From burst water mains to Tory praise for MP - your views (From Keighley News)

JOIN THE KC CLUB

Help us raise money for Manorlands »

Your Keighley

Get involved: Send your pictures, video, news and views by texting BRKNPIC to 80360 or e-mail »

News RSS Feed

From burst water mains to Tory praise for MP - your views

8:12am Thursday 28th August 2008

comment Comments (3) Have your say »

By Letters to the editor »

What a waste of water!

On my way home one Monday evening about 8.30 I noticed a burst water main in Braithwaie Avenue, where they had just demolished a community centre to make way for a new school.

Being a good citizen, I phoned the water board who told me they had had a few phone calls and were aware of it and someone was on their way to turn off the water. By Tuesday afternoon it was still gushing out of the burst pipe, so on my way into town I called into the council offices to report it there. They also assured me it would be dealt with immediately.

It is now Wednesday morning and, yes, nobody has been to deal with it. Now in view of the forthcoming water increases enough water has been totally wasted in 48 hours to feed the whole of the area and that's only one problem, all over the Keighley area there are blocked drains which with all the rainfall of late is running away down nearly every street.

As we have no choice but to pay these increases yearly could the water board please respond and explain to us why the hell nothing gets any better.

Resident of Braithwaite Avenue, name and address supplied

A Yorkshire Water spokesman said the burst occurred on the site, belonging to Bradford Council, of a demolished community centre.

YW alerted the council to the problem and the company was subsequently asked to temporarily disconnect the water supply, which it did.

A permanent disconnection has now been requested by the council and that will be carried out.

The spokesman added: "We would like to thank the lady for reporting the burst - she did the correct thing - and apologise if there was any delay.

"We would encourage all customers to report any bursts they see as soon as possible, even if they think somone else may already have alerted us to it."

Tory praise for MP Ann

On behalf of our association I would like to join with others who have recognised the strengths, hard work and dedication of the retiring MP Anne Cryer. She has stood up for the rights of local people, fought many a battle, both on local and national agendas, and has always been an honourable political opponent.

It is difficult for anyone in a high profile position to recognise when the time is right to step down and I am sure she will have agonised over making such a decision. The time for change draws closer and we look forward to campaigning against the next Labour candidate, whoever that may be.

I am sure that we will all join together in wishing Ann a long and happy retirement and the opportunity to enjoy her family life.

Councillor Andrew Mallinson, chairman of the Keighley and Ilkley Conservative Association, North Street, Keighley.

Litter louts and vandals return

I live in the Knowle Park area of Keighley.

A few years ago the far end of my garden had become a rubbish tip. We would leave our garden waste there to dispose of in due course.

However, rubbish magically appeared from time to time; there were car seats, chairs and other detritus. Other neighbouring gardens were filling up with rubbish too.

Several months later Bradford council began "The Big Sweep" scheme; we all received warning letters from the council about the rubbish build-up. We duly set to and cleared it all away and my son totally landscaped the area.

Two years on and it's starting again but with vandalism thrown in as well.

A few months ago one householder began dumping rubbish at the end of the access road - this includes asbestos. I have written a month ago to Visible Services Enforcement, Environmental Health, Bradford Council, regarding this but the rubbish remains.

Very recently our newly landscaped area has been partly destroyed - a grapevine and kiwi-fruit plant has been severely damaged and a cherry tree snapped off near the base. This cherry tree was planted as a memorial to my daughter's guinea-pig after it died (also named Cherry) three years ago. This year it bore the first successful crop of eating cherries.

In July my cat was attacked by a Staffordshire bull-terrier cross dog; it also attacked and killed a neighbour's cat. These incidents have been reported to our local neighbourhood policing team (especially in view of having a primary school around the corner). However, the "dangerous dog" (as it's now classified by the police) is still roaming the neighbourhood.

There have been various other "nuisance" incidents occurring over several months - also duly reported. However, the miscreants are still committing these "nuisance" crimes.

As law-abiding citizens my neighbours and I have taken the appropriate law-abiding actions. However, the longer these incidents keep on occurring the more it makes us feel like taking the law into our own hands. In the words of the Beatles song - "Help I need somebody, not just anybody, help ..."

