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This afternoon was my 26th blood donation. Being a universal donor there’s a permanent shortage of my blood type as they use O- blood in any situation where they don’t already know the patient’s blood type, as a result I make it my business to donate as often as I’m allowed. So far, aside from…
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Yesterday was ‘The Big Seven-0’, the culmination of our year-long series of events celebrating Crawley’s Platinum Anniversary. It was great to see that so many people had braved the weather to make it out over the course of the day, watching and joining in the varied programme of events, culminating in lights and fireworks. One…
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So, was this the ‘People’s Budget’ we were promised? Erm, no. Putting aside that growth is now the lowest it has been since the Tories took office, with economic indicators sending out warning signals across the board, in terms of what the Budget actually had to offer for most people the answer is: not much.…
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It used to be the case that high unemployment was the clearest sign the jobs market was broken, that was before the gig economy. Now, people are put on zero-hour contracts providing no guarantee of actual work or turned into independent contractors, handing the duties of the employer over to the employee. Quoting low unemployment…
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The council is offering targeted funding to help assist businesses that have had big Business Rate increases in 2017 following the revaluation of all business properties in England early this year. This discretionary scheme is being funded by the Government to allow qualifying businesses to also receive relief in 2018, 2019 and 2020 but on…
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Philip Hammond certainly has a way with words. Listening to the Budget you could be forgiven for thinking that the economy was performing beyond all expectations. Unfortunately, no amount of flowery language can disguise the fact that the numbers aren’t looking good. The Office for Budget Responsibility, which was established to provide an independent account of…
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The town’s Victorian bandstand is now a step closer to being restored and relocated to the Memorial Gardens. Crawley Borough Council has been working with specialist Leander Architecture to refurbish and restore the bandstand after it was moved from Queens Square to make way for the regeneration works in 2016. The bandstand was placed in…
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Our Day is the Local Government Association’s annual attempt to bring national focus to the work that councils do for local communities. People often talk about the fantastic work of the police, teachers, nurses, firemen and armed forces, leaving local government workers to sometimes feel like the ugly ducking of the public sector. I don’t…
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The BIG Seven-0, Crawley’s flagship 70th birthday event, takes place in the town centre on Saturday 25 November from 1.30-6pm. This major, family event, funded by Arts Council England, will include a colourful carnival-style parade featuring local artists, bands and community groups. It will celebrate the diversity of Crawley followed by an exciting stage programme,…
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Nominations have now closed, so I’m now free to announce that I will be seeking the Labour nomination for Prospective Parliamentary Candidate in Crawley. To explain why I’ve agreed to run I headed down to Crawley Hospital this afternoon armed with a smartphone and an enlisted cameraman:
Peter Lamb for Crawley 