Liz Yates

About Liz

Cllr Liz Yates was elected to Nottinghamshire County Council in June 2009 to represent the Misterton division, succeeding long-serving Conservative county councillor Kenneth Bullivant. Shortly after her election she was appointed Chairman of the Education Scrutiny Committee.

Liz has lived in Babworth for more than 30 years and has already represented the Sutton ward on Bassetlaw District Council since 2003. During this time she has served on several committees and is currently a member of the Licensing Committee.  She is a parish councillor for Babworth and a governor at her local village school, Ranby C of E Primary.

As rural resident Liz has a particular interest in addressing the concerns of rural communities, such as the difficulties with accessing services and maintaining or keeping local facilities. She attends as many parish council meetings as possible, as well as assisting residents with their individual problems. She keeps in close contact with the parish clerks.

Liz plans to hold county council surgeries in various parts of her division and will advertise these locally. She is available to meet constituents at any convenient time at a suitable venue. Her contact details are displayed on the left of this page. 

Liz's latest Councillors' Divisional Fund awards...

Each Nottinghamshire County Councillor now has an annual fund of £10,000 to support worthy initiatives in the division they represent. The Councillors' Divisional Fund aims to make use of each councillor's 'grass roots' knowledge to identify projects, events, people and clubs that work hard to benefit and promote their local area, but often lack access to resources. Even a small amount of funding can sometimes make a huge difference. 

If you know of a deserving initiative in the Misterton division that might be eligible to receive a CDF grant, please contact me. You can click the following link to read the eligibility guidance criteria.   

Follow this link to the Councillors' Divisional Fund web page to see some of the latest projects I have been able to support. 

Liz's latest news... 

Misson Cemetery makeover

Misson Cemetery has undergone a makeover thanks to a cash injection from Nottinghamshire County Council's Local Improvement Scheme (LIS). The cemetery in Top Road was in urgent need of a new footpath and thanks to the LIS the path was resurfaced, which provided improved access for church goers and visitors.

Following consultation with Misson Parish Council, it was also agreed to plant six half-standard trees around the boundary of the cemetery. Having supported the LIS scheme bid, I was happy to join children from Misson Primary School to help with the planting. A variety of trees including Crab Apple, Mountain Ash, Cherry and Maple were planted.

The improved access and the new trees will give the cemetery all year round interest with lots of spring blossom, autumn colour and winter berries. I'm delighted that funding is available for projects like this which have a huge impact on the whole community.

(Posted 23/4/2012)

Council plans to adopt a committee system

Pending approval at the Council’s Annual General Meeting on 17^th May 2012, Nottinghamshire County Council plans to exercise its new power under the Localism Act 2011 to adopt a committee system of decision-making. This will replace the current Leader and Cabinet model adopted under the Local Government Act 2000.

The rationale for a committee system is that it is the most democratic and transparent form of governance. It ensures all 67 democratically elected Councillors are able to fully participate in decision-making and shaping the policy of the Council. It ensures greater transparency in that all reports are publicly available prior to any decision being made, and all decision-making meetings are held in public.

Reports were taken to the Full Council meetings in January and March (Item 11), with final approval being sought, as stated above, in May.

(Posted 17/4/2012)

West Stockwith willow anchor

I am delighted to have been able to support a Local Improvement Scheme (LIS) bid that has seen the installation of a willow anchor, commemorating West Stockwith’s boating heritage, at a newly created community garden in the village. The anchor has been made by local residents under the guidance of the artist Roy Pearce. It was part of a series of arts workshops that were funded through the Vales Tales – Groundwork Cresswell, Mansfield and Ashfield.

The West Stockwith area has long been associated with boat yards and the local marina and this garden are a celebration of that heritage. The funding has helped turn an area that was previously something of an eyesore into a garden that will be accessible to the whole community. A willow hedge has been planted on site which in turn will help maintain the willow anchor.

Local people have put a tremendous amount of hard work into this project and their efforts have been rewarded.

(Posted 5/4/2012)

Council tax frozen again in 2012/13 

At the Nottinghamshire County Council budget meeting on 23^rd February it was agreed to freeze county council tax for a third consecutive year. With public finances under strain across the country, the council has saved £87 million so far, £44 million of which has been reinvested directly into frontline services. In the coming financial year we will spend: -

• £2.8 million more safeguarding children;
• £5.2 million more on care for older people;
• £2.7 million more on adults with mental health & learning disabilities;
• £1.4 million more on adults with physical disabilities; and
• £1 million more to support young carers.

