Latest news with #SolihullCouncil
Yahoo
11-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Ousted chairman of key council board quits meeting saying she was 'publicly humiliated'
A councillor said she had been 'publically humiliated' as she was stripped of chairing a key council scrutiny board. The ousting of Coun Samantha Gethen from leading Solihull Council's children's services and education scrutiny board was the latest twist in a week-long saga. The St Alphege councillor was only re-elected to the position in May but, as the Local Democracy Reporting Service reported on Tuesday, council leader Coun Karen Grinsell's motion to remove her from the position passed. READ MORE: Solihull road could be safety upgrade 'special case' after two kids hit by car Get breaking news on BirminghamLive WhatsApp The motion was for the position to be reconsidered at the next children's scrutiny meeting held on Thursday, July 10. But at the beginning of another chaotic meeting Coun Gethen - who had quit the Tories to join a new Solihull independents grouping - said she wanted the matter moved to the next meeting. After trying to move on Conservative Coun Richard Holt said he 'objected', saying the legal guidance had been for a vote to take place that night. Conservative Coun Sally Tomlinson said: 'The way in which the chairman was selected (in May) was an abject politicisation of children's services - I would propose a different chair.' Coun Holt added: 'I give great respect to you (Coun Gethen) in terms of the work you have done but this scrutiny board has to reflect the political balance of power in the council.' Coun Geth replied: 'You can't pass this, there is nothing (in the council constitution) to pass this.' After the first of many adjournments a vote was taken with councillors voting by a majority for the chairman position to be reconsidered. Coun Gethen then announced the matter would be referred to the governance committee. 'The motion asked for this to be reconsidered, we have but we will now move onto the agenda items,' the councillor said. Conservative councillor Sardul Marwa then said: 'You can't make that decision - you are dictating' before the meeting descended into shouting. Coun Gethen said: 'I'm not happy with the way I'm being spoken to by several members of the board. Therefore I'm adjourning this meeting, goodnight.' After getting up and leaving the chair the meeting resumed with deputy chairman Liberal Democrat Sarah Phipps chairing. 'I'm asking to pause this debate to allow us to get on with the business,' she said. 'We are going in circles, we are wasting public money, time.' Coun Holt said: 'You are bringing the chair into disrepute here, you are the person waiting time.' Liberal Democrat councillor Richard Long said: 'You'll get your chair next time, we are talking one meeting, let's just get on with it.' Later council officer Andrew Kinsey, the authority's legal services manager, appeared on the video screen. 'The constitution doesn't have a specific provision that deals with the removal of chairs,' he advised. 'I can see you have agreed to reconsider - it is my advice it is put to the vote.' Coun Phipps moved to a vote on removal of the chair - which she said 'wasn't covered in the constitution currently' - won on a vote of seven to six. Coun Phipps and Conservative councillor Andrew Burrow were nominated with Coun Burrow elected new chairman 90 minutes into the meeting. Coun Gethen then said: 'I'd just like to say I feel after that public humiliation, and being shouted at by members of the Conservative Party, I'm going to leave the meeting earlier.' Coun Burrow said: 'I'm sorry to hear that.' The rest of the business on the agenda was heard but at the end of the meeting - which lasted over three-and-a-half hours - the new chairman quipped: 'I think we ought to go home now, or down the pub.'
BBC News
26-06-2025
- General
- BBC News
Solihull primary school shut after classroom ceiling tiles fall down
A primary school in Solihull has been shut with immediate effect after tiles fell from a classroom ceiling. Parents of children who attend Meriden C of E Primary School have raised safety concerns and question why "longstanding structural issues" were not addressed earlier. The local authority school wrote to parents to say the incident in the unoccupied classroom on Tuesday was due to a the building's flat felt roof needing Metropolitan Borough Council said they are investigating the matter and arrangements have been made for pupils to access outdoor education nearby instead. The school said while it pays into a maintenance package annually, it has no say on how the money is spent. The single-storey 1960's building is due to have its roof replaced over the summer holidays - which was agreed earlier this year despite deterioration being identified eight years ago. An email to parents, seen by the BBC, said that other areas of the school also require refurbishment due to water ingress, but "it made no sense" to carry out the work prior to the roof being fixed. It also said a support prop is in place in a Year 4 classroom due to a rotten support beam - but children have been taught in other areas of the school since it has been identified. Parents anonymously told the BBC that they were concerned why "longstanding structural issues" at the school are taking so long to fix - calling out Solihull Council for the delay. They said: "This is no longer a matter of inconvenience, it is a crisis of confidence in the council's ability to provide safe, maintained learning environments. "Parents, carers, and members of the local community are increasingly concerned that our children's wellbeing is being compromised due to avoidable neglect."Our children deserve better."A Solihull Council spokesperson said it hopes children will return safely to classrooms soon and will keep parents said: "Whilst we are currently looking into the circumstances that led to this, our top priority is the welfare and education of the children. "As a result, we have closed the school building to assess the issue."Arrangements have been made for children to enjoy outdoor education nearby for the rest of this week." Follow BBC Birmingham on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
BBC News
13-06-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Solihull home extensions 'rip guts out of community'
