Latest news with #SouthGloucestershireCouncil
BBC News
19-05-2025
- Automotive
- BBC News
Parking fees in South Gloucestershire 'help balance books'
Motorists are to start paying to park at 22 council-owned car Gloucestershire Council is introducing charges from 19 May from 08:00 to 18:00, Monday to Saturday. Parking will remain free on Sundays and bank holidays, except at park-and-ride sites and train station car will be charged 70p for the first hour in short-stay car parks, rising to £5 for up to four in long-stay car-parks will range from £3 for the first four hours, up to £5 for six hours. The council said "at least 10% of spaces" in short-stay car parks where charges apply will be free for stays of up to 30 Blue Badge holders will be able to park in any space for free for up to four hours. The new parking scheme has been brought in to help the council balance its budget and be able to "afford other essential services into the future", according to the Sean Rhodes, cabinet member for communities and local places, said when the scheme was announced: "It is essential for us to take this action in order to balance our books going forward. "By charging those who use the car parks, we will be able to prioritise and protect the services that people rely on to keep them safe and healthy."
BBC News
08-05-2025
- Automotive
- BBC News
South Gloucestershire Council ending free car parking from 19 May
Completely free parking is to end at dozens of council-owned car parks later this Gloucestershire Council has confirmed that parking charges will come into force in 22 of its car parks from 19 will apply from 8:00 to 18:00 from Monday to Saturday, but parking will remain free on Sundays and bank holidays, except at park-and-ride sites and train station car Sean Rhodes, cabinet member for communities and local places, said the new scheme was "relatively cheap compared to neighbouring authorities". The new parking scheme has been brought in to help the council balance its budget and be able to "afford other essential services into the future", according to the will be charged 70p for the first hour in short-stay car parks, rising to £5 for up to four in long-stay car-parks will range from £3 for the first four hours up to £5 for six council has said that "at least 10 per cent of spaces" in short-stay car parks where charges apply will be free for stays of up to 30 minutes. Mr Rhodes, said the scheme "doesn't apply to all car parks"."The scheme we are introducing is simple and relatively cheap compared to neighbouring authorities," he said."Where it does apply, the money we bring in will help protect essential services into the future."I've no doubt there will be a period of adjustment for some drivers, but I expect that most car owners already have several parking apps on their smartphones and are used to paying for parking almost everywhere they go."
Yahoo
08-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Adult care 'requires improvement', inspectors say
A local authority's adult social care service requires improvement, health inspectors have said. The Care Quality Commission (CQC) described South Gloucestershire Council's provision as innovative, but said it had heard accounts of "mixed experiences". James Bullion, the CQC's chief inspector of adult social care and integrated care, said there were "gaps in the system" which the council was already aware of. A spokesperson for South Gloucestershire Council said the watchdog was "clear" in its "confidence" in the authority's plans to address improvements. Inspectors said they had been told some people had found it difficult to find what they needed on the authority's website, that there was a waiting list for occupational therapy and that a lack of consistent contacts for service users was sometimes a barrier to asking for help. There also needed to be a greater focus on hospital discharge services, they said, as well as making sure people could access equipment or minor home adaptations in a timely manner. "In some cases people waited an unacceptably long time" for their Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards - which ensure people who cannot consent to their care arrangements in a care home or hospital are protected - "given their needs and risks," Mr Bullion said. 'Innovative' But while there were a number of areas in which the authority was told to improve, inspectors also found areas of good performance - including staff feeling as though they were respected, service users feeling they retained their independence and a good experience for those transitioning from child to adult services. "At this inspection, we saw an authority that was looking to the future," Mr Bullion said. "They were innovative, worked well with partners and were supporting people to stay healthy to prevent them from needing future support." A spokesperson for South Gloucestershire Council told the BBC the authority's overall rating fell "just 4% short of a Good rating", adding that its plans to address areas of improvement were "already showing results". South Gloucestershire councillor John O'Neil, who has responsibility for adult social care, said staff worked "tirelessly every day" to help residents "live as happy, healthy and independent lives as possible". "We have plans in place to make the changes in practice that we need to," he said, adding: "We have confidence in our teams to deliver and indeed, we are already seeing improvements." Follow BBC Bristol on Facebook, X and Instagram. Send your story ideas to us on email or via WhatsApp on 0800 313 4630. More on this story Related internet links
BBC News
08-05-2025
- Health
- BBC News
South Gloucestershire adult social care 'requires improvement'
Adult care 'requires improvement', inspectors say 16 minutes ago Share Save Sarah Turnnidge BBC News, Bristol Share Save PA Media Inspectors found people had a mixed experience of engaging with services A local authority's adult social care service requires improvement, health inspectors have said. The Care Quality Commission (CQC) described South Gloucestershire Council's provision as innovative, but said it had heard accounts of "mixed experiences". James Bullion, the CQC's chief inspector of adult social care and integrated care, said there were "gaps in the system" which the council was already aware of. A spokesperson for South Gloucestershire Council said the watchdog was "clear" in its "confidence" in the authority's plans to address improvements. Inspectors said they had been told some people had found it difficult to find what they needed on the authority's website, that there was a waiting list for occupational therapy and that a lack of consistent contacts for service users was sometimes a barrier to asking for help. There also needed to be a greater focus on hospital discharge services, they said, as well as making sure people could access equipment or minor home adaptations in a timely manner. "In some cases people waited an unacceptably long time" for their Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards - which ensure people who cannot consent to their care arrangements in a care home or hospital are protected - "given their needs and risks," Mr Bullion said. 'Innovative' But while there were a number of areas in which the authority was told to improve, inspectors also found areas of good performance - including staff feeling as though they were respected, service users feeling they retained their independence and a good experience for those transitioning from child to adult services. "At this inspection, we saw an authority that was looking to the future," Mr Bullion said. "They were innovative, worked well with partners and were supporting people to stay healthy to prevent them from needing future support." A spokesperson for South Gloucestershire Council told the BBC the authority's overall rating fell "just 4% short of a Good rating", adding that its plans to address areas of improvement were "already showing results". South Gloucestershire councillor John O'Neil, who has responsibility for adult social care, said staff worked "tirelessly every day" to help residents "live as happy, healthy and independent lives as possible". "We have plans in place to make the changes in practice that we need to," he said, adding: "We have confidence in our teams to deliver and indeed, we are already seeing improvements."