 

 We are also committed to invest £289 million in capital over three years on:-

• Improving school buildings;
• Modernising day centres;
• New youth clubs;
• Improving libraries;
• Improved broadband services;
• Improved roads and pathways;
• New and improved bus stations.

 

Councillor Reg Adair is the council's Cabinet Member for Finance & Property. In his speech presenting the budget, he outlined the results of the council's budget consultation. In response to public feedback, we are: - 

• providing additional library opening hours at 15 locations across the county;
• holding Meals at Home charges at £3.95 for 2012/13; and
• not increasing charges for Blue Badge holders in 2012/13, unlike many other local authorities. 

 

(Posted 28/2/2012)  

Green light for Elkesley Junction Improvements 

Through his Autumn Statement on 29^th November, the Chancellor of the Exchequer confirmed that the Government has approved planning permission  for the £9.8 million scheme to improve two junctions on the A1 at Elkesley. This follows years of pressure from residents and local councillors and we are delighted that the scheme is now set to go ahead. See Autumn Statement page 54.

(Posted 1/12/2011)

Budget Conversation underway

Nottinghamshire County Council has announced proposals for its 2012/13 budget. 

Nottinghamshire residents are invited to give feedback on the budget proposals and take part in our Budget Conversation, which is open until Friday 29^th January 2012. The results of last year's consultation led us to change some of our proposals and we will be listening very carefully once again. Please let us know your views.

(Posted 17/11/2011)

Grants available for sports clubs in Nottinghamshire

Nottinghamshire County Council is challenging local sports clubs and organisations to come forward with new projects that encourage people to get involved in sport. The reward, from the Community Sports Fund, is a maximum of £1,500 to Clubmark accredited clubs and £1,000 for other not for profit organisations such as voluntary or community organisations. The money can be used to help with costs such as coaching fees, facility hire, equipment costs and publicity costs but it must be spent within 12 months.

To be eligible for the fund, applicants must be a club or organisation based in Nottinghamshire and affiliated to their national governing body. New organisations will need to demonstrate their intent to affiliate.

We’re passionate about supporting grassroots sport at all levels and clubs need funds - that ‘s why the Community Sports Fund is such a fantastic scheme as it gets money straight to where it can have the most impact. The best ideas for projects, that encourage new people in sport through a structured programme of activities, will benefit. To apply for a Community Sports Fund visit www.nottinghamshire.gov.uk/sport-support

The closing date for applications is 2^nd October 2011.

(Posted 15/8/2011)

£2.5 million boost for Supporting People

Despite local budget pressures and a reduced grant from central Government, Nottinghamshire County Council has invested an extra £2.5 million in its Supporting People programme.

Supporting People is a national programme that provides housing related support to help vulnerable people live independently. It will see its Government grant in Nottinghamshire reduced to £17.6 million this year, threatening the County Council’s previous year’s Supporting People spend of £22.5 million.

However, thanks to a new £1.5 million investment from the local NHS, plus a further £1 million diverted from the County Council budget, the Government’s allocation has been given a vital boost in Nottinghamshire. This limits the reduction in the County’s Supporting People budget to just over 10%, from £22.5 million to £20.11 million. The restricted budget reduction has also been made possible by the County Council’s decision early this year, following public consultation, to keep its savings on Supporting People to £10 million over the next three years rather than two higher reduction options of £12.5 million and £15 million.

These funding measures support feedback gained from a second, two-month public consultation on Supporting People services this year (in Feb/March), to form new proposals which went before Full Council on 30^th June 2011. These proposals ensure that:-

• Most accommodation based services continue to be funded, albeit at reduced levels;
• ‘Floating support’ services, which offer support to people in their own homes, will be delivered consistently across issues of homelessness prevention and offender, drug and alcohol, gypsy and traveller and young people’s services;
• Mental health services are reviewed and delivered more efficiently;
• Young people’s services are reviewed for greater efficiency;
• Community alarm and warden services for older people are replaced with a new short term service targeted at helping vulnerable people to remain independent in their own homes.

