The South Glos Post

Neighbourhood police and Trading Standards officers carrying out checks on underage alcohol sales in the Chipping Sodbury, Coalpit Heath, Frampton Cotterell and Yate areas were delighted that they all refused to sell alcohol to children.

On Friday 6th May 2011 police teamed up with South Gloucestershire Trading Standards officers for the operation, aimed at tackling anti-social behaviour and alcohol-related offences.

With the help of two clearly underage teenage volunteers – a girl and a boy – they visited ten off-licences to check whether they were prepared to sell alcohol to under-18s.

None of them were prepared to make the sale.

New Neighbourhood PC Finbar Simmons said: “Alcohol and children does not mix. Drink can make young people vulnerable and it can lead to anti-social and criminal behaviour. Licensees have a responsibility to ensure that alcohol does not fall into the wrong hands, and we frequently test that in operations with our colleagues at the council.”

“I’m delighted that all the off-licences did make the proper checks and refused to sell drink to minors, and they will be sent a letter of appreciation.”

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Source: Avon and Somerset Police

The coming of spring at Ram Hill Colliery, Coalpit Heath, will see a number of changes on the site. Bat and bird boxes will be placed in trees at the site of the old reservoir. The open space which used to be the top spoil heap will be covered in top soil and grass seed. Eventually this will be a haven for wildflowers.

Hopefully before Easter, the lower spoil heap will be removed to expose the connection to the Dramway. The weather is getting better! So David and Marian can get busy with lime-mortar to rebuild some of the walls.

This is an open site, and a near perfect example of what used to be a part of a thriving local industry. Sensible shoes are recommended for visitors!

The Friends of Ram Hill Colliery are holding a fund-raising quiz at the Coalpit Heath Village Hall, The Miners’ Institute, Badminton Road on Wednesday 2nd March at 7:30pm. Tables of up to six people at £10 per table can be booked from Steve and Liz Hillyard on 0117 923 6595.

Source: Friends of Ram Hill Colliery

Police are appealing for witnesses and information after a road traffic collision on Monday 15th March 2010.

The incident occurred on Badminton Road, Coalpit Heath at around 7pm.

The collision involved a cyclist and a silver Mercedes Vito panel van and happened about 25-50 meters away from Southview Crescent and opposite Woodend Road.

The cyclist is currently in a serious condition in Frenchay Hospital.

Anyone who was in the area at the time is asked to contact the road policing unit at Almondsbury on 0845 456 7000. Alternatively, call the charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

Source: Avon and Somerset Police

South Gloucestershire Council has taken legal action over a house in Coalpit Heath which has been empty for over 16 years.

The action coincides with a National Week of Action on Empty Homes which runs from 23 to 27 November.

The property is being made the subject of an Empty Dwelling Management Order (EDMO) as part of the council’s Empty Homes Strategy. The strategy sets out the initiatives which the council plans to implement over the next five years to re-use empty properties across the district.

EDMOs will be applied where a property has been empty for over three years for no justifiable reason. The powers will be used as a last resort where the owner has refused all reasonable offers of assistance from the council, such as the possibility of a low interest Empty Homes Loan and advice and information on how to cost-effectively improve a property’s condition. Once an EDMO is obtained the council will carry out any essential works needed and the property will then be let to meet local housing need.

In South Gloucestershire there are approximately 100 properties that have been empty for over three years many of which have poor exteriors, overgrown gardens, piles of rubbish and are an eyesore in local neighbourhoods. Empty homes are also a wasted housing resource.

Empty homes are a national problem with the recession causing a nine per cent jump in the number of private homes empty for over six months across England. However, in South Gloucestershire the success of the Empty Homes Team has bucked that trend. The national figure for properties empty for more than six months is 1.6 per cent whilst in South Gloucestershire this figure has remained at 0.75 per cent for the last six months.

Through working with property owners, the council has returned 103 properties to use over the same period, exceeding its half year target of 75. These impressive achievements are a result of additional resources being allocated to focus on the problem of long term empty homes.

Cllr Matthew Riddle, executive member for community care and housing, said: “Returning empty properties to use is a key concern for local communities, which is why we have invested extra resources in tackling this problem. Obviously where possible we want to work with owners and find positive voluntary solutions that avoid the use of an Empty Dwelling Management Orders, which is a last resort.”

Sarah McNamara, empty homes officer, said: “Before the introduction of EDMOs, neighbours living next to long term empty properties often had to put up with an eyesore as we relied on the co-operation of the owner to bring their empty property back into use. Now we have the legal power to take positive action that will benefit the whole community.”

Source: South Gloucestershire Council