Latest news with #RichardUdall
BBC News
15-07-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Worcestershire's Malvern Hills Trust should be abolished, says councillor
Calls to abolish a trust that protects and manages the Malvern Hills, and replace it with a national park, have come from a Worcestershire councillor Richard Udall said the Malvern Hills Bill, which proposes changes to the way the trust is governed, is not fit for was speaking as Worcestershire County Council voted to oppose the bill in its current Councillor Adrian Hardman told the full council: "The Malvern Hills Trust is outdated, misplaced and irrelevant to the real needs of Malvern Hills. It needs to go." But trust chief executive Deborah Fox said the organisation wanted to modernise its governance. Trust 'outdated' The council has concerns over a number of extended powers proposed in the bill, including the installation of cattlegrids and closure of Councillor Adrian Hardman told the full council: "The [trust] board in its current form does need some reform and I'm keen the council doesn't stand in its way."But he added: "If you're putting in cattlegrids then you'll need fences – and that goes against the aims of the original bill."Udall said: "The bill is not supported by local residents."We should be petitioning the government for the abolition of the Malvern Hills Trust and its replacement with a new national park, which would be directly elected, accountable and therefore much more transparent.' Ms Fox said: "The Malvern Hills Trust is here to care for the hills and commons. The trust is trying to update and modernise its governance."The trust was established by an Act of Parliament and any major changes in our governance require a new act."She said she welcomed anyone with questions to attend one of the drop-in events in July and Fox added: "We want to give people an opportunity to have their questions answered and learn more about how the bill will allow us to operate more effectively." This news was gathered by the Local Democracy Reporting Service, which covers councils and other public service organisations. Follow BBC Hereford & Worcester on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
BBC News
14-07-2025
- General
- BBC News
'Worcestershire's traditional rural skills at risk of dying out'
Rural skills in Worcestershire could be at risk of disappearing if action is not taken, a councillor has Udall, Labour group leader on Worcestershire County Council, asked the Reform UK-led authority what it could do to increase training opportunities in the said blacksmithing, thatching, dry stone walling and sheep shearing were among the skills "at risk of dying out", adding that no educational body he was aware of provided training for such Alan Amos, cabinet member for business and skills, said preserving rural skills was an important part of the county's cultural heritage. "These crafts are indeed at risk due to the lack of formal training pathways and the aging demographic of current practitioners," Amos told Thursday's full council Reform member said he would look into whether there was demand for such courses and review current said if funding was available, the authority's early careers team could support schools and colleges to integrate rural skills into their programmes."These traditional skills present a challenge around the cost of set-up, upskilling existing staff and recruiting individuals qualified to teach," he added. This news was gathered by the Local Democracy Reporting Service, which covers councils and other public service organisations. Follow BBC Hereford & Worcester on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
Telegraph
07-07-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
Reform council spends £5,000 a day on empty office space
A Reform-led council has spent more than £5,000 a day maintaining empty office space, despite the party's promise to crack down on waste. Worcestershire county council's headquarters in Worcester County Hall were closed in June last year following the discovery of potentially dangerous legionella bacteria in the building's water supply. The council relocated to a nearby building but still owns the tainted county hall, which has cost £1,993,545 to maintain over the past year, equal to approximately £5,300 per day. This includes £390,000 spent on a feasibility study – which concluded that the building was no longer needed – and £160,000 on relocating staff and equipment to temporary rented offices, figures show. Annual running costs for the county hall – including utilities, insurance, and maintenance – additionally amounted to £810,783, while cleaning, waste disposal, grounds-keeping and statutory services added another £722,774. Business rates on the vacant building totalled £409,987. Parts of the 49-year-old building on Spetchley Road, Worcester, were also shut in Sep 2023 after reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete was found in the roofs. The council, which has been controlled by a minority Reform-led coalition since May, has come under growing pressure to act against the waste. Richard Udall, a Labour councillor, described the massive cost as a 'disgrace' for a building that is 'simply not needed'. He said: 'It's an absolute scandal. Pouring £2 million of taxpayers' money into an empty and unusable building is a disgrace – money which should have been spent supporting public services.' Dan Boatright-Greene, a Liberal Democrat councillor, said: 'Pragmatic decisions need to be taken now. Whether the site is sold or redeveloped by the council itself, demolition appears inevitable.' Zia Yusuf, the former chairman of Reform UK, has led the party's campaign to cut wasteful spending in local government with the creation of the Elon Musk-inspired Department of Government Efficiency (Doge), which Mr Yusuf now leads. Doge began auditing councils in early June, targeting Kent county council and West Northamptonshire county council, to find areas where waste could be cut. Worcestershire council's cabinet is due to consider the future of the site at a meeting on July 17. Rob Wharton, Reform UK's cabinet member for finance and efficiency, said: 'A detailed report will be published next week ahead of the meeting. It will set out options for the future use of the site, associated costs, and the steps required for decommissioning. 'We remain committed to transparency and will ensure residents are kept informed as we consider the long-term future of county hall.'