NAME AND ADDRESS SUPPLIED

Memory Lane surprise

I have enjoyed a very suprising weekend due to the publication of my letter in last week's Keighley News.

Two ladies came to my house on Saturday afternoon, one clutching the Keighley News and said: "I really need to talk to you about this." Her name is Maureen Taylor (nee Lord) and she is the daughter of my grandad Bill's brother, Paul. Sadly, Paul had died at the age of 36, apparently a very poorly man.

Also, I was very suprised to learn that my great-grandfather had left my great-grandmother for another woman.

Neither of us know my great-grandmother's christian name as she was always referred to as, Mrs Lord. Maureen revealed that there was a family plot at Utley cemetery, so I went on Sunday and found the site and also came across another burial plot for the Wignall family, which I think may be linked to my late father, Peter.

We shared very fond memories of grandad Bill Lord and also discovered that we have been living approximately one mile from each other and we are both passionate about horses and dogs.

All thanks to the Keighley News and its Memory Lane.

Laura Darnbrough Oakbank Lane, Oakworth

You can park at centre

I wish to respond to Mr Percy Sunderland KN 21/8 with regards to the "Parking in medical centre" letter.

Mr Sunderland made reference to car parking difficulties in Haworth at the weekend and made comment that you should be allowed to park in the medical centre car park on a Saturday afternoon and Sunday. Being a member of staff at the surgery I would like to respond to this.

The public are permitted to use the medical centre car park on a weekend, the facilities are there for all to use in the form of a pay and display machine.

I hope this information is of use to Mr Sunderland, along with any member of the public who wishes to use the medical centre facilities at weekends.

Mrs Karen Laycock Oakbank Lane, Oakworth

Scame at School of Art Yet another declaration by the Government that foreign students here on a visa will be followed up to ensure that they do not exceed their stay, reminds me that Keighley was one of the first victims of what became a well-known scam 50 years ago.

In 1956 the principal of the School of Art, which was still a separate institution, told the governors at their monthly meeting that he had received a letter from 11 Nigerian students who wished to study for a full-time course at the school.

Naturally, he and the governors were pleased that the reputation of the school had spread to Africa. To enable them to come they each needed a letter from the principal to say that they had been accepted for the course and a copy of the school's prospectus. This was duly done and the principal was authorised to appoint an additional member of staff to cope with this new situation.

September came but the students didn't and were never heard of again. Everyone had been well and truly hoaxed.

The Home Office and the Department of Education were, of course, informed and it may be that years later this experience contributed to a system whereby visas for study must be issued by the embassy in the home country. Even so, it seems that university students, having registered, still melt into the streets of London.

I can't remember this getting much publicity but then it wouldn't, would it, then? After all, the warning saying that "if something seems too good to be true it probably isn't" had not yet been invented.

Frank Pedley (Borough Education Officer and, at the time, Clerk to the Governors of the much loved School of Art, which was soon afterwards merged with the technical college), Gisburn Road, Hellifield, Skipton

Print article » Email to a friend »

Your Say YourKeighley

Chris, Keighley says...
1:02pm Mon 1 Sep 08

Nearly 10% of Labours MP's have announced that they will not contest their seats at the next general election. Now doesn't this tell you just how unpopular this sad party has become.

Report this post »

