To enter into the debate click here to have your say or scroll down to see the views of others:

Alan French
Bullace Close, Warners End, Hemel Hempstead
Dear Sirs, Recently, both through the medium of your newspaper and Hemel Hempstead Movie Makers, of which I am a member, I have been made aware of the plight of The Paper Trail. I, some time ago visited Apsley Mills, but thought that I would take advantage of the fact that The Trail still is with us, and so Monday afternoon visited the Frogmore mill. This heritage set up would be a pity if it ceased to be. There is definately potential for people to come and see this working museum. I found it a compliment for the people skills of long ago, to have equipment still in working order. Some of this was over a hundred years old. Other areas of the UK and abroad have retained their heritage. I hope that we will retain ours. I look forward to my next heritage visit. I hope to see you there. Alan French.

anon, Hemel Hempstead
In response to Pat Long's comments on Watford A&E Dept. Pat, I find your comments almost comical. If your friend had to wait 4 hours then they obviously were not seriously ill. And therefore it is questionable whether they should've gone to A&E in the first place. Do you honestly think that hardworking healthcare professionals would let a seriously ill patient wait for 12 hours to be seen? No, I dont think so. It angers me that many people see an A&E dept as a drop-in centre for minor problems when their GP's surgery is closed. If your problem isn't an accident or an emergency, dont go! and if you do, don't complain that you don't get seen within half an hour!

Donna Mangham, Hemel Hempstead
donna_mangham@hotmail.co.uk
I would like anyone to PLEASE supply me some photo's or news of Hemel Hempstead in 1969. Thanks

Norman Cutting, Chestnut Drive, Berkhamsted
I nearly missed the classic comment from the Borough Council. 'Owing to the economic downturn, less people are using the car parks. As a result, we will have to increase our prices.' You really can't make it up, can you?

Norman Cutting, Chestnut Drive, Berkhamsted
Gable Hall, Berkhamsted. It's a funny old world. I'm in the process of archiving the old Berkhamsted Citizens Association Newsletters and in the December 2008 issue I wrote: 'I'm really looking forward to finding out what happened in the 80's through the Associations eyes and whether anyone else questioned the loss of 'our' assets.' Now we find the 'poor' old Borough Council can't afford to keep/maintain the hall and the obvious answer is staring them in the face. Give it (and all those other 'assets') back to the Town as we paid for them in the first place. Only one fly in the ointment - it was Conservative Town/Borough Councils then, it's Conservative Town/Borough Councils now.

anon, Hemel
RE: bin collections. Last year everyone complained that the green bins were not collected over Christmas. This year they collect the green bins and everyone complains about the black bins bot being collected. How can they win? As for the snow, I'm sure these same people would be the first ones to complain when the bin lorries had crashed into parked cars due to ice. Everyone in this town constantly moans about the lack of services provided by Dacorum council and how the council tax continues to rise. Do they realise only 12p out of every pound of council tax makes it's way to Dacorum - the rest goes to herts CC.

Mr and Mrs M Concannon, Hemel Hempstead
To let The Paper Trail at Apsley close would indeed be a tragedy not only for the local community but also as a heritage site. Hemel Hempstead is badly in need of retaining its remaining heritage. It seems to have been a conscious decision by successive councils to remove whatever was left of our local history (which would have been cherished elsewhere) thereby making Hemel Hempstead perhaps only famous for Buncefield!

Pat Long, Hemel Hempstead
I don't know if any of your readers are aware that waiting time in Watford A&E can be anything up to 12 hours, this surely shows that they are now unable to cope. A friend of mine had to attend the other evening and had to wait 4 hours, which I think is a disgrace.

