It is important to celebrate and commemorate the social history of the past and the community education of the future. The site has English Heritage and National Lottery Funded support to proceed forward with a preservation project and more support is forthcoming! The freeholder and Hackney Council promised the site as a Heritage and Arts Centre as early as 2009, but are now reneging on that promise in acquiescing to the freeholder's desires to profit from the site's transfer to residential use. If you have time, register your support in favour of saving the building for Heritage Community use to: [email protected]. And - if you are a Hackney resident - write to your local ward councillor! Stop the Greed! Save the Schoolhouse!

The proportion of Scotland from which built development could not be seen has dropped by two fifths in 11 years, to 27% in 2013 - an immense change in Scotland's landscape. The remaining wild land has been officially mapped by Scottish Natural Heritage for inclusion in national planning policy. We the undersigned support the Mountaineering Council of Scotland in calling for no further industrial developments to be permitted in the areas of wild land that remain. Protecting the remaining wild land in this way will have many benefits: - Wild mountain landscapes form a vital part of Scotland's culture. - Wild and challenging landscapes inspire people to become more physically active, helping to combat national problems with inactivity; there is also strong evidence that they improve mental health - Tourism is one of Scotland's largest industries, and is by far the largest source of employment in the more remote communities that lie close to areas of wild land (the wild land itself, by definition, does not contain any communities). We need to protect jobs in these communities that depend on the continued existence of wild landscapes nearby. - Local councils will benefit from reducing the high costs they are currently incurring in having to deal with planning applications for inappropriate developments in wild land areas; the planning process, public inquiries and appeals often taking years. - The renewable energy industry will benefit by having been given clarity that wild land is not a suitable location for development. This will save money, time, controversy and reputational damage through planning battles in these areas. Renewable energy may be a vital part of Scotland's future, but wind farms - like all other large scale developments - can be sited elsewhere, in landscapes where visible development and intrusion is already prevalent. When wild land is developed, it is lost forever. More is being lost each year. We must protect what now remains of these precious landscapes.

The disabled are people too and should be afforded the same opportunities and rights as able bodied citizens.

Because the people of Thanet deserve to be served by councillors who aren't racist "Leadership - Holders of public office should promote and support these principles by leadership and by example, and should act in a way that secures or preserves public confidence."

'The National' is the only daily newspaper published that supports Scottish Independence.. In not carrying this title, public library services fail to present to the public a balanced view of the current political debate in Scotland.

Canal & River Trust (CART) declared on 13th February 2015 that from 1st May this year it will refuse to re-license all boats that “don’t move … far enough or often enough” to meet its Guidance for Boaters without a Home Mooring – unless they take a permanent mooring. This places boat families under unique pressure as many cannot afford a mooring. Many boat dwellers work locally and some are key workers. Many require access to local services such as health care and schools and will be put to extreme difficulty if forced to move unreasonable distances. Like it or not, socio-political realities have made the waterways an affordable housing resource for many families. Canal & River Trust has long denied this reality, describing themselves as a 'navigation authority' and harbouring a marked hostility towards the water-based community. This position is no longer tenable and CART needs to accept its responsibilities as a landlord. MORE INFORMATION CART's new policy sets requirements that go beyond those stated in Section 17 (3)(c)(ii) of the British Waterways Act 1995. Boat dwellers are happy to comply with the clearly stated, lawful requirement not to remain continuously in any one place for more than 14 days. However, the 1995 Act does not contain any requirement to travel a minimum distance or to follow any specific cruising pattern beyond the 14-day limit. The new policy means that boat dwellers are being forced to travel distances that put them out of reach of their jobs or their children's schools, and make it impossible for them to access health care or to stay near elderly relatives. If they choose to keep their homes they will be faced with the need to give up working, take their children out of school, miss out on vital health care and abandon elderly family members. If a boat licence is terminated, or renewal refused, the boat is then unlicensed. CART has the power under Section 8 (2) of the British Waterways Act 1983 to seize, remove and sell unlicensed boats from its waterways. Section 13 (3) (a) of the British Waterways Act 1971 gives CART the power to demolish a houseboat that it has seized. In cases where a boat is lived on, CART obtains a Court Order and also obtains an Injunction banning the boat dweller from ever returning to its waterways. Breach of an Injunction carries the penalty of arrest and imprisonment. Therefore, the boat dweller not only becomes homeless but loses the only asset that they own. Information provided in response to a Freedom of information request showed that in 2010-2011 the enforcement team had a target to seize 100 "non compliant" boats each year. When boats are seized, CART contracts with a firm of Bailiffs to tow the boat away and the Police are present. Permanent residential moorings that boat dwellers can legally live on are in very short supply. Where they exist, they are very expensive (up to £25,000 per year in London). The majority of marinas will turn you away if you live on your boat. Over 90% of permanent moorings are non-residential (“leisure moorings”). CART knows that if boat dwellers live on leisure moorings they risk having planning enforcement action taken against them for unauthorised residential use. In London and the south there is a severe shortage of moorings and mooring fees are vastly inflated. CART's own directly managed moorings are priced using an auction system where the highest bidder wins. Some private moorings have waiting lists of 9 years and more. There is no security of tenure for boat moorings so even if you do take a mooring, you could be evicted at the whim of the marina owner. CART is the largest inland navigation authority in the UK. It owns or manages some 80% of the waterways. The Environment Agency and other smaller bodies own and/or manage the remaining 20%. If CART refuses to renew the licence of a boat dweller, there are few, if any, other places that a boat dweller can take their boat. CART's latest move is yet another attack on the right to use and live on a boat without a permanent mooring; a right that Parliament enshrined in law in 1995 when it passed Section 17 (3)(c)(ii) of the British Waterways Act 1995. Before 1995 British Waterways (which became CART in 2012) sought powers to force all boats to have a mooring and criminal penalties against anyone caught living on their boat without a permanent residential mooring and a houseboat certificate. Parliament refused British Waterways these powers and acted to protect the 10,000 or so boat dwellers that would have become homeless in 1995 by wording Section 17 (3)(c)(ii) of the British Waterways Act 1995 in such a way that it included a wide variety of patterns of boat use including those boat dwellers who needed to remain close to a place of work, children's education, health care or elderly relatives. The reasoning behind the wording of this section can be found in the Minutes of Evidence of the Select Committees that drafted the 1995 Act.

