’ve not seen flooding as bad as this on the road for some long time. I will continue to pursue matters, writes Cllr Alan Connett.

I have been pressing Devon Youth Services for an improvement in what is offered locally. Mike Stevens, area youth worker, spoke at Starcross Pariosh Council this week and has promised to look at moving the junior club to the school, so more children can be accommodated.

He’s also prmised to help the Parish Council seek grants to upgrade the Pavilion, currently used in part by the youth service. There’s a real need right across the patch, Starcross, Kenton, Exminster, Ide etc for an extension to what is done locally and and voluntarily, reports Cllr Alan Connett.

Mental health trusts in England could be failing in their duty to fast track injured service personnel, research undertaken by Devon councillor Alan Connett reveals.

Results of Freedom of Information Act requests to NHS mental health trusts in England show the majority were not aware of Government instructions issued last year which would help speed treatment for service personnel.

Many trusts confirmed they do not even record if patients are serving or former armed forces staff, raising the question of how the Government itself can be certain the NHS is meeting the requirement laid on it by Ministers.

NHS chief executive David Nicholson wrote to all NHS trusts on 12 December last year to tell them about the new priority for veterans, which came into effect on 01 January this year.

And yet in the Freedom of Information Act responses to Cllr Connett, only a small handful of mental health trusts made any reference to the new guidance. Most confirmed they would not give any priority to treating service personnel or veterans.

Cllr Connett explained: My brother fought in the Falklands and earlier this year we talked about his experiences and the legacy, 25 years on, it had left for many of the service personnel who had also fought in that campaign. My brother’s view was that treatment of post traumatic stress for military personnel needed to be improved and that the mental health needs of service personnel are overlooked.”

In a little announced change to the NHS rules, trust chief executives were told to make sure all staff are aware that priority must be given to service veterans where their condition is, in the opinion of their GP or specialist, a result of their military service.

Patients will not be routinely asked if they have served in the armed forces, and it is up to each individual to declare their service history and to say if they believe their injury results from their military service.

The NHS guidance adds “…where secondary care clinicians agree that the veteran’s condition is likely to be service related, they have been asked to prioritise veterans over other patients with the same level of clinical need. Veterans will not be given priority over other patients with more urgent clinical needs…”

Cllr Connett added:” As we approach our annual day of Remembrance, we reflect on those who have paid the ultimate price for their country. However, many who have fought in previous wars, conflicts and campaigns continue to bear the wounds, both physical and mental, of their service.

“I am sure everyone welcomes the Government telling the NHS to give appropriate priority to service personnel from January this year but the sad fact remains that the NHS is not able to say if anyone is being helped by the guidance.

“Indeed, from my research, very few mental health trusts in England make any special provision for treating post traumatic stress in service veterans and don’t even have a special budget for the work. It is simply lumped into one big pot for general mental health services.”

Footnote: Cllr Connett emailed the 74 NHS mental health trusts or Primary Care Trusts with responsibility for mental health, with a set of 11 questions in June this year. Responses were received from 48.
Ten confirmed they received specific funding for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder treatment. None were able to confirm if any patients now receiving treatment for Post Traumatic Stress are currently serving in the armed forces.

Of interest in the south west is Cornwall Partnership NHS Trust which reported that in May this year it began, through a Service Level Agreement with the Ministry of Defence, a 2-year Pilot Mental Health Assessment Service for Veterans. The Ministry of Defence is providing £35,000 for Year 1 and the same amount for Year 2.

Cllr Alan Connett is asking if recently completed roadworks to create a cycle track have added to flooding on the main A379 coast road to Dawlish. Heavy rain last night and this morning has resulted in serious flooding in Starcross.

He along with many other motorists have had to negotiate flood waters crossing the A379 along the main road through Starcross, made worse beause of flood water also covering the back road through the village.

Cllr Connett said: “Work has just finished on the new cycle track running along side the A379 and as part of that, the open culvert has been closed in places to make space for the widened pavement and cycle path.

“Has this had anything to do with the flood waters spilling over the road and causing the problems we have had last night and today. There have been no flood warning signs in place on the main road.

“This is the main coastal road and at times, it was very chaotic as drivers tried to avoid going through the flood water but had to negotiate with oncoming traffic as well,” he added.

In recent years flooding has become a real issue in Starcross with village properties being flooded, especially when heavy rainfall happened at the same time as high tides.

In Kenton, the village school was closed for several weeks before the summer holiday because of a flash flood in the village centre.

Both communitites, said Cllr Connett, are very worried about what seems to be a developing problem.

He added:” What’s needed is an urgent review now of the flooding issues so we are prepared and better able to cope. Whether the new cycle track works have been a cause of the problems experienced today, others will be able to say, but there is real concern that we tackle the problem now rather than later.”

Planning consent was granted yesterday (Monday 27th) for a new farm house at North Covert Farm, near Oxton House, Kenton, by Teignbridge planners. The independent agricultural adviser supported the need for a farm home, the only issue being one of where to site it.

Developers have won their planning battle to build some 300 new homes on greenfields at Exminster. Teignbridge had rejected the plans, although some Conservative councillors backed the developers, and it went to appeal, writes Cllr Alan Connett.

The Government announced yesterday that the appeal had been allowed and now 300 homes look set to be built on the fields roughly behind the Stowey Arms. Worse news is that the Government says only 35% need to be affordable homes.

As soon as I have fully read the decision by the Secretary of State, I will put more information on this website.

More affordable homes could be built locally and across the south west if the threshold for developers was reduced, local councillor Alan Connett told the South West Regional Assembly on Friday (10 October).

Currently, the national standard is that affordable housing has to be provided by a developer on sites of 15 or more units. The problem in the south west is that many sites are smaller than that and make no contribution to local housing need.

Cllr Connett gained all party support on Friday when he argued that affordable home should be provided, or a financial contribution, on sites of 10 or more units.

The Regional Assembly will include the proposal in its repsone to Government on the Regional Spatial Strategy, the blueprint showing how the south west will develop over the coming decade or so.

After calls from residents, local councillor Alan Connett has checked out rumours that the No.2 bus was to stop going through Cockwood. Below is the information provided by Devon County Council. Discussions have been taking place with Stagecoach because of the large number of scrapes the new buses are experiencing through Cockwood.

What is now being looked at is having the service going into Dawlish Warren by means of a ‘dogleg’ and coming out the same way. It would then proceed via St Mary’s Cottages towards Starcross. Cockwood will be served by a new stop near the end of the causeway. This looks likely to happen in the new year.

If you have any comments or observations, please let Cllr Connett know as soon as possible.

I thought you might be interested in the next compost giveaway days run by Teignbridge.

Saturday 18th October at Sandy Lane Car Park, Dawlish
Saturday 25th October at Market Way Car Park, Chudleigh.

The giveaway starts at 10am and lasts until 1pm or when the compost runs out! I believe there is a limit on the number of bags of compost per person. Alan Connett