Residents are being driven to tears by oversized home extensions that rip the guts out of a community, a councillor has Feeney has appealed for planning applications to be put on hold for a review "before Solihull becomes another faceless, soulless extension of Birmingham".The councillor for Castle Bromwich made a formal deputation during Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council's climate change and planning decision session on response, the authority's head of planning said each application would be determined on its merits. "Residents come to me in tears because they feel powerless to stop the area they have lived in all their lives having the guts ripped out of it," Feeney told the meeting."We are seeing three-bedroom homes turned into five-, six-, seven-bedroom homes."We see a hodgepodge of roof lines, a patchwork quilt of materials – overall a jumble sale of developments not future proof."He said the authority's guidelines on home extensions were 15-years-old and permitted development rights were being "manipulated by unscrupulous developers"."We are finding ourselves inundated with retrospective developments by those who know they only have to wait the council out, essentially holding a staring contest with us to see who will give up first," he added. Head of planning Mark Andrews said he understood Feeney's concerns and added there had been "a step change" in lost appeal decisions in recent said the department had looked at updating household extension guidance and allowed appeals had to be treated as "a material consideration in planning applications, especially where we have similar applications that come forward".But the officer urged caution on a moratorium on applications."That could be quite a difficult route to explore and go down," he said."Certainly we are happy to take a look at the timetable for reviewing the guidelines." This news was gathered by the Local Democracy Reporting Service which covers councils and other public service organisations. Follow BBC Birmingham on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
Yahoo
16-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Have your say on Solihull Council priorities for next five years
Solihull Council has unveiled its priorities as part of a five-year plan with financial stability one of the goals it will be working towards. And residents are now being given the chance to have their say on the council's ambitions. As the Local Democracy Reporting Service reported last month, the authority had begun the process of creating a new strategic council plan. READ MORE : 'No longer have confidence' - three Conservative councillors quit with attack on leadership Get breaking news on BirminghamLive WhatsApp Former leader of the authority, Councillor Ian Courts, had previously said there would be a limit to what the authority could do due to government funding issues and said the plan would 'take action' to address the council's financial situation. Earlier this year the cash-strapped authority had a bid accepted by the government for emergency help to address a multi-million pound hole in its finances. The seven ambitions in the draft plan, which would cover the period until 2030, are: The right conditions for everyone to thrive Services that people need in the right place at the right time Adults are supported to maximise wellbeing and independence Children and young people have the best possible outcomes A vibrant economy with improved access to opportunities Opportunities and fairer outcomes by acting on climate change An attractive and aspirational place The plans also set out the focus of council work will be to: Achieve financial sustainability Deliver the authority's corporate transformation programme Take preventative action and address inequalities Work with partners to get the best for Solihull The new plan, which will reflect feedback residents provide in a survey, will be published in July 2025. Coun Karen Grinsell, who was elected Solihull Council leader earlier this week said: 'The new plan will steer the council as we go forward over the next five years. 'It sets out our vision for Solihull, the direction that we want to go in as a council, how we aim to get there and what we want to achieve. 'Your input is crucial in shaping the plan and ensuring it addresses the priorities that matter most to our communities. 'We want to ensure the new plan reflects the ambitions, challenges and opportunities faced by the council, residents, businesses and other stakeholders over the coming years. 'Tell us if you think our new plan is focusing on the right things - this is your opportunity to have your say so please take a few moments to complete our short survey.' To take part in the survey, which has a closing date of Sunday, June 15, visit Paper copies of the survey are also available at Solihull Council House's reception, The Core Library, Shirley Library and Chelmsley Wood Library.
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Solihull homes plan with 100 per cent affordable housing revealed
A proposal to build new affordable homes in Solihull has been submitted to council planners. Applicant Strategic Land and Property - the team which oversees projects on Solihull Council-owned land - lodged plans to build the homes on land in Rowood Drive with planners last month. The application for the land, one mile north of Solihull town centre, is for 33 dwellings with open space, new internal road layout and car parking. READ MORE: Solihull Council elects first female leader Get breaking news on BirminghamLive WhatsApp The application is for a mix of one, two, three and four-bedroom properties with the majority planned for the site one-bedroom maisonettes and three-bedroom homes. Other matters such as layout, scale, landscaping and appearance of the dwellings would form a 'reserved matters' application which would be submitted if outline planning permission is granted. A planning statement from Cushman and Wakefield, the agent for the applicant, said: 'The site was previously used by (Lode Heath) school, with no public access, but is no longer functioning as sports or recreational provision and hasn't done so for over ten years. 'More recently pedestrian access has become open and the site has been used by members of the public for dog walking and informal recreation. 'The site is not adopted public open space and is maintained by the school. 'Apart from some of the boundary trees, the existing site consists mainly of scrubby grassland and what appear to be a few self-set trees to the Rowood Drive boundary - that reflects the lack of historic maintenance on the site. 'It should be welcome the planning application is proposing to maximise the affordable housing at Rowood Drive. 'The proposed development will deliver 100 per cent affordable housing, well over the local plan requirement of 40 per cent affordable from residential sites, and this should be considered positively. 'The development will provide affordable homes to help meet local need. 'The proposal complies with the development plan and the National Planning Policy Framework and planning permission should be granted.' A consultation is now underway with a closing date for submissions of June 4. To view the plans and submit a comment search for application PL/2025/00795/MAODW at