Mr Mills, Hemel Hempstead Herts
STOP THE LOSS OF GREEN BELT LAND WITHIN DACORUM With Dacorum having a population in access of 137,799 it appears both concerning and surprising that Dacorum Borough Council only received around 2,000 responses to the entire "Site Allocations Consultation". During this Consultation residents fed in their views on where new homes and travellers sites should be located across the local area and which areas of land should be protected from development. It is a great shame that the Consultation was not advertised more prominently in the public arena. Unfortunately, many residents are only NOW aware of the Consultation, which ended on 19 December 2008, meaning sadly their input is now too late! Surely a more transparent use of communication was required, thereby enabling MORE Dacorum residents the opportunity to read and comment on the Consultation document. For the fortunate residents that did take part, many found the on-line Consultation process on the Dacorum Borough Council Website to be an ordeal. Firstly, the confusing deadline dates, with separate references on the website to both 15 December 2008, as well as 19 December 2008. Secondly, the woolly,non-descriptive title used to identify the Consultation document, made it particularly hard to locate on the website. And finally, the way in which the questions were asked, made the required "Yes/No" answers, hard to translate into any meaningful sense. Of the 2,000 responses that the Council did receive, why were 26 responses rejected on racial grounds? What happened to freedom of speech and our right to express our views? Where is the democratic process in all this? If personal views are now considered racist, then we have lost our freedom of speech. Are we not missing the point here? Surely this argument is being used as a smoke screen, in an attempt to hide the main point that we should be considering – loss of green belt land to ANY development! A large number of the proposed new Homes and Travellers sites are located on green belt land, which is currently enjoyed by local residents for walking, cycling and exploring the countryside. If these sites were developed, we would lose a beautiful piece of countryside forever and the lasting effects on our natural environment, our wildlife and our resident's well-being would be disastrous. Green belt land is in place to stop the over expansion of towns and cities and to protect our wildlife, countryside and villages. The Council should be supporting the retention of existing open land and providing protection from development pressures. If we allow development on this green belt land now, where will it stop? A few houses here, a Travellers site there, a couple of hundred houses there! How long before our countryside disappears and our environment becomes a concrete jungle. For ANY development on green belt to be approved, would make a farce of the green belt concept. We already have brown field, urban and industrial sites within Dacorum awaiting regeneration and development. Why not use these sites? Surely this would have the least environment impact! The protection of open spaces and natural wildlife areas from future development within Dacorum must be a priority to us all. As should the protection and enhancement of Dacorum's historical features within our landscape. If you enjoy living in Dacorum, don't leave it to your neighbour to voice the concerns of our local community. YOU also need to act, before Dacorum becomes a concrete jungle without the services to support it, due to the closure of our hospital and many local schools. The time has come for ALL residents to take action and voice their concerns by contacting the Dacorum Borough Council by e-mail at development.plans@dacorum.gov.uk or calling 01442 228660 and registering your contact details with them, to ensure your participation in the next stage of the Consultation. Contact your local MP and Councillors and express your views, help put a stop to this disgrace. Don't loss the neighbourhood you know and love.

jackie, hemel hempstead
i would like to comment on the state of the roads lately.so many holes and nothing is being done to repair them.every time you dodge a hole or should i say crater you nearly crash....all the money we spend on road tax ..for what.we had to buy new tyres for my husbands car last week only to be told the tracking was out probally due to pot holes..yet another expense we didnt need..it makes me mad

Deborah Oll
Fuel Poverty article Take action to end fuel poverty Over two million pensioners live in fuel poverty – making up half of the nation's fuel poor. A household is deemed to be fuel poor when it needs to spend more than 10 per cent of its income on fuel to heat the home. With today's fuel prices predicted to be at an all-time high, around 1 in 4 pensioners in the UK currently live in fuel poverty and are forced to decide between heating and eating. In response, the Government has simply admitted that it is likely to miss its target of eradicating fuel poverty amongst the vulnerable by 2010. This year Help the Aged is asking members of the public to help call for an end to fuel poverty. They have produced campaign postcards that urge the Government to take more effective action on the issue and would like as many people as possible to complete one. It takes just two minutes, is entirely free and could help eradicate fuel poverty. To order a postcard or to find out more, please phone 020 7239 1944 or email campaigns@helptheaged.org.uk. In addition, the charity is currently distributing '3 Steps to a Warmer Winter' packs that give advice on how to deal with fuel poverty. To order one, just phone 0800 089 0800 or email winterpacks@helptheaged.org.uk

