CARSHALTON and WALLINGTON LABOUR PARTY SUTTON and CHEAM LABOUR PARTY

                                                                                                                                                                                                       

 

The Liberal Democrat Party says Sutton is good enough. Labour says Sutton should be even better!

Below are our Pledges for a better Sutton that will help hard working local families get on with their lives:

YOUR SAFETY
Tackle Crime and graffiti, not let the borough look run down. Maintaining and expanding a local team of Police and Police Community Support Officers in every part of Sutton

YOUR STREET
Increased targeted street cleaning, a crackdown on eyesore gardens, where requested by a significant number of residents and free collection of bulky waste items

YOUR CHILDREN AND GRANDCHILDREN
Better childcare through strengthening the work of Children's Centres to help hard-working families, not less school places for Sutton children. More extended schools running from 8am to 6pm.

YOUR MONEY
Council Tax to pay for service improvements should be raised no higher than 2% above inflation in any given year for the next four years, so residents know what to budget for. We aim to use savings to develop Sutton as a “John Lewis” style Council empowering staff far more to help and work with residents

YOUR HEALTH
Rebuild a modern new Hospital at St Helier. Local Care Hospitals in Wallington and on the Sutton General site.

YOUR CHANCE OF A HOME
250 more affordable local homes in the next 4 years to help local residents to rent, buy or join a shared ownership scheme. £112 million to improve Council homes with the Council still your landlord and with your rents being capped.

YOU DESERVE THE BEST FOR THE MONEY YOU PAY!!

Labour will:

1. Keep Council Tax increases as low as possible taking account of inflation and pay rises and ensure all increases are fully justified. Council Tax to pay for service improvements should be raised no higher than 2% above inflation for the next four years, so residents know what to budget for.

2. Manage any changes to public expenditure in a responsible way:
* We will be honest and open about the scale of the challenge Sutton faces and decisions will only be taken with the participation and involvement of those most affected.
* We will not propose Council Tax increases any greater than annual inflation and will give older residents additional protection against the effects of this tax
* Investment in schools, homes and leisure facilities will be maintained - the benefits will be felt for decades to come and it would be disastrous to abandon these programmes now
* We will consider raising charges for council services by more than the rate of inflation if the service is non essential or the charges can be capped for those least able to pay
* We will continue to seek efficiency savings and to eliminate waste – we will also look to remove or defer expenditure which while desirable is not essential if doing so does not conflict with the other principles set out here.
* Where the closure of services and loss of jobs is unavoidable we will seek to provide support to service users to find alternatives and to staff to find alternative employment.
* We intend to apply these principles when making decisions about the services for which the council is responsible and also engage with all the organisations that deliver services in the borough to encourage them to take the same approach

3. Work with other public partners to use “Total Place” spending reviews to seek efficiencies in administration so as to maintain and expand expenditure in Front-line services.

4. Set up a "Waste Watch" unit (one off funding cost as future funding will be subject to making savings) to examine complaints of waste from the public and Councillors.

5. Ensure Pensioners receive the maximum benefits they are entitled to.

6. Review staff accommodation with a view to moving non-frontline staff to the Civic Offices Complex on a nil cost basis. This is not the time for capital investment as in the Sutton Plan. Buildings that are surplus to requirements will first be considered for community use prior to any other decision being made about them.

7. Conduct regular "Zero-based budgeting" reviews of services and conduct a Comprehensive Borough Spending Review every three or four years.

8. Review Budget Consultation procedures and develop "Participatory Budgeting" that involves many more residents in the budget process.

9. Encourage existing service providers to mutualise and develop the co-operative sector in Sutton. We will consider a stakeholder co-operative model when looking for external capital finance and when tendering or re-tendering for services. The aim is to develop a “John Lewis” style Council where staff are empowered but which also recognises the role of residents both as consumers and as local tax payers.

10. Develop ethical "Fair Wages" and "Fair Employment" clauses in all external contracts that employ staff, so we have the best staff at all levels. Ensure minimum payments are at “London Living Wage” level

11. Develop procurement strategies that make a direct link between the Community Plan and other strategic objectives and contract specifications ensuring that community benefits can be fully integrated into the procurement process.

