Now Open - Every Little Helps?

Consett Tesco is now open for business, it is by far the biggest supermarket in Consett, and is very similar to any other big Tesco anywhere else in the UK. One interesting technology development is the scan as you shop facility. You take a scanner round the store and scan the bar codes as you add items to your trolley. The scanner has a screen so you can keep track of how much you have spent as you shop. This won't make Tesco as cheap as Barry's bargains on middle street but at least you won't get a nasty shock at the till.

There are many reasons why people would object to having a large Tesco built on the edge of their town. It may adversely affect small businesses in the town. There is already a medium sized Tesco less than a mile from Consett at Delves Lane: This will be closed so there is some balance there. People from outside Consett may come to Consett to shop, and it may attract further development as happened in Team Valley and more recently Kingston Park, two places where people from Consett go, but probably wouldn't have been to if it wasn't for the large retail parks there. Many people commute from the the Derwent Valley to the Newcastle area and will use the superstores there. The Consett commuter is more likely to shop closer to home as a result of this development.

Tesco have been implicated in the Workfare scandal; they have been accused of taking people on jobseekers allowance to stack shelves instead of paying a wage for this. Large supermarkets pay many workers low wages which require them to remain on benefits. By employing a workforce that is subsidised by taxpayers, supermarkets are effectively making profits for shareholders because the state allows them to avoid paying a living wage. The living wage argument is compelling but I feel that debating this would not be appropriate at a time when over 1 million young people are out of work. It is an argument for another day.

Tesco always seem to attract controversy: Their charity work attracted criticism when work support for cancer research was reduced and they sponsored the gay pride festival shortly after. They are criticised by farmers for driving down the prices of British produce. They have been castigated by a Celebrity chef for chicken welfare standards, and most recently they are the first retailer to postpone retirement until 67. I hope all retailers gradually adopt more ethical practices both in the way they source their food and in the way they treat their workers.

There are positives to the development: After a long wait, almost a lifetime in my case, something is happening on the steelworks site. What is in symbol of the humiliation of unemployment will bring employment, around 250 jobs. Morrisons is also expanding, Argos is looking at the old Morrisons site and there is talk of B&Q being interested. Tesco will contribute £400 000 towards town centre regeneration¹ which may do little to appease local traders but is some compensation.

Retail may seem an unlikely development at a time when people do not have a lot to spend but there must be demand: There are plans for 3000 new homes in the area; population is increasing; it is time for Consett to look to the future. Added to the school and sports centre on the old Civic Centre site, we are looking at developments worth in the region of £100 Million² being built in Consett in the next few years and although a state of the art school, a Tesco Extra and other retail outlets are not going to solve the problems of unemployment and lack of opportunity, every little helps.

1. http://www.journallive.co.uk/north-east-news/todays-news/2010/07/28/24-hour-consett-tesco-superstore-gets-the-go-ahead-61634-26946926/2/
2. A conservative estimate

Location, Location, Location.

I have decided to blog about a very local issue; the building of a new school in Consett. The school building has not started yet but when finished it will serve the Consett area, replacing two smaller schools, both of which are need of significant investment. An agreement has been reached that the new school will be built. Many parents were initially cautious, wanting to keep their respective schools, but public opinion is now more supportive.

There is a very real need for a school with state of the art facilities to serve the young people of the Consett area. Good facilities have a tangible positive effect on the learning and behaviour of the children in a school. Good design can change kids' attitudes as they step from their Outside world into what will be a safe and exciting learning environment. Effective Science teaching is definitely easier in a modern teaching Lab. I am not saying that it is impossible to teach Science well in room with no facilities, it is. But trying to convince kids that Science is relevant, current and new in a room with old wooden benches is more of a challenge than in a modern lab.

Consett's sports facilities are good but could do with some improvement and the school is being planned so that members of the public have the opportunity to make use of the sports facilities. There will clearly be some restrictions, at certain times when students will be using the pool or sports facilities. For me at least this is a price worth paying. The argument, which I heard at a meeting last night from an Independent local Councillor that we can't have a school and a leisure centre on the same site because adults will not be able to go swimming when ever they want, is both selfish and ridiculous. The young people of the area must take priority as they do anyway when the existing pool is closed for lessons and training.

I was, like many people, was disappointed that the school is not being built on the old steelworks site. The steelworks site is within walking distance of one of the original schools. The chosen site, which incorporates the now disused old council offices, increases the distance between one of the existing schools and the new school. Young people who are used to walking to school having to be bussed in has the potential to increase the likelihood of truancy. I'm sure that the staff at the new school will be aware of this issue and address it.