G McDonagh, Tring
Are we being peddled the expansion of Tring behind a craftily spun gimmick? The biggest outcome of the 'Sports Plan' just happens to be large-scale housing development. As yet most councillors are very quiet regarding this outcome; merely alluding to 'implications'. Not so the Mayor: he's leading the marketing push. So, before it becomes a done deal, residents should take a closer look into the mouth of this '£50m' gift horse: 1. It unlocks BOTH Tring's residential green spaces for development: not only Tring School but Miswell Lane too. This means the complete infill of all our residential recreation areas with what looks destined to be high-density, social and affordable housing. Add to that Akeman Business Area and an influx of around 3000 people, a quarter the current number, could be expected to swell the town's population under the plan. No wonder the relocated school would have a larger capacity. 2. Whatever the outlay being touted, it is a cheap exchange for all the undeveloped land left within Tring's boundary. The explanation offered is that these old sites will be developed to fund the sports area, but that is putting cart before horse: the sports facilities could be secondary; just a key that unlocks three major new housing developments. 3. 'State of the Art', 'Top Class' and 'Cutting edge' are marketing terms. Ignore the implied allure for a moment and consider the reality of these new facilities. Most are already present so, in effect, they are just being relocated to the edge of town. None of the additions are guaranteed because clubs need to find grant funding for them to be built. The whole area will be set against the backdrop of a new business estate i.e. Corrugated roofs, barbed wire and CCTV. It would be great to be wrong, but prepare to be disappointed. 4. Incorporating that large swathe of green belt into the town's boundary allows for even greater expansion in future. As mentioned above, the new sports site is not a free gift; clubs wanting to use the land are required to pay for their facilities through grants. Should they fail or the funding tap be turned off this now reclassified land becomes vulnerable to housing development (See step 1 for an example). Combined with the initial housing infill, there is scope to potentially double the population of the town. 5. Somebody in all this stands to make a profit, but such is the project's ambition that you suspect there's more to it than just developers being greedy. What about the fact it would help meet borough and county housing targets? Could this be linked to the Mayor's optimism in attracting state funding. Especially to rebuild sports facilities we already have in the middle of a recession. Which purse would funding come from: Housing or Leisure? 6. Politicians at all levels will understand how the 'Sports Plan' would allow Tring's expansion as an apparently non-political side-effect. As such it would be a clever ruse if you were under pressure to achieve housing targets but didn't want to openly endorse development. It makes apparent safeguards such as Dacorum needing to redesignate green belt land, or Herts County Council's ownership, less of a barrier to approval. To better understand the motivations behind this plan residents need more details than they've been given. The most important being who are the people behind it? When Tring Sports Forum say they are 'championing' the plan does that mean it is their idea or are they just the front? If the latter then who initiated the idea? Who formulated it? Have they any interests or links to the land that would be turned to housing? Are they developers, local authorities or both? We should know this much already.

John Coughtrey, Hemel Hempstead
What is happening with the state of the roads in Hemel!! We should be exempt from paying road tax! I am not even going to LIST the many areas where we risk wrecking our suspension, as I would be rattling on for decades!! Why can't this council get a grip on basics!

Rod Woodhouse
Turners Hill Hemel Hempstead
The traffic may be flowing freely up and down the M1 at Jn8, but the job isn't finished as thousands of commuters and Hemel residents who have to suffer the delays still ongoing because of the restrictions in place on the access and exit roads from the motorway. The work was supposed to be complete by the end of last year. So just when will all the cones be gone? Perhaps the company responsible for the work might want to let us know through this newspaper.

Rosina Newton
Aston Clinton
Tring Sports Scheme - this is a FANTASTIC idea. Tring has long had good schools and good sports facilities - this plan will make it even better. We live in Aston Clinton now but brought up two sons in Tring and lived there for 27 years.

Paul Keaney, Chapel Cottages, HH
Dog bin on fire in park - Hemel Today story Please let me know how this turned out, I've been on edge all weekend... Especially as you promised us "more to follow" on this breaking news story.

