Council Meeting - Parking, Job Coaching, Gwernyfed School and Housing

Poor gold post box - you'd think it would get noticed, but it's been hit by cars more than once, which is why there's been a suggestion to protect it with bollards.
Further down the hill, the new owners of the Swan have approached the relevant authorities to ask for the exclusive use of the car parking spaces on the road outside the front of the hotel. It is doubtful whether they will be granted this.

And here's something I'm sorry I missed - a young lad with learning difficulties has been to the Council to give a presentation to them through the Job Coaching scheme. With help from his Job Coach, he's got a job at Baskerville Hall, and he came to talk about how the scheme had helped him. Powys County Council wants to drop the scheme to save a bit of money, which would be a great pity. Rob Golesworthy said he thinks it's a very useful scheme, and he's all in favour of equal job opportunities for all.

There's a document (100 pages to wade through) from One Voice Wales about reorganising local government, which the councillors felt gave more power to the Welsh Assembly, and weakened local democracy, with Powys County Council getting cut out of the process in the middle. With the County Council devolving responsibility for the toilets and playing fields and so on to the local councils, and the Welsh Assembly taking on responsibility for health and education, soon the County Council would only be responsible for roads and collecting rubbish!
This includes a suggestion that small local councils should be amalgamated into larger districts, almost like it was back in the 1960s and 70s. In this case, Hay would join up with Llanigon. Clyro would perhaps be a better partner for Hay, but it's across the old shire boundary, and the proposals seem to be following the old shires. These larger units would also require full time clerks, unlike the present where the clerks are part time.

By now, the meeting at Gwernyfed School has happened, but Hay Council did discuss a meeting of the Hay School governors with representatives of the County Council at Gwernyfed.
Steve Like was annoyed that he had been appointed representative of the council for the Gwernyfed Sports Centre, but the committee seemed to have been wound up without anyone being told. The management of the sports hall has been handed over to the school to run, and the committee of local reps seems to have got lost in the changeover. He thought it was important that the local communities that use the facilities there should have a voice in the running of the halls.

The site of the old Community Centre was also mentioned briefly - Wales and West Housing Association are involved in the redevelopment plans there. Apparently they want to put twenty houses on the site, which will be affordable/social housing. I had a chat with someone who lives in Garibaldi Terrace, very close to the site, who was wondering how they would fit twenty houses on there.