The Engine Shed is a renowned training scheme which has transformed the lives of young people with learning disabilities for the past 25 years. They have helped many young people with learning disabilities gain skills in a real work environment and supported them to move into mainstream, paid employment. Trainees work alongside staff in the vegetarian café, organic bakery, organic tofu production unit and conference centre while developing skills for life. The Engine Shed is due to close down on the 19th February, 2015, due to Edinburgh Council stopping its funding. The.council says it will replace this with a new supported employment system, but critics point out that over 75% of Remploy employees are still unemployed after its closure. Let's ask Edinburgh Council to think again!

Beach Road school was built in the 1800's and is a beautiful example of historical architecture. It has served as both an infant and junior school for thousands of pupils and also found usage in both the First and Second World War as an army hospital. It was closed in 2008 when the school was merged with William Gladstone. If properly looked after this building could stand for another 100 years, but, of course, the solution is simply to demolish it. Please, let's have our say and not let Sefton Council take the easy way out and demolish what could be a useful building. These decisions to demolish are usually met with regret in years to come as they will never be rebuilt and the history is forever lost. Stand up now while we can. Thanks for your support.

It has been proven that alcohol consumption at Scottish football matches leads to increases in violence and domestic violence. The ban has the backing of leading anti-abuse charities and has made football family friendly and reduced cases of violence, it should not be reversed.

We love the Red Lion because it is a real hub of our close-knit community. We love the neighbourly feel, the great beer and even greater music nights, and we want to preserve it as it is.

The community have been shocked by the announcement of the closure on 27 th January 2015 ,winter,time of greatest demand for places, and the speed of progressing closure by moving on residents before any consultation has happened. A full and proper consultation needs to take place Answers are needed about the agenda the council has for the site.Why offers to take on the care home from the business company pulling out have been rejected without due consideration. These residents are having to move out of their local area,their needs for stability of good care are not being considered.They are being "evicted" out of their last home and are distressed,fearful and anxious.Their concerns and needs need to be represented as do the staff faced with immanent job loss. What is the agenda here?

If you value the quality of further education in Bristol and the South West then we need to save this fantastic course that routinely develops and delivers excellent new teachers. These Level Seven graduates find employment within our local colleges, some of which include: 
Bridgwater College City of Bath College City of Bristol College- All campuses SGS Filton/Wise Swindon New College Weston College Wiltshire College The proposed closure of this course at the University of the West of England means that not only will local graduates have to travel further afield to Cardiff or Plymouth to take this course, but that our local colleges will have less and less highly qualified new teachers to employ within the area. Unfortunately it is not a government requirement to hold a Post Graduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) to teach in FE colleges, but more and more colleges are seeking this in new staff so that their students get the BEST teachers. Please sign this to show your support for QUALITY education from QUALIFIED teachers. Thank you very much, your support is heartily appreciated.