Anon
The new plans put forward for Tring by the Sports Forum have some very positive aspects – a new state of the art secondary school, enhanced sports facilities of a very high standard, the end to parking problems at Cow Lane, new industrial units to stimulate local business etc. Unfortunately there are also strong negative aspects: • The destruction of a whole swathe of green belt farm land destroying the current eco system. • The eviction of two local farmers who help give Tring its rural character • The creation of two large housing developments at Mortimer Hill and Akeman Street combined with doubling the size of Bulbourne – probably 820+ houses which will add 20% to Tring at a stroke. These housing developments are central to funding the plan. Without them the plan is dead. • The last Inspector agreed that Tring should not expand beyond its present boundaries due to lack of facilities – mainly secondary school places. As a result the current expansion plan for Dacorum of 7,500 houses does not have any development in Tring. A new school would create surplus capacity and open the gates to widespread development around Tring. It is interesting to note that the proposers of the plan have not consulted Herts County Council (owners of the land to be developed) have not consulted the Diocese of St Albans (owners of the Tring School land to be developed for hundreds of houses) and have not formally consulted either Tring School or Tring Town Council! Why, I wonder? Surely common sense would have meant formal consultation of all these stakeholders before the plan was proposed. Of course one of the three champions of this plan does not live in Tring, and may not understand the importance of these consultations – the other two certainly should! No doubt the two main political parties in Tring will each try to capitalise on the plans, after all it is our Mayor who has proposed them! Let us hope that they both put Tring above politics and oppose this. Unfortunately they are both likely to try and make political capital. Bring back an independant Tring Town Council!

Susan Newman
Grenadine Way
Tring
I do not normally complain about parked cars, however after nearly crashing my car this morning, I feel that I have to write into the Gazette as well as registering my complaint with Dacorum Borough Council.
I have read letters in the Gazette previously about the cars parked in Beggars Lane (Tring Station end) but to be honest I didn't realise how bad the parking there was! I was driving from the industrial estate end this morning - not fast as there were several cars travelling in the other direction – and as I came round the final bend I nearly crashed into the parked cars! Had it not been for the driver on the other side of the road stopping I would have crashed into him too!
The drivers that park their cars here obviously have no consideration for other drivers at all. Their only concern is to save themselves the £6 parking fee at Tring Station! What will it take before the council takes action on this – a serious accident?!
If you are one of these inconsiderate drivers who park your car in Beggars Lane – please consider either being dropped off at the station or taking the bus if you do not want to pay the parking fee!


Anon
You headline 'Town's £50m sport plan' is very positive but I feel a more appropriate one would have been 'Huge housing project planned for centre of Tring, school to relocate and 110 acres of green belt to be destroyed'.
I have lived in Tring for nearly 13 years and love the small, friendly, nature of the town plus the fact that we are lucky enough to be surrounded by beautiful countryside. Tring already has excellent sporting facilities for a town of its size as I should well know as I have 3 children who make good use of them. If we wanted more though I would have chosen to live in a bigger town. Tring has a unique feel to it, when you enter off the A41 and drive in there is a farm which makes you feel part of the countryside. This is the very land being proposed for the new facilities. The sports plan would mean a huge new housing estate in the centre of Tring which would increase the population of Tring by thousands. There are worrying rumours of huge building sites on the popular canal field( much better to walk in a field in open countrside than on a pupose path with hedges either side and no view!) off Ickneild Way as well as the beautiful end of Marshcroft Lane. It seems no area of greenbelt is safe and no community is able to remain unspoilt.
A recent application for an environmentally friendly wind turbine on a property in Marshcroft Lane was open to debate at a public meeting and refused on the grounds it would look unsightly and be noisy, out of place in such a beautiful landscape. How ironic that the public are given the chance to turn down an enviromentally friendly single wind turbine (which I feel is the way forward) yet seem to have no say in 100's of acres of green belt land being destroyed for ever for housing and the whole nature and characteristic make up of their community changed. Tring is , and should be allowed to remain a beautiful, small market town. If people want massive sporting facilities they should consider moving to a larger town. People should realise you can't have everything. Tring's charm is it's size, it's friendliness and the beauty of it's surrounding fields. Development on the scale proposed will threaten the very reason most people want to live in Tring and a unique small town atmosphere will be lost forever.

PS Who are the 4000 members of the Sports Forum ? Yur article made it sound as if 4000 people in Tring ie 1 i 4 belong to it and have approved the plans . I know only one person on the Forum and I know no one who approves the massive growth in population of our lovely town that the development of the current Tring School site would bring about.