Yahoo
22-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Fayre draws crowd and 'brings the fun back' to St John's
A REVIVED community fayre is said to have "brought the fun back" to St John's. Just minutes after the St John's Fayre got underway in the churchyard, plenty of people were already enjoying all that was on offer. Visitors were treated to live music, food, craft stalls, children's games and a Punch and Judy show. It's the first time the fayre has taken place since the 1990s, with the celebration meant to commemorate St John's Day. Councillor Richard Udall, who represents St John's on the city and county councils, said the event aimed to celebrate the "wonderful" area. READ MORE: People flock to scorching balloon festival - but wind stops evening launches READ MORE: 'Finally': Customers buzzing as chocolate shop moves to Worcestershire READ MORE: £2.99 pints on offer during cider festival "It's bringing all of St John's together and bring the fun back," he said. "It's a beautiful, wonderful area, full of amazing people but we don't celebrate it enough. This is an opportunity for us to do so. "We hope it will be the first of many and will get bigger and better." While the scheduled dog show element of the event was cancelled due to the heat, people still turned out to get involved. Vamos Theatre proved to be a popular comedic feature, with two actors dressed and masked up as nurses, 'bandaging' people together. There was also a lot of buzz around the stalls, selling a range of crafts, books and other gifts. Naomi Brown, 36 of Warndon Villages, was there representing her business Patch of Happiness. She recently left her job to work on the business, which involves creating items from fabric offcuts. She praised the event for bringing people together. "This is the second outdoor festival that I've done," Mrs Brown said. "It's nice to see so many people out and there's lovely stuff for kids and grown-ups. It's a really nice atmosphere." Fran Robins was also in attendance selling her own paintings, as well as a friend's crocheted items. Despite the occasional gust of wind causing problems for the stall, she said it was a "lovely" event. "It's windy, which has stressed me out a lot, but it's a lovely event and a nice atmosphere."
BBC News
20-06-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Worcester land flagged for student housing up for sale
Land earmarked for a controversial student housing scheme has been put up for sale, sparking suggestions it may not go to demolish St Clement's Church Hall, off Henwick Road in Worcester, and build 54 student flats were approved by the city council in 2023 despite local church hall and land around it is now up for sale with Savills, which is advertising the plot as a "consented student development opportunity".The estate agent is asking for offers for the freehold of the site by 31 July. Before the initial plans were approved, people living nearby and local councillors had described the scheme as a "substantial overdevelopment" which would overshadow existing sheltered housing schemes in the also raised concerns about "generational conflict" between students and elderly residents. Richard Udall, a local Labour councillor, said he was not surprised the plot was up for sale."The proposal was going to be very difficult for anyone to achieve," he said. "The area is very tight and the restrictions imposed would make construction very difficult."The planning conditions also required the developer to fund a pedestrian crossing on Henwick Road and to ensure the building is staffed 24 hours, seven days a week."The developers have clearly decided the scheme is not viable."He added that "virtually the entire local community" was against the plans and suggested the site would be better suited to community said the 54 student beds in the development would be in clusters of three, four and five-bedroom apartments, with facilities such as an indoor cycle store, laundry, bin store and reception on the ground attached to the planning approval mean the developer would need to pay Worcester City Council £87,500 in Section 106 contributions, which would help fund infrastructure and community projects. This news was gathered by the Local Democracy Reporting Service, which covers councils and other public service organisations. Follow BBC Hereford & Worcester on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