 

We’ve talked to those who use the services, to our District Council partners, to project providers and voluntary and community groups, including church leaders, to find ways to make savings through efficiencies. We will target the money at front line services that meet the needs of those who are most vulnerable and in greatest need.

Nottinghamshire was successful in securing Government money under Supporting People when the programme first started eight years ago but we’ve seen this central funding steadily fall by nearly £11 million since that time. We believe that after the £10 million savings have been made, the level of funding in Nottinghamshire for these services will still compare well with other Council areas.

(Posted 20/7/2011)

More grass cuts

Nottinghamshire County Council is increasing the number of times it will be cutting grass verges this year.

As part of this year’s budget savings it was originally intended to reduce the frequency of routine grass cutting in urban areas from six to four times a year. However, we have listened to public feedback and have now increased that frequency to five cuts. In rural areas the frequency remains at two cuts a year.

At the same time we have issued guidelines for a growing number of residents who are happy to cut the grass verges outside their homes. Again, this is a direct result of feedback from the Council’s Big Budget Conversation consultation process, when hundreds of people said they would be prepared to cut verges if it helped to release money for use on other priorities, such a repairing potholes. 

The guidelines highlight what needs to be considered when cutting grass near the roadside.  They can be found online at: www.nottinghamshire.gov.uk/roadverges

(Posted 14/7/11)

Wiseton canal improvements 

I am delighted to report that environmental improvements have been made to the canal at Wiseton, thanks to investment from Nottinghamshire County Council's Local Improvement Scheme. The aim of the Scheme is to help regenerate and transform the county’s village and town centres, countryside, businesses, leisure and tourism spots.

It also aims to promote rural initiatives, market town projects that improve the centre’s attractiveness and economic viability, conservation and heritage projects and projects that encourage economic and cultural regeneration.

I'm pictured here at the event to celebrate the completion of the work, where I was joined by members of Wisteton Parish Meeting, officers from Nottinghamshire County Council and members of the Chesterfield Canal Trust and Partnership.

(Posted 17/6/2011) 

Retford Heritage Day

The Chesterfield Canal Trust are hosting a gathering of the Historic Boat Owners Club at Retford over the weekend of 10^th and 11^th September. There will be lots of beautiful old boats above Town Lock in Retford. The event is part of Retford Heritage Day, which means there will be plenty of historic buildings open on the Saturday. There will be boat trips, stalls and a beer festival at the Rum Runner. It is free, so come and have a look around. For further details, or to book a stall, email: festival@chesterfield-canal-trust.org.uk

(Posted 17/6/2011)

School buildings investment

I am delighted to report that Sutton cum Lound C of E Primary School in Misterton division is one of the schools set to benefit from the first phase of Nottinghamshire County Council's new £100 million programme to refurbish and improve school buildings.

At the Annual General Meeting of Nottinghamshire County Council on 19^th May, the Cabinet Member for Children & Young People's Services, Councillor Philip Owen set out the full Schools Capital Refurbishment Programme List, covering three years up to 2014.

In line with the "Three R's" set out by the Government for school building works (Refresh, Refurbish, Re-use), Nottinghamshire County Council has set the criteria to prioritise the schools most in need of improvements for the first year. The condition of roofs, external walls and windows, electrical arrangements and mechanical issues such as boilers have been considered. 

More in-depth surveys of the schools in the first year list will take place from June and works on a small number of schools will begin during the summer holidays. The Council started a review of school buildings across the county following the cancellation of the Building Schools for the Future (BSF) programme.

The County Council will be funding around £30m of the programme with the remaining money coming from the authority’s Government grant for school maintenance.

(Posted 1/6/2011)

Street light energy saving

During May, Nottinghamshire County Council published detailed proposals for street lights in 20 North Nottinghamshire villages as part of its project to save over £1 million a year and cut carbon emissions and light pollution.

Letters about proposals for Babworth, Ranby, Barnby Moor, Beckingham, Clarborough (including Welham), Clayworth, Everton (including Harwell), Gringley on the Hill, Hayton, Lound, Mattersey (including Mattersey Thorpe), Misson, Misterton, Ranskill, Scaftworth, Sutton-cum-Lound, Torworth, Walkeringham, West Stockwith and Wiseton were sent to the relevant district and parish councils and the emergency services for their comments.  