12. Support Trade Justice by encouraging ethical purchasing policies.

13. Sign up to 10:10 carbon reduction campaign, because it is ethically right, but also because we want to put pressure on the government to take action more quickly to reduce carbon footprint and we believe we will save the Council and residents money.

YOU DESERVE TO HAVE YOUR SAY FOR THE MONEY YOU PAY!!

Labour will:

1. Retain the existing six Local Area Committee structure,

2. Develop a Young People's Community Plan, linked to the Council Community Plan, following discussion by young people

3. Broaden library card to Provide a local 'freedom card' that will entitle residents to access Council services like libraries, leisure centres and environmental services as well as discounts from the Council and other local organisations.

4. Expand Community Centres to see where these could be expanded and where they could be used more effectively to meet the needs of new and emerging communities

5. Ensure Area Committees have wider powers with a devolved local "Ward Initiatives" budget with some resources either allocated to Councillors to suggest local improvements. We will also allow Area Committee’s to contribute to the planning process.

6. Establish user group and/or "Friends of" committees for all Council facilities.

7. Encourage some neighbourhood watch groups to double up as Residents’ Associations to improve local coverage.

8. Develop "Street Watch" co-ordinators across the borough (as Croydon already have) to act as the Environmental and Street Scene equivalent of Neighbourhood Watch. 400 such reps could cover the entire borough each covering 200 homes.

9. Agree long-term funding for Sutton Women's Centre a Sutton Trade Union Resource Centre and increase funding for the Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB) to restore services at St Helier.

10. Support community groups that encourage tolerance and respect
for all the varied communities in the borough and support community cohesion

11. Develop engagement that suits everyone. Some of this will be about decision-making, but some of this could be service co-production similar the health “expert patient schemes”.

 

YOU DESERVE TO HAVE GOOD QUALITY JOBS AND BUSINESS!!

Labour will:

1. Set up an economic development unit and foster partnerships with local businesses, including local town management. We will also work more closely with the local Job Centre in developing a much more local service relevant to Sutton.

2. Establish a Co-operative Development Agency either for the borough or jointly with other South London Boroughs to provide prospective co-operatives with investment finance, advice, help with planning applications and where possible, premises.

3. Set up a dedicated team jointly with Sutton Centre for Voluntary Service (SCVS) that will promote the social economy in Sutton and draw up a local Social Economy strategy.

4. Ensure that there is an annual report to the full Council demonstrating the progress in fulfilling co-operative aims. The Council should hold an annual Co-operative and Mutual Audit session, allowing those involved in the promotion of cooperation and mutuality to cross-examine progress.

5. Set out a Strategy for expanding Local Authority Trading.

6. Employ a Town Centre Manager to take responsibility for all district centres in the Borough.

7. Work with local businesses to set up Business Improvement Districts (BIDs) for Sutton Town Centre, Wallington Town Centre, Kimpton Road and Beddington Lane areas.

8. Ensure the Council campaigns for the maximum local Post Office services within the borough.

9. Develop an anti-poverty and social exclusion strategy aimed at areas, not individuals, and which improves access to services.

10. Exchange technical and cultural knowledge, information and co-operation with sister local authorities, within the European Union and wider afield including the developing world. We will ensure that Sutton remains a Fair Trade Borough.

11. Work with the co-operative movement to develop community based electricity and energy co-ops, on an appropriate scale, ensuring sustainable energy can be produced and is distributed fairly and economically to consumers in areas such as Hackbridge.

12. Encourage Council staff involvement in Credit Unions and the Local Economy Trading Scheme (LETS) as well as promoting them more generally across the borough.
We will publicise and promote the new South West London Credit Union across Croydon, Sutton & Merton and encourage local employers to allow payments by check-off.

YOU DESERVE THE SAFEST BOROUGH!

!Labour will:

1. Set a clear measurable target for reducing the fear of crime within the borough. This can only be achieved through a highly visible policing strategy. We will also seek to maintain the Safer Neighbourhoods Teams and oppose any cuts to the service by Boris Johnson.

