An (incomplete) overview of how the age of austerity has affected Notinghamshire over the last week or so.

Nottingham City Council

UNISON has warned that Nottingham City Council could be hit the hardest of all councils in Notts by Government cuts.

Ravi Subramanian, Unison’s regional head of campaigning, said the city receives more needs-based grants than the county. He believes this area could see big Government cuts.

He said the county council, which plans to freeze council tax next year, will benefit if the Government decides to pay such councils the equivalent of a 2.5 per cent rise.

Unison warns that city council could be hit hardest in Government spending review, Nottingham Post

Nottinghamshire County Council

This week the council announced the results of its “service reviews” revealing which services are to be cut, reformed or kept. Among the affected areas were residential care homes, sheltered housing, women’s refuges and personal budgets for vulnerable people, while the welfare rights service is to be axed.

Service reviews, Nottinghamshire County Council
Nottinghamshire County Council budget cuts unveiled, BBC Nottingham

Quangos

The Youth Justice Board, whose East Midlands and East Anglia regional office is in Park Row, Nottingham, is to be abolished.

Their work overseeing the juvenile system in England and Wales, from offence prevention to custody, will now be carried out by the Ministry of Justice.

British Waterways, which currently operates as a public corporation with its East Midlands branch in Newark, will be replaced by a new waterways charity. The organisation looks after 2,200 miles of the country’s canals and rivers.

Notts impact of Government’s quango axe, Nottingham Post
Quango reforms announced, Direct.gov.uk

Private sector

On Tuesday, Alliance Boots announced that it planned to axe 10% of the workforce (750 people) at its Lenton HQ. Conservative MP Anna Soubry met with the management, but instead of convincing the management to save some jobs, returned parroting their demands that the A453 be widened and the workplace parking levy (WPL) be scrapped.

Fears for the future after Boots axes tenth of city workforce, Nottingham Post
Boots: Gonna Walk All Over You, Beestonia

Resistance

Tuesday saw a first meeting of anarchists against the cuts take place. On Wednesday/Thursday night militants attacked County Hall. Anti-austerity and cuts slogans were painted on the building and £10,000 of damage was done to windows.

Notts County Council announce £72m cuts, Nottingham Indymedia

A FOREST Town woman has launched a petition to save the chaplaincy service at Mansfield Community Hospital and Ashfield Health Village – and plans to send it to Prime Minister David Cameron.

Last week, Chad reported that Nottinghamshire Community Health (NCH) planned to reduce the number of chaplains from six to one, with one full-time chaplain from John Eastwood Hospice also covering the community hospital.

After hearing the news, Maureen Giles (72), who has used the service several times, started door-knocking in her area and she has so far collected 72 signatures.

Petition launched to save chaplain team, Mansfield Chad