Residents in these areas have until Friday 17 June to comment on specific lights. Comments will then be analysed to see if the proposals should be amended and work could start on the lights a few weeks later.

In March, the first lights were altered in Scarrington, Hockerton, Flintham and then East Markham.

The project involves turning many street lights off between midnight GMT and 5.30am GMT in residential areas, dimming many on main roads between 10pm and 7am and switching some off entirely in remote areas.

A risk assessment is being done for every light and the most appropriate option introduced for each town, village, suburb or road.  Many lights will not be altered, including those near hospitals, accident black spots or areas with higher than average crime rates.  The project should be complete across the county by 2014.

The Council is working closely with the emergency services and will monitor the project to make sure crime and collision rates do not rise.  The County Council will also work with Nottingham City Council on streets that cross the county/city boundary.

The Council expects to save 26% of the energy used, 5,800 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions and an estimated £1.25 million (based on last year’s electricity prices) a year.  The cost of altering the lights will be £3.22 million, so the project will pay for itself in just a few years.  An added benefit of reduced street lighting will be much better views of the night sky and the project is supported by Nottinghamshire Campaign for Dark Skies.

More information is available at www.nottinghamshire.gov.uk/streetlightingenergysaving.

(Posted 1/6/2011)

Council Budget 2011/12   

At the Nottinghamshire County Council Budget Meeting on 24^th February 2011 I joined my Conservative colleagues in voting to freeze Council Tax for a second successive year. In doing so, I approved £4.1 million of changes to the Council’s original budget proposals in direct response to the outcomes of the Big Budget Conversation. Extra money has now been found from reserves for the Supporting People programme, grant aid to voluntary groups, libraries, country parks and welfare rights advice.

With less formula grant funding from the Government, Nottinghamshire County Council has to find more than £80 million of savings in 2011/12 by reducing management and administration costs and reviewing expenditure on non-essential services. Just over half of this is being reinvested to meet growing demand for our most vital services, including: -

• £15 million more for specialist foster care placements;
• £6.3 million more to look after adults with acute learning disabilities and mental health needs;

• £2.8 million more on children’s social workers;

• £2.8 million more on services for older people;
• £1.5 million more to care for adults with physical disabilities; and
• £1 million more for young carers.

 

The budget was approved at the Council meeting by 34 votes to 29.

(Posted 28/2/2011)

Gritter Twitter

Nottinghamshire County Council will now be advising the public of when the county’s roads will be gritted, using Twitter. During the cold weather last winter there were a number of calls to the Council’s Customer Service Centre asking when the roads would be gritted. Now people can sign up to the Council’s Gritter Twitter feed to receive the latest gritting alerts.

In an age of social networking and 24-hour news, the Council recognises the need to give people ‘live’ information that will help them plan their journey. You can sign up to follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/nottscc

(Posted 11/11/2010)

Improvement Programme latest 

At the full meeting of Nottinghamshire County Council on 21^st October I joined my Conservative colleagues in supporting the recommendations for action contained within the Nottinghamshire County Council Improvement Plan Progress Report.

The Deputy Leader of the Council, Councillor Martin Suthers set out the financial challenges facing local authorities across the country and stated that Nottinghamshire County Council needed to save £150 million over the next three years.  

He said this would require savings of £69 million in 2011/12, to be achieved through a series of major initiatives including reprioritisation of services, improvements in business management and a review of property owned by the Council. 

Of this £69 million, it is intended to reinvest £39 million largely in services for our most vulnerable service users. The council has faced a 59% increase in children’s social care referrals over the last year and a 25% increase in the number of children in care over the last two years.  

For Children and Young People, a proposed reinvestment of £22.5 million will provide:-

• more specialist foster placements for children

• more support to young carers
• more children’s social workers
• development of free school transport for secondary school children.

  

Our Adult Social Care & Health services are under similar pressure, with 500 extra people aged over 80 and 4,000 extra people over the age of 65 in Nottinghamshire every year. Our proposed reinvestment of £13 million in 2011/12 will provide: - 

• the care and support services necessary to meet this increased demand
• more support for adults with physical disabilities
• more support for adults with learning disabilities and mental health needs
• extra resources for independent sector care.

 

I joined my Conservative colleagues in arguing that Nottinghamshire County Council must live within its means and ensure frontline statutory services are maintained.

