IT HAS been another busy month.

We attended a full council meeting in the Guildhall in Bath on November 20 where David seconded a motion asking Bath & North East Somerset Council to write to government to curb profiteering from vulnerable children by private service providers. The motion was carried unanimously. This matters on many levels.

The number of children requiring Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) support and the complexity of their needs is growing. Private service providers have raised their fees, sharply driving up costs. Paying for these services takes up a disproportionate amount of the Council’s budget which is already under intense pressure. As David said: “To put children’s social care back on a sustainable footing, we need to put power back in the hands of Councils, so they can provide care services themselves.”

With funding for our local buses due to run out at the end of March, Jackie Head, Elaine Workman and Phil Collins (the driving forces behind the Chew Valley Sustainable Transport Partnership Community Interest Company, who run our fabulous X91 and 99 buses with the Big Lemon), spoke to rally Council support for the upcoming round of funding requests to WECA (West of England Combined Authority). We (David, Anna and Simon McCombe, councillor for Mendip Ward) all gave statements to highlight the important social value of our buses, which provide a valuable link for so many residents. who are otherwise so very poorly served by public transport.

The Walk, Wheel and Cycle Trust (formerly Sustrans) presented proposals at drop-in events last month to improve National Cycle Network 3 from Compton Martin to Norton Malreward via Chew Stoke and Chew Magna Parishes. Despite owning more bikes and Lycra than we care to admit to, many of their proposals seemed impractical from the perspectives of other road users, cars, trucks, and farm vehicles. They show no understanding of the Conservation Area status of Chew Magna or of the need for car parking for the Valley's shoppers, nor access for drivers in Norton Malreward and Hawkfield. They lacked understanding of the traffic flows and the complexity of a road network that takes far too many cars on single track roads. We clearly will be working hard on this with the parish councils - look out for our upcoming surveys.

Winter already hit the Valley hard with Storm Claudia causing terrible flash flooding. A big thank you to our flood warden teams for all their help keeping us safe by checking on vulnerable residents and putting out road signs. Big thanks as well to the Chew firefighters who had five callouts in one day and to everyone who helped with clearing up the mud and debris.

Lastly - Christmas is coming. So don't forget the Valley’s much-loved Tractor Express on Christmas Eve - raising funds in aid of Dorothy House, William Syndrome Foundation and Ami’s Gift - and the Chew Magna Christmas Fayre on Saturday, December 6.

Have a happy Christmas!

Cllrs David Harding and Anna Box, Lib Dem Chew Valley ward councillors