Daily Mirror
02-05-2025
- General
- Daily Mirror
Bristol explosion: Family living next to gas blast house homeless as home set to be demolished
Onlookers said it was a "miracle" no one was killed when a property in Yate, Gloucestershire was blown to pieces after a suspected gas explosion which has left other residents homeless A family is going to be left homeless after a neighbouring property blew up in a suspected gas explosion - and insurers plan to demolish their home. Rich Cainey, 35, a repair worker for Airbus, lived next to the site of the blast in Yate, Gloucestershire with his parents Rob and Deb, both 60 years old. On Tuesday, four people were left with injuries after the explosion, with witnesses saying it was a "miracle" that on one died. But neighbours have other concerns after insurers said that his and other properties on the row will need to be demolished due to damage sustained. Rich said: "We're staying with our family in Yate. The insurance company is trying to sort out long-term, temporary accommodation for us until it's all been sorted, but that'll be a couple of weeks yet. "They're planning on knocking the houses down. All my possessions are stuck in the loft - all my memories, like it's my whole life which is in there. I can't get anything out because getting up the stairs is completely out of the question. My mum wants to get in and salvage some stuff. "She's got photos and memories downstairs all the way from her childhood until now. But there's no point in risking it until you know if you can go safely. "I'm lucky, a lot of my photos are on a cloud linked to my iPhone, but my mum has wedding photographs she's desperate to save, as well as all of my grandmother's memories too. It's just a shame. "I'm in borrowed clothes now, but at the end of the day the material stuff comes and goes, it's just the things we probably will never be able to get back. But the main point is that everyone's safe - that's obviously the most important thing." Katie Winter, 36, a civil servant who lives opposite the row of houses, said she helped rescue the elderly resident in the home. "There was a huge bang when it happened, like a skip being dropped from the truck" she said. "I ran outside and went and knocked on the houses down the other end as soon as I heard it to make sure everyone had got out. "I broke the window pane and two people went in and went upstairs to get her and they carried her down. "The pane was already broken anyway so it just needed a bit more room to get someone in, and one of the two lads was wearing a suit, as he was getting ready for work, but just climbed in anyway to get her out. "She's 82 and I think she's been a little bit injured because part of the wall had come through onto her. "I believe she's the only one in hospital now as she's got a couple of broken ribs and a head injury." Emergency services were called to the explosion at a property on Lancaster Road in at 7am. Around 40 people were evacuated but most were allowed to return later in the day. A spokesperson from South Gloucestershire Council said it would be a decision for insurance loss adjusters. Rich added: "It happened at about 6:50 in the morning. I was launched out of my bed with a massive explosion because I slept next to the supporting wall in the house. "I ran downstairs and I could hear screams from inside the next door neighbour's house so I went outside and that's when I saw the destruction. "I'm still in disbelief. I thought it was an earthquake initially because the whole house started shaking. "Everything was falling off all the walls, and I was looking down and there was a massive hole just there. "Our front door is still open now because they're worried if the front door is shut, the force of that - as minor as it could be - could send that wall down. It's crazy. "The building assessors are coming around to see what, if anything, can get saved. But that would just be the end two houses who might be able to get things out. "But our possessions, we don't know yet, we're still waiting. "I think all five of the houses are probably going to be knocked down, which is so sad. "For us, it's 35 years of history of our lives and memories just gone. The whole street have been here such a long time. "Bev and John, who live there on the right, they've been there 39 years, then there's Jane and Paul who've been there for 36 or 37 years. "Mandy and Dave, are right on the end, they've been living there nearly 40 years as well. "It's only really Margaret who's moved in recently, she's been here for the last three or four years, but everyone's majority of us have been here like, our whole lives. It's so sad."