2. Develop a Visible Presence on the Street through regular Community Action Weeks with all of the Sutton Partnership's operatives to be seen out on the streets so as to be seen to reclaim certain areas.

3. Consider developing a voluntary levy of pubs and clubs in Sutton High Street to pay for additional policing of the area in the evenings - similar to the scheme in Manchester.

4. Develop a "Junior Neighbourhood Warden" scheme to assist with the reporting and tackling of some environmental and enviro-crime problems, through clear up days.

5. Develop a Local Respect campaign and strategy that helps tackle the worst “Eyesore Gardens” (ie mattresses in the front garden) as well as puts more effort into enforcement over noisy parties.

6. Continue expansion of fixed and mobile CCTV cameras and for the Council to provide a subsidised service for the sale of small private CCTV camera systems to individuals in less well off communities

7. Provide long-term commitment, stability and assured funding for local domestic violence services.

8. Introduce "Graffiti Removal Notices" to enable speedy clean-up of private property. More schemes like the Muschamp Road scheme where residents have been given paint to paint out graffiti on their fences. A properly supervised annual "No to graffiti day" across the borough.

9. Maintain the Scrap-it scheme to dispose of abandoned cars as a mainstream borough service.

10. Take your security seriously. We will inform the public of emergency planning procedures while maintaining necessary security precautions against criminal or terrorist actions.

11. Focus resources on a key local outcome of reducing youth re-offending and will develop joined-up work with partner organisations to make progress in this area.

YOU DESERVE CLEAN AND GREEN STREETS!!

Labour will:

1. Move to an increase in street cleaning frequency in key areas. We will expand area teams to cover most environmental services in the coming years.

2. Improve lighting and signposting along footpaths, at bus stops and at transport interchanges.

3. Review the waste management service to ensure we maximise economies of scale whilst retaining all current services.

4. Abolish the charge for Bulky Household waste service and ensure collection is within three working days.
(but doesn’t the Council have to pay for fridge disposal etc.? Surely we should say for ‘most types of’)

5. Develop Environmental Health Regulatory and Enforcement Services to provide:

1.Health and Safety law such as helping to protect retail staff from violence. (work with USDAW on existing campaigns?) (and NACO?)
2.Monitoring and enforcing fire safety measures in properties with commercial cooking facilities.
3.A Pest Control service which should be provided free to residents.

6. Compile regular Environmental Sustainability Indicators on air pollution, tap water quality, soil pollutants, noise levels, background radiation, pesticide residues across the whole Borough and publish regular reports. These could later be tied in to overall well-being indicators for the Borough.

7. Review the Council’s Animal Rights Charter and review the use of Council land for any circus that has performing animals. The Council should seek to monitor the living conditions of animals in boarding accommodation, for sale and for use in experimentation or farming within the Borough.

8. As part of the 10:10 campaign we will work with energy companies and government agencies to assist householders retro-fit their homes far more quickly to reduce their carbon footprint

 

YOU DESERVE A WELL-PLANNED TOWN WITH GOOD PUBLIC TRANSPORT!!
Labour will:

1. Support the continued viability of Sutton High Street and the district shopping centres. We will undertake a full environmental impact analysis before planning consent is given to any significant development or change of use.

2. Oppose out of town shopping centres. Sutton needs investment in its local retailing infrastructure enabling people to shop locally without over reliance on the car

3. Maintain and seek to improve existing and proposed conservation areas and Areas of Special Local Character. Special Policy Areas should be converted into Areas of Special Local Character.

4. Operate a 'good neighbour' policy and inform local residents about proposed changes for Council owned land close to where they live with time for discussion before final decisions are taken?. The Council should properly fence off disused Council sites, especially those that will be redeveloped.

5. Improve local bus services for the Kimpton Road area and Beddington Lane. Improve bus frequencies in less frequent routes. Review costing and construction times for bus stops. Request Transport for London (TfL) provide more seating at bus stops.