samuels david, Keightly says...
8:06pm Sat 11 Oct 08

1th Oct 2008
As a Keighley Town Councillor with a keen interest in what happen, not only in my ward of Spring Gardens and Utley I took it upon myself to once again test the reaction to the street market in Keighley and what affect it has had on Keighley Market itself.
Most of the comments towards Keighley Town Council and it involvement with the street market, and to put it as delicately as I can, were not pleasant!
People who year in and year out are trying to make a living in the Keighley Town Market and especially in these recessionary times, with the high rents and rates put on them by a virtually bust Bradford District Council do not need the efforts of the Keighley Town Council Events Committee, in conjunction with Bradford City, to bring bankruptcy to by the hard working tenants of the Keighley Market.
Astonishingly one of my fellow Keighley councillors who were in the Market with the Keighley Town Clerk, refused to talk to the Market Traders as it was an ‘Event Committee function’. I reminded the Keighley Councillor that as Keighley Town Councillors it was our duty to enquire as to the viability of such events. The Councillor refused! It seemed from all of the Market traders that I questioned that I was the only Keighley Councillor who had engaged in conversation with the Market traders regarding the situation!
After all the garbage, vile words, innuendoes etc thrown at me and my fellow colleagues by some Keighley Committee Chairman and their friends, do not match up to the reality of sound prudent actions called for by me and my associates. I suggest that to all those who have suggested that we are not pulling our weight in this town should now reconsider their positions as Keighley Town Councillors. As no useful outcome will be made of my studies, I expect to be tried, found guiltily and be summarily ~put down’ by the ubiquitous Keighley Town Council Management and Staffing Committee.

1th Oct 2008 As a Keighley Town Councillor with a keen interest in what happen, not only in my ward of Spring Gardens and Utley I took it upon myself to once again test the reaction to the street market in Keighley and what affect it has had on Keighley Market itself. Most of the comments towards Keighley Town Council and it involvement with the street market, and to put it as delicately as I can, were not pleasant! People who year in and year out are trying to make a living in the Keighley Town Market and especially in these recessionary times, with the high rents and rates put on them by a virtually bust Bradford District Council do not need the efforts of the Keighley Town Council Events Committee, in conjunction with Bradford City, to bring bankruptcy to by the hard working tenants of the Keighley Market. Astonishingly one of my fellow Keighley councillors who were in the Market with the Keighley Town Clerk, refused to talk to the Market Traders as it was an ‘Event Committee function’. I reminded the Keighley Councillor that as Keighley Town Councillors it was our duty to enquire as to the viability of such events. The Councillor refused! It seemed from all of the Market traders that I questioned that I was the only Keighley Councillor who had engaged in conversation with the Market traders regarding the situation! After all the garbage, vile words, innuendoes etc thrown at me and my fellow colleagues by some Keighley Committee Chairman and their friends, do not match up to the reality of sound prudent actions called for by me and my associates. I suggest that to all those who have suggested that we are not pulling our weight in this town should now reconsider their positions as Keighley Town Councillors. As no useful outcome will be made of my studies, I expect to be tried, found guiltily and be summarily ~put down’ by the ubiquitous Keighley Town Council Management and Staffing Committee.

Report this post »

