We are all calling on the Chancellor to ring-fence mental health spend in his Autumn Budget. The government has announced additional funding for mental health - £1.4 billion over five years to deliver the Five Year Forward View for Mental Health and £1.25 billion for the Future In Mind programme for Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services. This money is a step forward but is only a fraction of what mental health services need to meet growing demands. Across England, for the second year in a row, over half of Clinical Commissioning Groups – the bodies that decide how money is spent locally - say they plan to reduce the proportion of their budget spend on mental health. This is unacceptable. The money needed to transform mental health services and save lives is just not reaching the front line. Waiting times are too long, people are not receiving the best care in the community and people are having to travel too far for in-patient services. On November 22, in his Budget, the Chancellor Philip Hammond can make a difference and ring-fence mental health budgets to make sure that the promised money actually reaches local mental health services. Please sign this petition today to urge the Chancellor to ring-fence mental health spending on November 22 and ask your friends and family to sign too. Together, we can make a difference. #mentalhealthmatters https://s3-eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/public38/images/mp.gif

The ‘Paradise Papers’ are just the latest in a long line of tax scandals. The system, which is rigged to benefit the privileged few at the expense of everyone else, is broken. The impact on our public services of these corrupt practices, protected by a veil of secrecy, has been devastating. After seven years of austerity, it is time for irresponsible tax dodging to come to an end. HMRC, the government body tasked with policing the tax system, has seen its staff numbers and budget halved since it was formed in 2005. Meanwhile, the UK government has failed to take the opportunity to clean up the offshore system, in territories like Bermuda that are under its control, and make it harder for individuals and companies to avoid tax. It is little wonder that tax dodgers are taking advantage. Tax Justice UK, the country’s leading campaign organisation for a fairer tax system, is now calling for the UK government to take decisive action to end the scourge of tax avoidance, once and for all, by tightening up on enforcement and introducing new transparency rules.

Xplore are proposing two alternative routes to the 32/33 bus which would cut out Forfar Road. Their consultation highlights that the route could also stay as it is. You can see the proposed two route changes at this link http://nxbus.co.uk/files/NXDundee/misc/FintryRouteReview-PublicConsultationDocument.pdf This re-routing would severely restrict people's ability for travel: • make it harder for people with disabilities and older people with mobility problems to catch a bus and get out of the house, potentially leading to loneliness and social isolation • safety concerns of having to work through a scheme to get to/and from the bus • get to and from work • visit friends and relatives • access education and training • access to hospitals, doctors, dentists and other medical services • access to leisure activities including town and countryside locations Fewer buses on the road will mean more traffic congestion and delays which affects all of us.

The Subs should be used by, and become an empowering hub for, ALL socio-economic groups, including vulnerable groups, community groups, the elderly and the young. The Subs can and should become a genuine community resource/space, showcasing a creative and caring community coming together to consolidate and extend what is rightfully ours, and to make available what should be accessible for all. In conversations on our High Street, it is clear how passionately Stroudies feel about this issue. Many are uncomprehending, and some even horrified, that Stroud, of all places, should be contemplating transferring this much-loved community gem into the private sector. With the active support of Stroud Town Council, the Stroud Trust has lodged an alternative bid, which would keep the centre run by, and open to, the whole community. Let's see all interested bidders and parties - including most importantly the District Council, Town Council and Ecotricity - come together with good faith and open mind to find a solution for the Subs' future that can serve and satisfy everyone's needs and aspirations. If enough of us sign this petition, we can show Stroud District Council that the people of Stroud want the centre to be publicly owned by the community, as it has been historically, and to stay open full-time for the people of Stroud and its environs.

The High Peak area is almost completely devoid of electric vehicle charging infrastructure. Between Stalybridge and Sheffield there is a distance of over 30 miles without any publicly available chargers. Given the serious traffic congestion in the area you would expect the local authority to be doing all they can to promote alternative fuel sources to mitigate air pollution, noise and climate change. Electric vehicles will not solve congestion, but diesel and petrol engines are causing excessive and unnecessary harm as the government has recently indicated by targeting a ban on the sale of fossil fuel only cars by 2040. High Peak is currently not in a position to meet this target and risks lagging behind nearby areas. High Peak needs to take advantage of funding sources available for the cost of electric charging and show some leadership in the field - Greater Manchester has an extensive network of free to use charging points.

The GREEN Team Canterbury, a local voluntary community group, has worked hard for the past few years to expose the enormous amount of perfectly good items going to waste in landfill during student relocation, which begins in May every year and continues over a period of about three weeks. The waste is plain to see but we have found much of the contents of bins and sacks is not RUBBISH! These include: CROCKERY, CUTLERY, POTS & PANS, ELECTRICALS, ELECTRONICS, CLOTHES, SHOES, BAGS, CDS & DVDS, JEWELLRY, BRIC A BRAC, SOFT FURNISHINGS, TOWELS, BOOKS, STATIONERY, BEDDING, AND NON-PERISHABLE FOOD. The sheer amount being thrown out is mind boggling, both on and off campuses, and would inundate our city's charity shop sector. Many students have no way of getting their unwanted possessions to them anyway. Added to this is the fact that most of this stuff is ideal for the following year’s students and we think that these items should be available in year round on campus free shops. There were many smiling faces when these items were redistributed at our Pop-up Free Shops over the past three summers. There was also shock that these items, some even new and unused (still sealed in their packaging!), were headed to landfill until they were covertly intercepted by The GREEN Team Canterbury. So much more could be achieved with an official well publicised scheme that doesn’t require going through contaminated rubbish to recycle unwanted stuff. There are already numerous schemes operating both nationally and globally. This is not rocket science. This can be done. We have been in contact with Canterbury City Council and local educational institutions for some time but unfortunately no scheme as yet has been planned. We are therefore petitioning the above to show the amount of support for a scheme and to spur them into action. Councils are being required to reduce landfill and may face penalties for non compliance with both national and Europe wide targets. Meanwhile our planet and its people are crying out for change. This would be good for all, especially the following year’s students. We think all the parties involved should work together and create a viable official and well publicised scheme in time for the next student relocation in May 2018. So please show your support and sign this petition as well as share it widely, thanks. Best wishes, Mark & Diane, co-founders, The GREEN Team Canterbury http://www.facebook.com/thegreenteamcanterbury [email protected] http://thegreenteamcanterbury.zohosites.com #thegreenteamcanterburypetition