6. Continue to support the Freedom Pass for the elderly and disabled.

7. Lobby the GLA to establish a proper black cab rank at Wallington Station as well as extend a Night bus from Morden, past St Helier Hospital to Wallington Station, thus making it a more effective transport hub. Fight to restore the cut by Boris Johnson of the N213 bus service.

8. Support extension of Tramlink to Rosehill and St Helier Hospital via Willow Lane and on to Sutton Town Centre as part of a wider planned extension of the network. Tramlink must not be provided at the expense of the First Capital Connect service between Sutton, Wimbledon & Luton.

9. Allow no further road building except that required for access to new developments.

10. Review existing traffic calming schemes such as Road Humps to see they are still effective as well as the STEPs system. We will establish a review mechanism whereby unnecessary ones are removed.

11. We will encourage the introduction of Home Zones where traffic speed is restricted to 20mph if that is acceptable to the majority of residents. We will not force residents to have traffic calming measures introduced just to get money back from TfL. Instead we will try and restrict demands provided we get the money for tramlink extensions.

YOU DESERVE THE BEST ARTS, SPORT AND CULTURE!!

Labour will:

1. Abolish admission fees to the Heritage Centre and maintain free admission to Little Holland House. We will look at increasing the opening hours of Carew Manor and Little Holland House

2. Retain community and amateur theatrical use of Secombe and Charles Cryer Theatres. In the long run a proper borough theatre would be best placed in a better location in Sutton Town Centre. We will examine how cooperative business can be developed in this area.

3. Increase library book stock acquisition funding and look at building a branch library in Hackbridge, perhaps combined with other community facilities

4. Provide more under 10’s playground facilities in parks as well as "youth shelters" for teenagers and the installation of ball parks, rollerblading, cycling and skateboarding facilities, preferably on a co-operative basis.

5. Support use of parks for open air concerts and increase the number of concerts as part of the Sutton Festival as well as consider establishing a maze at Beddington Park.

6. Investigate the option of entering into an agreement with the National Playing Fields Association to protect specific parks and examine whether locally accountable Community or Friends groups can assist with protecting our parks and drawing in further investment.

7. Look at the opportunity of developing a new Swimming Pool for Sutton on the existing Cheam baths site. In addition there should be a further artificial multisports pitch in the East of the Borough. These should be under social ownership.

8. Convert the Leisure discount card to a residents' Freedom card that will give discounts on a wide range of Council services, library charges, youth services and private sector facilities.

9. Provide free access to under 18 residents of the St Helier, Hackbridge and Wrythe local area to Sutton Arena as part of a long-term plan to provide free leisure access to all young people in the borough.

10. Look at opportunities provided by the Olympics to engage with our local communities, schools, and colleges to ensure through mutual and co-operative arrangements that there are sustainable benefits both locally and internationally from London hosting the Games.

11. Seek ways of opening up Times Square and the St Nicholas Centre for evening usage of their central spaces.

YOUR CHILDREN AND GRANDCHILDREN DESERVE THE BEST!!

Labour will:

1. Use Government funding and, wherever possible, working in partnership with cooperative business enterprises, seek to provide additional Children's Centres and develop a network of Extended Schools across the whole borough.

2. Investigate the possibility of providing Free School Meals for all 4-7 year olds, with further consideration being given to free breakfast and after school clubs for this age group.

3. Support and seek to improve the coordination of the London-wide secondary school transfer process, to maximise parental choice. Whilst ensuring that appropriate provision is made for particularly gifted and talented students, continue to argue that academic selection by some schools on the basis of the 11 plus is unfair to the vast majority of Sutton’s young people.

4. Expand educational opportunities by encouraging cooperation between all borough schools through federation or cluster arrangements, to share and maximise the effective use of resources. We will seek to improve opportunities for students to transfer between schools at 14+.

5. Seek to create a borough wide 6th Form College, offering the widest possible range and combination of academic, vocational and technical course choices to all secondary school students. This will be achieved by integrating the current provision made in the borough’s secondary schools and Colleges of Further Education.

6. The Citizenship curriculum should include co-operatives and mutual ownership. Consideration should be given to setting up a Co-operative Foundation Trust school. We will aim to set up etc.

