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Barrie Cooper

County Councillor for:
West Bridgford Central and South

Barrie Cooper
11 Lyme Park
West Bridgford
Nottingham
NG2 7TR

Telephone:
Home: 0115 9149359
Daytime: 0115 9773307
Mobile: 07763 110769

Fax: 0115 9820133

About Barrie

Barrie Cooper was first elected to Nottinghamshire County Council in May 2005 to represent West Bridgford Central & South division. He was re-elected in June 2009.

West Bridgford Central & South is represented by two county councillors, the other being Councillor Michael Cox. It includes the Abbey, Edwalton, Gamston, Lady Bay, Melton and Trent Bridge electoral wards.

He was formerly a Trustee of the Citizens Advice Bureau and Chairman of West Bridgford Local Area Forum (LAF). He is a governor at the Lady Bay Primary School.

Barrie is also the Conservatives' lead spokesman on the Nottinghamshire Fire Authority.

He is a Rushcliffe Borough Councillor representing the Gamston ward.

Barrie is available to meet constituents at any convenient time, at a suitable venue. His contact details are displayed on the left of this page.

Barrie's latest news...

County Council Budget 2010/11

At the Nottinghamshire County Council Annual Budget meeting on Thursday 25^th February 2010 I joined my Conservative colleagues in voting for a freeze in council tax for the forthcoming financial year 2010/11.

My colleague Councillor Reg Adair, Cabinet Member for Finance & Property, presented the first budget of the new Conservative administration which included a range of management and efficiency measures to save £30 million. This money will be re-directed into front line services including key priority care services: -

£3 million more to provide specialist placements for young people
£1.7 million more to meet additional costs of Safeguarding Children at risk
£6.1 million to meet the growth in services for people with mental health and learning disabilities
£1.9 million more towards the costs of services for people with physical disabilities
£2.3 million more to meet additional costs of care home fees for service users living in independent sector homes
£2 million more towards increased costs of care for people living independently in their own homes
£700,000 more to meet costs arising from the provision of services as a result of the reduction in the Supporting People Grant and
£2.5 million more to account for the ever growing numbers of older people requiring some form of care.

In Councillor Adair's speech introducing the budget proposals he pointed out that even with a council tax freeze, Nottinghamshire County Council will still be spending £11 million more in 2010/11 than in the previous year.

(Posted 10/5/10)

Improvement Programme

Like every council in the country, Nottinghamshire County Council faces ongoing, significant and unavoidable increases in demand for key services. At the same time, it faces an unprecedented and long-term reduction in the resources available to it. Present forecasts are that the Council must reduce its current expenditure by at least £88m, or 18% of its revenue budget, over the next three financial years. Most of this reduction will be used to fund increased demand in other service areas. £30m of reductions have already been identified for 2010/11, leaving a further £58m to be found in 2011/12 and 2012/13.

In the past, reductions have been achieved through a process of allocating savings targets across departments. However, the scale of the financial challenge is now such that a more strategic approach is needed to achieve reductions in a structured and consistent way.

At the County Council meeting on 25^th February 2010 the Deputy Leader of the Council, Cllr Martin Suthers gained approval for a new Improvement Programme to deliver these aims, called ‘One Council - One Business - One Plan’. This will involve an estimated investment of £21 million over five years to deliver total aggregated savings of over £200m over a five year period.

The Improvement Programme will include: -

a complete overhaul of the Council’s approach to procurement
implementation of an integrated Business Management System and changes in processes
rationalisation of the Council’s property portfolio and improvement in flexible ways of working
a fundamental review of all services followed by a comprehensive programme of organisational redesign
departmental improvement programmes that deliver service-specific developments and
the Chief Executive’s own programme to deliver improvements in partnership working, communications and organisational development.

The aim of ‘One Council-One Business-One Plan’ is to drive out inefficiency, target resources, minimise the impact on service delivery and create an organisation that is fit for purpose and financially sustainable in the long term.

(Posted 10/5/10)

New Strategic Plan

Nottinghamshire County Council's new Strategic Plan 2010-2014 sets out our promise to the people of Nottinghamshire; our priorities for the next four years; and how we aim to support the people of our county to be aspirational, independent and to share with us responsibility for the future.

This Plan complements the wider Nottinghamshire Sustainable Community Strategy which is the collective plan that outlines how organisations in the county will work together to promote and deliver a better Nottinghamshire.

Our plan is ambitious. It is a plan based on what local people tell us they want, and what they want to see happen. The success of our plan relies on us working well together with local people and organisations. Whilst we face challenging financial times, nevertheless we have opportunities to promote and deliver a better future for Nottinghamshire.

(Posted 10/5/10)

Gritting

The exceptionally cold weather which affected Nottinghamshire and most other parts of the UK between December and February led to unprecedented pressures on local authority gritting supplies. Nottinghamshire County Council possessed stockpiles far exceeding Government recommendations and was able to keep its priority routes gritted even when other councils had exhausted their supplies. The biggest difficulty was obtaining replacement supplies, given the exceptional pressure on the two national companies who supply the country’s salt.