The Walk In centre has become an essential service to the 60,000 residents in the local area. It massively relieves the pressure on the A & E unit in St Peters. No appointments are needed and it was open everyday.

From Tuesday to Friday, the library closes at 4pm, and it doesn’t open at all at weekends. Many children and students in local schools finish too late to to use the services after school, and residents working 9-5 jobs do not have much opportunity to access the library at all. The current opening hours seem only to serve the needs of the City workers coming into the area during the day, rather than the people living in the local community. This issue has been raised in a recent customer survey, and a consultation into a new spread of opening hours is under way. We, the residents of the City of London, want to make sure that our voices are put front and centre on this issue, rather than the corporations and City workers, which is too often the case.

Many people in the Old Trafford area rely on the Aldi store for their weekly groceries. The relocation has left local people, including those with mobility issues, facing a long walk to the new store. Pedestrian access is only available into White City via the Chester Road side, making this even worse. In addition, there are no bus services available from the main part of the Clifford or Longford wards to Chester Road. As any local person will tell you, the roads around this area are already heavily congested - even worse when Manchester United are playing at home, or there is a cricket match/concert at Old Trafford cricket ground, and we are concerned that without the proper public transport and pedestrian links, this will only be exacerbated. We call on Trafford Council to look at the public transport links and pedestrian access to this site. This relocation will have significant effects on the quality of life of Old Trafford residents, and we would like to see Trafford Council address this.

On 30 October 2017, NHS Lanarkshire voted to close Douglas Ward at Udston Hospital. This decision was made without proper public or patient consultation. The ward provides crucial lifeline care to patients with complex health needs. Many of the patients have lived there for over ten years and now consider this their home, as do the relatives who visit. Its closure means that its patients will move further away from family and friends, and have less contact from loved ones and the additional support they desperately need.

Caerphilly County Council plans to close Pontllanfraith Leisure Centre in order to gain the ‘full capital’ from the land sale, following the demolition of the old school grounds. The purpose in their proposal is: “ To seek Cabinet approval to commence the closure of Pontllanfraith Leisure Centre in conjunction with the opening of Islwyn High School and support the sale and development of the Pontllanfraith High School / Leisure Centre campus.” They claim there will be no loss of services, but in fact, quite the opposite is true. Their plans will result in a drastic loss of sporting and leisure services for residents. This in turn, will result in a LOSS OF WELL-BEING in the community, an UNHEALTHIER Wales and is utterly IRRESPONSIBLE. Their own proposal clearly highlights the following issues with the closure: - There is no other Football Association Wales approved G3 pitch in the area as the one in Ystrad Mynach is prone to flooding so is frequently unavailable. The closure will result in an end to competitive fixtures in the area. - The advance booking for the non-approved pitch in Islwyn High, is already booked with NEW teams and clubs, so the existing timetable cannot be absorbed. The closure will result in local teams and clubs having nowhere to train locally - There is no funding for a FAW approved pitch to be built at Blackwood Comprehensive and if there was, the £500,000 price tag would mean the cost of closing Pont Leisure Centre is almost double the cost of keeping it open over the next five years - The Centre’s other facilities are heavily used with everything from Zumba classes through to over 50s badminton on a weekly basis, many classes will not be able to move to Islwyn High or it may be too difficult for local residents to get there. The council should be encouraging more opportunities for sports and activity, not taking them away! In addition, other issues raised include: - Local residents who use the centre for social events such as parties, classes and other events will have to travel further and in many cases, this will be impossible. This means that opportunities for social interaction will be reduced or removed completely. Many clubs will have to close with the leisure centre - The consultation process has been extremely limited to date, therefore, the views of the community have not been properly taken into account The Council has a remit to meet the Wellbeing of Future Generation (Wales) Act 2015, which is about improving the social, economic, environmental and cultural wellbeing of Wales. It requires public bodies to think more about the long-term, working with people and communities, looking to prevent problems and take a more joined up approach. The closure of Pontllanfraith Leisure Centre in no way meets the well-being goals and we urge Caerphilly County Council to stop the closure. Please share widely.

Tower Hamlets council is evicting over 100 vulnerable residents from Hopetown women-only hostel in Whitechapel. The council is closing the hostel and cutting women-only hostel beds in the borough by one third. They have issued eviction notices and are forcing residents to move to mixed gender accommodation or sending them miles away out of borough. Hopetown Hostel in Whitechapel is one of the last women-only hostels in East London. Most homeless women and non-binary people are survivors of violence or abuse. With refuges closing their doors and a housing crisis, gender specific hostel services like Hopetown provide a vital space for survivors. Tower Hamlets council are treating survivors and other vulnerable women appallingly and are putting them at risk.