samuels david, Keightly says...
5:44pm Mon 13 Oct 08

blt1, keighley says...
9:04pm Sat 11 Oct 08
if i am reading cllr samuels correctly his opposition to the street market is that it may lose the market some trade my reaction may seem harsh but so what.are we not living in a democracy and free market where people are free to spend theire own money wherever they wish?is cllr samuels against asda in case people in the other town supermarkets may lose their jobs because of lost sales.if you follow his argumant to the limit there would be only 1 pub ,1 hairdressers etc. in the town.to be honest the further you read the more it seems cllr samuels is less interested in the market and more interested in saving his own skin on the town council which he seems to hate but carries on being a member of.
when are we going to see an end to this washimg of dirty laundry in public the people of keighley deserve better.
if i am reading cllr samuels correctly his opposition to the street market is that it may lose the market some trade my reaction may seem harsh but so what.are we not living in a democracy and free market where people are free to spend theire own money wherever they wish?is cllr samuels against asda in case people in the other town supermarkets may lose their jobs because of lost sales.if you follow his argumant to the limit there would be only 1 pub ,1 hairdressers etc. in the town.to be honest the further you read the more it seems cllr samuels is less interested in the market and more interested in saving his own skin on the town council which he seems to hate but carries on being a member of. when are we going to see an end to this washimg of dirty laundry in public the people of keighley deserve better.
Quote » | Report this post »
samuels david, Keightly says...
5:24pm Mon 13 Oct 08
The effrontery of letter writer, ‘bit I Keighley’ who hides behind the anonymity of a nom de plume in making stupid remarks that benefit Bradford and not the whole of Keighley is typical of low brained business sense.
I’ll try to make this correspondence simple. Are you ready? Keighley Market traders are going through an economic nightmare as the population of Keighley, a low paid area, struggles to keep the Keighley alive and vibrant. Bringing in low priced tat to Keighley that has no guarantee, ie, if things go wrong where do you take back faulty goods? Buy products in Keighley Market and if you‘re any problems, no problem, take it back and claim your rights!
Yes I’m against Asda because I’ve seen what its parent Company ‘Walmark’ has done to many areas of America. Closed of choice to the lowest denominator, wiping out manufacturing job as the shown by the foreign car market has done to British companies.
Level playing fields I’m for, Bradford City Council makes money from these market traders, not Keighley Town Council as the rents and rates are of a reduce nature compared to the Market traders and all the other shop in Keighley who also suffer from this unfair completion! In the end anonymous writer you would bankrupt local business so that even more charity shops would scar the area. One thing I would agree with is that Keighley’s dirty washing indeed needs to be displayed and not hidden away and that is why I and some of my fellow councillors are disliked, simply because we would like tell the truth about what goes on!
I would wish to here more of the anonymous writer comments regarding the snide remarks when the writer has slid from beneath the rocks of vagueness. ‘it seems cllr samuels is less interested in the market and more interested in saving his own skin on the town council which he seems to hate but carries on being a member of but carries on being a member of’
I serve Keighley, not for altruistic or financial reasons but out of a loyalty to Keighley. I do not claim expenses and never have done.
The effrontery of letter writer, ‘bit I Keighley’ who hides behind the anonymity of a nom de plume in making stupid remarks that benefit Bradford and not the whole of Keighley is typical of low brained business sense. I’ll try to make this correspondence simple. Are you ready? Keighley Market traders are going through an economic nightmare as the population of Keighley, a low paid area, struggles to keep the Keighley alive and vibrant. Bringing in low priced tat to Keighley that has no guarantee, ie, if things go wrong where do you take back faulty goods? Buy products in Keighley Market and if you‘re any problems, no problem, take it back and claim your rights! Yes I’m against Asda because I’ve seen what its parent Company ‘Walmark’ has done to many areas of America. Closed of choice to the lowest denominator, wiping out manufacturing job as the shown by the foreign car market has done to British companies. Level playing fields I’m for, Bradford City Council makes money from these market traders, not Keighley Town Council as the rents and rates are of a reduce nature compared to the Market traders and all the other shop in Keighley who also suffer from this unfair completion! In the end anonymous writer you would bankrupt local business so that even more charity shops would scar the area. One thing I would agree with is that Keighley’s dirty washing indeed needs to be displayed and not hidden away and that is why I and some of my fellow councillors are disliked, simply because we would like tell the truth about what goes on! I would wish to here more of the anonymous writer comments regarding the snide remarks when the writer has slid from beneath the rocks of vagueness. ‘it seems cllr samuels is less interested in the market and more interested in saving his own skin on the town council which he seems to hate but carries on being a member of but carries on being a member of’ I serve Keighley, not for altruistic or financial reasons but out of a loyalty to Keighley. I do not claim expenses and never have done.
Quote » | Report this post »