Taking these events into account, it was agreed at the recent County Council budget meeting to increase the gritting budget by £50,000 for 2010/11. It is also intended to use 6mm rather than 10mm salt, which will improve spread rate and increase our gritting capacity still further.

(Posted 10/3/10)

Tram

On 24^th September 2009 Nottinghamshire County Council voted to withdraw its financial support for the NET Phase Two transport scheme. As a Conservative County Councillor I was elected on a manifesto which stated: "We will avoid spending a small fortune on tram extensions which few people in the county will be able to use."

During the Council debate, several Conservative Members presented the argument for this change of policy. Some referred to the increasing costs of the scheme, whilst others supported the Cabinet Member for Transport & Highways' assertion that flexible bus services, rather than a fixed tram line, represent the most suitable public transport solution to serve the whole of Nottinghamshire.

Some of my colleagues took the opportunity to state that, contrary to some media reports, the Conservative position on the proposed tram extensions has not changed. They pointed out that the previous Labour administration had entered into certain legal agreements in relation to NET Phase 2 which must be respected to protect the interests of the County taxpayer, but the new Conservative administration is quite clear that it does not support the proposed tram extension routes.

(Posted 5/10/09)

Workplace Parking Levy (WPL)

Also at the Nottinghamshire County Council meeting on 24^th September 2009, the Cabinet Member for Transport & Highways, Councillor Richard Jackson stated that the new Conservative county administration is opposed to Nottingham City Council's proposals for a Workplace Parking Levy (WPL). He expressed concern about the financial impact such a Levy could have on County residents who work in the City and stated his belief that the WPL would be unlikely to cut congestion. Councillor Jackson argued that the scheme could lead to significant parking problems in the County area, frighten off economic investment in the City and County and hit business confidence at a time when it needs to be nurtured.

(Posted 5/10/09)

Barrie's latest Councillors' Divisional Fund awards...

Following a decision taken by Cabinet on 8th July 2009, each County Councillor now has an annual fund of £10,000 to support worthy initiatives in the division they represent.

CDF aims to make use of each councillor's 'grass roots' knowledge to identify projects, events, people and clubs that work hard to benefit and promote their local area, but often lack access to resources. Even a small amount of funding can sometimes make a huge difference.

If you know of a deserving initiative in the West Bridgford Central & South division that might be eligible to receive a CDF grant, please contact me.

Here are some of the projects I've been able to help so far: -

100 eskimo rolls

I was pleased to assist local constituent Helen Barnes in purchasing the equipment necessary for her successful attempt to set a World Record for the fastest time completing 100 eskimo rolls in a kayak, as featured recently on the local television news.

Pierrepont Gamston Primary School

A grant from my CDF has helped towards the purchase of an all weather playing surface at Pierrepont Gamston Primary School.

Holme Pierrepont & Gamston Parish Council

I was delighted to fund the cost of Holme Pierrepont & Gamston Parish Council's May Day celebrations.

Lady Bay School Fund

I was pleased to make a CDF donation to the Lady Bay School Fund towards the provision of shade canopies in the school playground.

West Bridgford U3A

A grant from my CDF went to the West Bridgford U3A to help purchase new computers.

Taekwondo

I was pleased to make a CDF grant to the Rushcliffe-based Carlton Arena Taekwondo Club, to assist with training and travel expenses for a young member representing Great Britain at the European Championships in Portugal.

Nottingham Synchronised Skating Academy

A grant from my CDF is has helped 3 young people from the Nottingham Synchronised Skating Academy to take part in a competition in the Netherlands.

Cruse Bereavement Care

I was pleased to provide some CDF money to help meet the running costs of the local Cruse Bereavement Care voluntary group service.

Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme

A contribution from my CDF has gone towards the cost of setting up the Duke of Edinburgh's Award Scheme in West Bridgford.

Friends of Sharphill Wood

A grant from my CDF went to the Friends of Sharphill Wood, to provide materials for the footpath and border maintenance of the wood.

Rushcliffe Barn Owl Project

I was pleased to make a donation from my CDF towards the running costs of the Rushcliffe Barn Owl Project.

World Triathlon Championships

I was pleased to help a constituent with travel and accommodation costs for the World Triathlon Championships in Australia.

Nottingham Concert Band

I was able to assist the West Bridgford-based Nottingham Concert Band with travelling costs for a performance in Manchester.

Photo Marathon

I was delighted to help Churches Together in West Bridgford with their West Bridgford Photo Marathon community event.

West Bridgford Explorer Scouts

A grant from my CDF helped the West Bridgford Explorer Scouts to organise their International Scouts mini jamboree.

Women of the Year

I was pleased to join my colleague Cllr Gordon Wheeler in helping four pupils from the Rushcliffe School to attend the presentation event in London for their nomination as Women of the Year.