7. Support children with Special Educational Needs by ensuring that the statementing process is completed as swiftly and as fairly as possible. We will also seek to provide additional resources in the areas of Educational Psychology and Speech and Language therapy.

8. Seek to expand the number of foster carers in the borough by providing additional support services and increasing the Foster Carer’s Grant. We will continue to use the Fostercare Co-operative which has successfully found homes for difficult- to- place children.

9. Work with Transport for London and where possible co-operative providers, to establish a borough wide Green School Travel Scheme to foster lifetime sustainable travel patterns and reduce the use of environmentally damaging vehicles on the “school run”. We will encourage ‘walking buses’ and similar schemes wherever possible.

10. Conduct a fundamental review of the borough’s Youth Service with particular emphasis on:
1.Provision of a comprehensive network of youth centres across the borough, with a view to identify sites for new facilities, particularly in Hackbridge and Beddington.
2.Better and more cost effective use of existing facilities
3.Provision of additional Outreach Youth Workers to work in partnership with the borough’s Neighbourhood Wardens, with a brief to target young people at risk of causing nuisance or engaging in anti-social behaviour.
4.Increasing co-operation and support for voluntary sector provision of Youth activities (ie Woodcraft Folk, Scouts, Guides, Boys/Girls Brigades etc)

YOU DESERVE THE BEST HEALTH AND SOCIAL CARE!!

Labour will:

1. Support a local health strategy that includes an Acute Hospital service focused on a rebuilt hospital on the current St Helier site, Specialist Cancer services at the Royal Marsden site and Local Care Hospitals at St Helier, Wallington and on the Sutton Hospital sites.

2. Review the future of Intermediate care and examine what can be done to retain health services at the Carshalton War Memorial Hospital site.

3. Support a comprehensive network of GP surgeries, Health Centres, Clinics and Community Health services and work with the PCT to develop a full "Urgent Care Strategy" to reduce pressure on acute services by 2010/2011. We will examine ways in which cooperative business can be developed in this area. eg a co-operative consortium of most (or all) local GPs could provide out-of-hours services, similarly a co-operative out-of-hours dental triage service could be set up.

4. Support the retention of Mental Health services at the Sutton Hospital site and at other existing local sites with expansion where necessary..

5. Support the provision of Learning disability services in community homes.

6. Support new learning disability day care services at Hallmead and other sites at North Cheam and Fellowes Road. Ensure that sufficient individual services are available to meet personalisation recommendations.

7. Continue to provide an old peoples residential home at Ludlow Lodge, and residential and respite care for sufferers of dementia at Oakleigh. We will also ensure that Franklin House is rebuilt as a Centre of Excellence for dementia services.

8. Provide modern Day Services for older people, mental health, physical and learning disabled, following a full consultation. We want to see, accessible services, early intervention rather than a service led by eligibility criteria and a mixed economy of provision, including care cooperatives.

9. Maintain an in-house intensive Home Care Service, with a generous eligibility criteria for access to such services, as part of a mixed economy of provision, with a preference for stakeholder co-operatives.

10. Provide Integrated health and social care services through Primary Care Trust (PCT)/Borough Partnership Boards and Section 31 agreements and covering older people, mental health, physical and learning disabled

11. Support the provision of Extra-Care Housing, but this should not be allowed to force elderly residents from their existing homes. We will examine ways in which cooperative business can be developed in this area.

12. Support a reduction in Meals on wheels charges in consultation with CAFE

13. Expand the Occupational Therapy service and speed up its assessments and ensure enough staff for ongoing provision, (not just the assessment!)

14. Review (Sutton Centre for Independent Learning and Living (SCILL's) service level agreement to increase the number of Direct Payments available for those who want them.

15. Expand the choice of physical disability services with a small grant to Star Club.

16. Enhance the existing Community Transport Scheme in co-operation with the voluntary and co-operative sector.

17. Develop the public health role of the Council to address key health and social inequality targets working closely with the local Director of Public Health.

18. Seek to implement a National Care Service as soon as it became available. This should equalise eligibility criteria across the country and be fair for all.