blt1, keighley says... 9:04pm Sat 11 Oct 08 if i am reading cllr samuels correctly his opposition to the street market is that it may lose the market some trade my reaction may seem harsh but so what.are we not living in a democracy and free market where people are free to spend theire own money wherever they wish?is cllr samuels against asda in case people in the other town supermarkets may lose their jobs because of lost sales.if you follow his argumant to the limit there would be only 1 pub ,1 hairdressers etc. in the town.to be honest the further you read the more it seems cllr samuels is less interested in the market and more interested in saving his own skin on the town council which he seems to hate but carries on being a member of. when are we going to see an end to this washimg of dirty laundry in public the people of keighley deserve better. if i am reading cllr samuels correctly his opposition to the street market is that it may lose the market some trade my reaction may seem harsh but so what.are we not living in a democracy and free market where people are free to spend theire own money wherever they wish?is cllr samuels against asda in case people in the other town supermarkets may lose their jobs because of lost sales.if you follow his argumant to the limit there would be only 1 pub ,1 hairdressers etc. in the town.to be honest the further you read the more it seems cllr samuels is less interested in the market and more interested in saving his own skin on the town council which he seems to hate but carries on being a member of. when are we going to see an end to this washimg of dirty laundry in public the people of keighley deserve better. Quote » | Report this post » samuels david, Keightly says... 5:24pm Mon 13 Oct 08 The effrontery of letter writer, ‘bit I Keighley’ who hides behind the anonymity of a nom de plume in making stupid remarks that benefit Bradford and not the whole of Keighley is typical of low brained business sense. I’ll try to make this correspondence simple. Are you ready? Keighley Market traders are going through an economic nightmare as the population of Keighley, a low paid area, struggles to keep the Keighley alive and vibrant. Bringing in low priced tat to Keighley that has no guarantee, ie, if things go wrong where do you take back faulty goods? Buy products in Keighley Market and if you‘re any problems, no problem, take it back and claim your rights! Yes I’m against Asda because I’ve seen what its parent Company ‘Walmark’ has done to many areas of America. Closed of choice to the lowest denominator, wiping out manufacturing job as the shown by the foreign car market has done to British companies. Level playing fields I’m for, Bradford City Council makes money from these market traders, not Keighley Town Council as the rents and rates are of a reduce nature compared to the Market traders and all the other shop in Keighley who also suffer from this unfair completion! In the end anonymous writer you would bankrupt local business so that even more charity shops would scar the area. One thing I would agree with is that Keighley’s dirty washing indeed needs to be displayed and not hidden away and that is why I and some of my fellow councillors are disliked, simply because we would like tell the truth about what goes on! I would wish to here more of the anonymous writer comments regarding the snide remarks when the writer has slid from beneath the rocks of vagueness. ‘it seems cllr samuels is less interested in the market and more interested in saving his own skin on the town council which he seems to hate but carries on being a member of but carries on being a member of’ I serve Keighley, not for altruistic or financial reasons but out of a loyalty to Keighley. I do not claim expenses and never have done. The effrontery of letter writer, ‘bit I Keighley’ who hides behind the anonymity of a nom de plume in making stupid remarks that benefit Bradford and not the whole of Keighley is typical of low brained business sense. I’ll try to make this correspondence simple. Are you ready? Keighley Market traders are going through an economic nightmare as the population of Keighley, a low paid area, struggles to keep the Keighley alive and vibrant. Bringing in low priced tat to Keighley that has no guarantee, ie, if things go wrong where do you take back faulty goods? Buy products in Keighley Market and if you‘re any problems, no problem, take it back and claim your rights! Yes I’m against Asda because I’ve seen what its parent Company ‘Walmark’ has done to many areas of America. Closed of choice to the lowest denominator, wiping out manufacturing job as the shown by the foreign car market has done to British companies. Level playing fields I’m for, Bradford City Council makes money from these market traders, not Keighley Town Council as the rents and rates are of a reduce nature compared to the Market traders and all the other shop in Keighley who also suffer from this unfair completion! In the end anonymous writer you would bankrupt local business so that even more charity shops would scar the area. One thing I would agree with is that Keighley’s dirty washing indeed needs to be displayed and not hidden away and that is why I and some of my fellow councillors are disliked, simply because we would like tell the truth about what goes on! I would wish to here more of the anonymous writer comments regarding the snide remarks when the writer has slid from beneath the rocks of vagueness. ‘it seems cllr samuels is less interested in the market and more interested in saving his own skin on the town council which he seems to hate but carries on being a member of but carries on being a member of’ I serve Keighley, not for altruistic or financial reasons but out of a loyalty to Keighley. I do not claim expenses and never have done. Quote » | Report this post »

Report this post »

Your sayYourKeighley

comment Add your comment

Register for a FREE Keighley News account and you can have your say on today's news and sport by adding comments on articles we publish. The best comments may even get published in the paper.

Please register now or sign in below to continue.