Penny Goodman selected as the Liberal Democrat candidate for Headingley in May

Yesterday evening, Leeds North West Liberal Democrats held a hustings for candidates hoping to represent the party at the Leeds City Council elections in May 2016. Penny Goodman, who lives on Grove Lane, was selected by the local party to stand as the candidate for Headingley ward.

Penny said:

I am thrilled to have been selected as the Liberal Democrat candidate for Headingley. I have lived in Headingley for nine years now, and it is a fantastic community. It’s diverse, vibrant, active and engaged, and has something to offer for everyone.

But it’s becoming increasingly obvious that Headingley’s Labour councillors aren’t doing everything they could to help the community and protect its interests. On the doorsteps, residents constantly report concerns to me about bins and graffiti, which I have been able to tackle on their behalf. But why aren’t the Labour councillors dealing with these issues properly? It is supposed to be part of their job.

Headingley can do better than this, and the record of action which I have already built up shows what I could do for this community if I am elected next May.

Penny and Greg

Local candidate Penny Goodman with Greg Mulholland MP

Headingley Taps success

Two weeks ago, residents on Wood Land and Alma Road told us that there was a lot of mess and rubbish around the recycling bins outside the Headingley Taps pub. We raised this with the council, and today they reported back that the mess has been cleaned, and measures put in place to ensure that regular cleaning now happens whenever the bins are emptied. Great news!

On the same evening, residents also raised concerns about the entrance to the Lupton student residences, where students often leave litter on the pavement while waiting for taxis, because there is no proper bin to put it in. We’re pleased to report that the management of the halls have now agreed to install a new bin at this location. The bin itself is yet to appear, though. We will be checking back regularly until it does!

Out on the doorsteps: opposite the Arndale

Today, the Headingley Liberal Democrats met up opposite the Arndale Centre to speak to residents in the streets nearby, including Dennistead Crescent, Alma Cottages, Chapel Street and Ash Terrace.

Canvassing 10 Sept 2015

On Chapel Street and Ash Terrace in particular, almost everyone we spoke to was deeply unhappy about the situation with their green bins. They said that collections have been stopped as part of the Labour council’s pilot scheme to remove dedicated recycling in the area and use automatic sorting instead to filter out recyclable material from black bins. But the old, empty green bins have not been removed, and are now causing a serious blockage on the pavement. Meanwhile, one resident asked several times for opt-in recycling bags, but has received nothing.

After we had finished speaking to the residents, Penny Goodman took some pictures of the problem:

Abandoned green bins Chapel Street

Chapel Street bins 1

Chapel Street bins 2

That’s all on one street – and not a very long one, either! No wonder residents are feeling fed up.

Out on the doorsteps: Wood Lane and Alma Road

This evening Penny Goodman and the Lib Dem team spoke to residents on the doorsteps on Wood Lane and Alma Road. These are some of the surveys they completed, telling us their priorities and concerns.

Surveys collected 19 Aug 2015

Several residents were unhappy about the number of cars which drive the wrong way along Alma Road – supposedly a one-way street. We also heard about two areas regularly affected by litter: the recycling bins in front of the Headingley Taps, and the Alma Road entrance to the Lupton student residences, where there is currently no bin, and students often leave litter on the pavement while waiting for taxis.

We will be working on all these issues, and will report back here with any progress.

Grit bins

We all wish summer would last forever, but unfortunately winter comes all too soon! While out delivering leaflets today we checked on some of Headingley’s grit bins, and were surprised to find many of them either full of rubbish or simply empty of grit.

Grit bin 1

Grit bin 2

Grit bin 3

We will be reporting this issue to the council, asking them to make sure that the grit bins are filled up ready for the winter, and that proper rubbish bins are provided where people are using grit bins instead.