19. Work closely with the NHS LINK committee to scrutinise the effectiveness of local health services.

 

YOU DESERVE TO LIVE IN A GOOD HOME!!

Labour will:

1. Continue to be actively involved in partnerships with its ALMO (Sutton Housing Partnership), housing associations, the Co-operative sector and private sector, to provide good quality housing.

2. Recognise the clear decision of 82% of Tenants and Leaseholders voted who voted to set up the Sutton Housing Partnership ALMO to bring in £112 million pounds of investment into the borough to bring homes up to "Decent Homes Standard".

3. Recognise that only 9% of tenants and leaseholders have expressed support for further change such as stock transfer to a housing association. We strongly respect that and will oppose a transfer.

4. Ensure that the Council, as well as being a housing enabler, will continue to be a provider of housing by recognising the strong preferences of its tenants and retain its present housing stock.

5. Examine the possibility of tenant led Community Land Trust's holding housing land for the provision of affordable housing, This would be an alternative to shared ownership schemes and could bring housing and planning policies together to maximise the use of land for affordable housing.

6. Use money from capital receipts to provide new social housing and encourage Housing Associations to buy existing houses. We will have a target to bring 500 of the empty properties back into use by 2010 as well as encourage flexible tenure schemes such as the cash incentive scheme.

7. Support self-build housing projects.

8. Call for a Strategic Partners asset management strategy to manage public sector land in the borough that could be used to provide more affordable housing and other community services.

9. Ensure there will be only reasonable and affordable increases in Council rents for the next four years.

10. Transfer the cost of maintaining estate greens, unadopted estate roads, footpaths, playgrounds, trees and Neighbourhood Wardens from the Housing Revenue Account to the General Account.

11. Conduct a full review of the points based rent system to ensure that the balance of points is right and that local people can clearly see they
they are not discriminated against in terms of allocations.

12. Expect the Sutton Housing Partnership to maintain strong support the Sutton Federation of Tenants and Residents Associations and continue to help it develop.

13. Develop Mutual Housing Co-ops, via a tenant ownership cooperative supported by a secondary housing co-operative. We will also seek to promote Tenant Management Co-operatives, Tenant Management Organisations and Estate Management Boards normally formed via Tenant Associations.

14. Use scrutiny bodies of Councillors and tenants and leaseholders to hold Sutton Housing Partnership to account on a regular basis. We will also use the annual Delivery Plan and Rent Setting process to set out what we expect from Sutton Housing Partnership each year.

15. Expect all Sutton Housing Partnership managed contracts to ensure that improvements to individual properties are completed within a similar timescale, rather than in a piecemeal fashion.

16. Support the continuation of the Garden Maintenance Scheme for elderly and disabled residents.

 

Labour in Sutton

For more information on Labour in Sutton:
Labour in Sutton is made up of Sutton Borough Labour Local Government Committee, Carshalton and Wallington Constituency Labour Party, and Sutton and Cheam Constituency Labour Party. Why not find out more about their activities.

Email: info@suttonlabour.org.uk

Write to: Labour in Sutton, 111c Stayton Road, Sutton SM1 2PS

Website: http://www.suttonlabour.org.uk

Membership and Supporter Information

Why not support our campaigning:

Labour Supporters Network
Add your name to the Labour supporters Network to be kept in touch on news and policy developments.

Join Labour in Sutton
If you want to be part of Labour’s internal democratic process or stand for public office, why not join Labour.
Email: info@new.labour.org.uk
Phone: 08705 900 200
Website: www.labour.org.uk

Join the Co-operative Party
The Co-operative Party locally has an electoral agreement with Labour in Sutton. It promotes retail and worker co-operatives as well as other forms of social & mutual enterprise, Credit Unions & Fair Trade.
Phone: 020 7367 4150
Write to: Co-operative Party, 77 Weston Street, London, SE1 3SD
Website: www.party.coop

 

 

Printed and Promoted by Mary Towler on behalf of Sutton Labour Party Local Government Committee, all at 111c Stayton Road, Sutton, SM1 2PS