The argument about location should be over. The decision has been made to put the school on the Belle Vue site. Some local people object to the location so vehemently that they have set up a group opposing the building of Consett's new school, yes you have read that correctly, a group not to save a school but to prevent a brand new school being built on what they believe to be the wrong piece of land. The group and a local Lib Dem councillor have instigated a judicial review. This has the potential to further delay the new school meaning that an entire cohort of current year 7s (11 year olds)² could miss out on the opportunity of taking their GCSEs in surroundings more conducive for success. Just because a few people don’t want a new school and leisure facility near to their houses. The location argument has already cost the children dearly¹. There can be no further delay; Improving the education and life chances of the next generation must be our priority.

Some parents in Consett have set up a petition which calls for a prompt start to building work, please take a minute to add your support: http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/building-a-future-for-consett/

1. Pat Glass MP writes about the cost of delay in the Chronicle: http://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/get-involved/your-letters/2012/01/26/chronicle-letters-make-school-a-success-72703-30203574/
2. http://malcolmclarke.blogspot.com/2012/01/start-build-for-consett-academy.html

Speaking up for Consett

In 1987 I was 9 years old. Hilary Armstrong the former MP for North West Durham and now Baroness, was making her maiden speech in the House of Commons, she brought up the issue of unemployment in North West Durham. Pat Glass is now our MP and 23 years later in her maiden speech, she addressed the same concern. In an opposition day debate about youth unemployment Pat had this to say.¹

“Anyone looking at those two speeches could be forgiven for thinking that is a deeply entrenched problem that cannot be dealt with, but actually, that is not true. Between 1997 and 2010, North West Durham, like most of the post-industrial north, underwent an economic and social revolution, with the support of the previous Government, but it is amazing how quickly the clock has turned back to the 1980s. Under a previous Conservative Government, male unemployment in Consett, in my constituency, reached [almost] 100%. Can people now imagine what it is like to live in a place with 100% male unemployment?

Youth unemployment in my constituency has doubled in the last 12 months and now stands at 35%. Unemployment generally has increased by 20%, and it is a direct result of Government policies... If the Government are serious about delivering on unemployment in places such as the north-east, they need to be serious about a growth strategy. We do not need enterprise zones and short-term grants. We have had those before and they do not stay: as soon as the grants run out, the jobs disappear and everybody runs back to the south-east. We need instead proper infrastructure investment, so that private companies are attracted to the area and stay...

… But what have the Government done? They have cut public expenditure for infrastructure and jobs, and cut investment in skills. The abolition of the EMA has led directly to falls in participation rates at 16 to levels that we have not seen since the 1990s, and the tripling of tuition fees has led to a 12% reduction in university applications this year.

Young people are having a hard time from this Government and it is due not only to the abolition of the EMA and the rise in tuition fees, but to the cuts in home-to-school transport, home-to-college transport, careers services, youth services and local bus services. Young people are becoming more cynical now than they have ever been about politics and the role of the Government. I am pleading with the Government now to listen to the suffering out there and start putting in place a proper plan for growth and jobs for young people”.

It is good to hear my MP speaking up for the young people of Consett in Parliament. The government need to be reminded of the effect their policies (or lack of policy) has on the lives of people who exist outside of the claustrophobic 'Westminster bubble' The Issues facing Consett also have gained national media attention in a recent Guardian article.²

I welcome both Pats speech and the Guardian article, fighting for real investment and raising awareness of the fact that Consett is still on the map even without its steelworks are vitally important. Both the speech and the article however, have been vehemently criticised by a local Liberal Democrat; Pat for inadvertently missing out the word 'almost' at the start of her speech and the Guardian for what is described as 'poverty tourism'

Maybe the real objection however is that such speeches and articles make it difficult to hide the plain fact that the Liberal Democrats, after 18 months in 'power' are still standing shoulder to shoulder with their Tory friends in pushing though policies that have a disproportionate effect on the lives of ordinary people who call towns like Consett home.

Consett is my home town and I am extremely proud of where I come from, in an previous blogpost about Consett and Stanley I describe this area with affection; 'Old industry is etched in to the fabric of communities, people are proud of where they come from and have traditional values. Neighbourhood communities are still strong as are family ties'. Consett is a good place to live, work and bring up a family and sits in some magnificent countryside. It is right however that MPs and the media try to highlight the lack of jobs and opportunities we had to face under the Tories in the 1980s and are facing again under this coalition Government.

1. Original speech by Pat Glass MP: http://www.theyworkforyou.com/debate/?id=2011-11-09a.388.2

2. http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2011/oct/18/coalition-cuts-consett-country-durham