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Full Council on 8 December agreed proposals to enter into a strategic partnering arrangement with Cambridge Education, part of the Mott MacDonald Group*. The partnering arrangement was approved by the Children, Education, Libraries and Safeguarding Committee in November and referred to full Council for final approval. The arrangement between Barnet Council and Cambridge Education will help to ensure that the education offer in Barnet remains among one of the best in the country despite the challenging economic climate that the council is facing.

With around 35% of the average Barnet refuse bin containing food waste that could have been recycled, the council are keen to raise awareness with residents about what they can do to reduce or recycle it. An estimated 20,000 tonnes of food waste is disposed of in refuse bins on average every year in Barnet, costing more for the council to process than if recycled.

All Barnet libraries are open for business and our main Library IT system has now been restored. Whilst most services are now available to residents, a small number remain unavailable.  We continue to work to restore all remaining services, including online catalogue, reservations and online account access. 

The tool allows users to explore local areas on an online map, make comments on current suggestions and vote using a ‘thumbs up’ or ‘thumbs down’. The tool also allows users to propose new sites or facilities by dragging and dropping a pin onto a location. As well as voting, the tool enables conversations between neighbours and communities as users are able to comment on each other’s proposals. There are currently two topics that users can contribute to: the provision of cycle parking across the borough, and improvements to Montrose Playing Fields and Silkstream Park.

The British Red Cross are working with the council’s Environmental Health Team to provide the Home from Hospital Service which offers ‘Winter Warm’ packs to vulnerable people living in cold homes who are returning from a stay in hospital. The packs are intended to help people recovering at home and are valuable in emergencies such as power outages for the most vulnerable and at risk. They include items such as a warm blanket, hat, gloves, socks, hot water bottle, thermos cup, thermometer and information. 

The memorial stone to the Reverend Edward Noel Mellish was officially unveiled near his place of birth during a special ceremony on Wednesday 23 March. Among those attending the ceremony were more than 20 relatives of Rev Mellish who had travelled from across the UK to be there, including his daughter Claire Mellish who unveiled the stone.

As part of Safe Drive Stay Alive, a programme delivered by Barnet Council and Re*, pupils from seventeen Barnet schools attended hard-hitting sessions at the Artsdepot in Finchley. Officers from the emergency services, parents whose teenage children died in car accidents and a survivor of a collision gave their testimonies to pupils, who were also shown a film taking them through the reconstruction of a fictitious, but typical, scenario which reveals the life-changing, or life-ending, consequences of dangerous driving.

The Illegal Money Lending Team (IMLT), working in partnership with London Borough of Barnet Trading Standards and the Metropolitan Police Service, executed a warrant at a residential address in Hendon, seizing documentation and electronic devices. The suspect is currently in custody and is being questioned by officers from the IMLT.

The plans form part of the council’s Parking Policy, implemented in January 2015, to make Barnet’s roads safer, keep traffic moving and reduce air pollution. The new locations follow the success of recent enforcement actions which has seen a two-thirds increase in the number of people complying with parking regulations around schools.

The successful event, supported by Barnet Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) and Barnet Council, was held at the Meritage Centre in Hendon to focus on the importance of mental health and wellbeing. One in four people will experience a mental health issue in their lifetime. Mental health voluntary organisations such as Mind, Eclipse, and Barnet Voice have together planned this event with The Network, Outreach Barnet and others. The event also raised awareness of Barnet’s Wellbeing Hub which delivers mental health support within the community.