Great Torrington Town Council

At the Council meeting on Thursday 1^st April 2021 the Town council voted to support the CEE Bill and to write to Geoffrey Cox MP and ask him to do the same.

At the Annual Council meeting on Thursday 6^th May 2021 the Town council voted to write to the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care to ask for an assurance that the introduction of the Integrated Care System, along with budget savings will not have an adverse effect on any aspect of provision of health care provided in Great Torrington.  Members also requested that the Town Council raise its concerns in relation to scrutiny of the outcomes of these matters.

The Town Council’s Technicians have been busy over the past few months, undertaking a variety of tasks.  You may have noticed that the bollards (all 61 of them) have been re-painted and are looking great for the summer season.  Other work undertaken includes hand weeding, grass cutting, moss clearing, maintenance of street furniture, hedge-cutting, washing the railings at Rack Park and even stone walling along the boundary of the allotments as per photo.

We have also spent some time, along with other agents and group members clearing and keeping Caddywell Lane tidy, which has also been complimented with a new litter bin at the Bluecoat School end.

We have looked at the conditions of our bus shelters and are setting out a plan for maintenance, re-painting and eventual replacement over the next year and beyond.

As we go forward into the summer, the Council will continue the work started last year on specific areas of grassland, leaving the grass to grow as part of a longer-term meadow approach.  We sowed yellow rattle seed last autumn to help break down the grass ready for wild flower sowing at the end of this season. We will position appropriate signage in these areas.

We will also be planting the planters at the town entry signs and maintaining these during the summer months.

Members of the environment committee recently agreed to arrange for bulbs to be planted at entrances to the town by Donnacroft and Woodland Vale, this autumn, ready for next Spring.

People who contact NHS 111 by phone or online, at any time of day or night, will get quicker clinical advice and care before they visit an Emergency Department.

An improved system was introduced in December 2020 that will give quicker and safer access to NHS services for people in Devon when they need urgent care. The aim is to ensure that people get the right care and attention they need at the right place and reduce waiting times.

People are being urged to contact 111 first to get expert advice about which service to use and when. The 111 service has been in place since 2013, but since the end of last year those contacting 111 who need emergency medical care from a hospital Emergency Department (also known as A&E) have been given direct access to the department. If the issue would be better dealt with in a Minor Injury Unit, GP surgery or other urgent care site, patients can be booked in directly. The improvements are there to ensure that people get to the right place for treatment quickly and reduce waiting times.

The system is aimed at reducing unnecessary visits to some of the region’s busiest healthcare facilities – taking pressure off local services and ensuring social distancing measures are applied.

Other arrangements have not changed and people with serious or life-threatening illnesses or injuries should continue to dial 999, as before.

To contact 111 – just call 111, or click: https://111.nhs.uk/ 

Members, officers and volunteers of the Town Council were deeply saddened to hear the news of the untimely death of Christine Porter.  Christine was instrumental in setting up the GTTC Dementia Friendly Community Working Group, striving to improve all aspects of day-to-day living within the community for those living with dementia as well as their Carers.  Christine was passionate about this initiative and worked extremely hard “on the ground” and alongside other members of the group.  Christine was an inspiration to so many and will be greatly missed by everyone who worked with and had the privilege to know her.  Our thoughts are vey much with Christine’s family and friends at this sad time.

Karen Chapman (Town Clerk)

Topics include importing and exporting goods, moving goods between Great Britain and Northern Ireland, & help to find answers regarding the transition period.

Click: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/help-and-support-if-your-business-trades-with-the-eu  

Last year the Town Council received a letter from a young man, Elliott Ashelford aged 5 requesting the provision of litter bins along lower Caddywell Lane. The District Council provided a bin and a delayed opening ceremony, (Covid19 restrictions), took place in early December. Elliott was joined by the Mayor and the Beadle, along with his mum, dad and younger brother, Reece. Elliott proudly cut the ribbon to officially launch a newly positioned litter bin at the end of Lower Caddywell Lane. It was great to receive this representation from someone so young in our community and we commend Elliott for his enthusiasm to help make a difference in his community!