(Posted 5/11/2010)

Clarborough & Welham IT Group

I was pleased recently to receive a progress report from a representative of the Clarborough & Welham IT Group, which has been providing ICT (Information & Communication Technology) tuition and support to the local community since 2003. The Group is a voluntary, non-profit making, organisation open to all adult residents or workers in Bassetlaw.

The Group receives grant aid support from Nottinghamshire County Council and last year re-equipped with 12 laptops which are now wirelessly networked with a desktop server, printers and internet connection. They have also set up their own website and are holding their annual information and enrolment event on Tuesday 14^th September at Clarborough Village Hall (19:00-20:30).

(Posted 12/8/10)

Race for Life

I participated in the 'Race for Life' above 5 kilometre event at Clumber Park on 18^th July 2010. All proceeds went to Cancer Research UK. Some of my close family are suffering from the disease, most recently my niece who, at 35 and seven months pregnant, was diagnosed on Christmas Eve. She and her husband now have a beautiful little boy and she has started on intensive chemotherapy. They are so positive in dealing with this situation, so I felt that if was going to do the marathon, it had to be this year!

A close friend also signed up and as I travelled around the area I found more people willing to be there on the day. 

Thank you to everybody who sponsored me, and a special thank you to the village of Sutton-cum-Lound who made an extra special collective effort to raise a sum in excess of £400 towards this important cause. 

(Updated 20/7/10)

Summer days on the waterways...

With the summer months now upon us, look out for ‘The Learning Boat’ which will be travelling on the Chesterfield Canal. It is a venture that the Chesterfield Canal Partnership and the Canal Trust have undertaken and will come to fruition this year. There will be news in the local press about the boat's location.

Having previously been the Bassetlaw District Council representative on the Canal Partnership, I became the County Council representative after I was elected to County Hall in June 2009. The canal is a wonderful feature in the north of our county and will play a huge part in the regeneration of Worksop and the surrounding area.

(Posted 16/3/10) 

Improvement Programme

Like every council in the country, Nottinghamshire County Council faces ongoing, significant and unavoidable increases in demand for key services. At the same time, it faces an unprecedented and long-term reduction in the resources available to it. Present forecasts are that the Council must reduce its current expenditure by at least £88m, or 18% of its revenue budget, over the next three financial years. Most of this reduction will be used to fund increased demand in other service areas. £30m of reductions have already been identified for 2010/11, leaving a further £58m to be found in 2011/12 and 2012/13.

In the past, reductions have been achieved through a process of allocating savings targets across departments. However, the scale of the financial challenge is now such that a more strategic approach is needed to achieve reductions in a structured and consistent way.

At the County Council meeting on 25^th February 2010 the Deputy Leader of the Council, Cllr Martin Suthers gained approval for a new Improvement Programme to deliver these aims, called ‘One Council - One Business - One Plan’. This will involve an estimated investment of £21 million over five years to deliver total aggregated savings of over £200m over a five year period.

The Improvement Programme will include: -

• a complete overhaul of the Council’s approach to procurement

• implementation of an integrated Business Management System and changes in processes

• rationalisation of the Council’s property portfolio and improvement in flexible ways of working

• a fundamental review of all services followed by a comprehensive programme of organisational redesign

• departmental improvement programmes that deliver service-specific developments and

• the Chief Executive’s own programme to deliver improvements in partnership working, communications and organisational development. 

 

The aim of ‘One Council-One Business-One Plan’ is to drive out inefficiency, target resources, minimise the impact on service delivery and create an organisation that is fit for purpose and financially sustainable in the long term. 

(Posted 8/3/10)

New Strategic Plan

Nottinghamshire County Council's new Strategic Plan 2010-2014 sets out our promise to the people of Nottinghamshire; our priorities for the next four years; and how we aim to support the people of our county to be aspirational, independent and to share with us responsibility for the future.

This Plan complements the wider Nottinghamshire Sustainable Community Strategy which is the collective plan that outlines how organisations in the county will work together to promote and deliver a better Nottinghamshire.

Our plan is ambitious. It is a plan based on what local people tell us they want, and what they want to see happen. The success of our plan relies on us working well together with local people and organisations. Whilst we face challenging financial times, nevertheless we have opportunities to promote and deliver a better future for Nottinghamshire.

(Posted 8/3/10)