Alan FrenchFirstly, I am not surprised by the recent spate of UFO sightings. Firstly, a computer company controversially wishes to take more details of individual's houses for internet purposes. In addition, there was a report in the press also recently which stated that the authorities (I cannot remember as to whether it was government or police) were to launch small flying objects to also study people's houses for whatever reason.
In addition, one person has suggested to you that they could be Chinese lanterns. This I must go along with. There was a mass sighting within the last few weeks in the Halesowen area. The UFO status has subsequently been changed to an IFO status, due to the fact that a school had launched some Chinese lanterns and therefore the objects became identified.
A lot of people think that UFO is a name for an alien spacecraft.
The term means Unidentified Flying Object. When the flying object is identified it becomes an Identified Flying Object. Known as IFO. So when people ask if you believe in UFO's? Or say that they do not believe in UFO's but they do not know what it was they saw, the term is being incorrectly applied. A UFO can be anything from a flock of birds on a radar screen, weather balloons as well as the more sensational alien spacecraft. I gather most sightings are eventually solved. Only a minority remain a mystery.


George Toll, Hemel Hempstead
As an ex serviceman I was interested to read about the forthcoming presentations of the veterans badge,I do have one.
I must point out to you that you are wrong in saying that to qualify for a badge,one must have served during the war ,this is not so.
I think you should let your readers know of this error in case it puts off some ex servicemen from applying.

Stephanie Kendall, Damask Close, Tring
RE: £50million sports plan for Tring. These proposals would have serious implecations for the residents of Damask Close. Firstly there would be alot more traffic on station road and Cow Lane. There would be noise pollution from the school, buisness park and football pitches etc. The value of the houses in this area would drop considerably. Having only moved to damask close last year news of this destructive plan is terrible. Not only will it effect me, but Tring will no longer be a quiet market town, people are surely going to come and use the sport facilities from all over. I am completly against these proposals and i am sure many people are in the surrounding residential areas.

Martin Poynter-Smith, dorset
m.poyntersmith@ntlworld.com
Just come across the website about softly softly. I actually lived in Kennel cotages at one time and we frequently went up to shendish house my grandad used to look after the bowling greens there and I well remember seing the fireplace on the program that was in the front room of the house. Mum and dad I believe origionally lived in the house after the war when they moved from Tottenham to work with Dickensons in Apsley. I remember my father being in Hemel at the bank when they staged a robbery for the program and nearly destroyed the scene as he thought it was a real robbery andwas going to have a go. I have wonderful memories of Shendish we as kids used to play on the great staircase while our parents were drinking in the bar there. I could go on for hours about Shendish house if I can tell you any more please dont hesitate to contact me. Martin Poynter-Smith.

Jane, Hemel Hempstead
jane.newberry@reed.co.uk
Does anybody have any pictures of Marlowes shops in the 1980's?? Who remembers shops like Truform, Snobb, Chelsea Girl, Wimpey......

Anon
Via text
why tring the land by the exit m1 hemel or the land by exit m25 kings langley get done for the olympics the wealth it will bring 2 the town tring can have a school and housing hemel needs the rest great idea jus imagine the jobs it will create healthy fit towns folk x

M. F. Wimpress
our black wheelie bins were emptied on the 18th december 2008 and 7th january respectively. It would be useful to be able to complain about this unacceptable state of affairs to someone with the powers to change things. all the council does is employ highly paid office workers. the council also spends our money inappropiately ()like the monstocity up by the motorway) without consulting the general public or getting public opinion.
how do we stop this silly waste of our money?
how do we get the council do provide services we need and want?

Ray, Hemel Hempstead
The The Hemel Hempstead Tapas bar priced themselves out if you ask me, in Spain this a cheap meal, not so here, it was quite expensive, they would have filled the place if prices hed been more reasonable, in my opinion.

ryan, hemel
Re: Christmas lights. Superstitious people are stupid people.

H. Mann, Berkhamsted
When I was young to be considered green was an insult. It meant that you were silly, naive, not very worldly and in fact a bit of an ass. But today to be green is to be considered correct and worldly-wise. I still think that the former version is the right one!

marc, Hemel Hempstead
the "UFO" seen over Hemel is a Chinese Lantern, I saw a few flying about that part of town on NYE and the "UFO" is obviously one which was left over and set off a few days later. You can tell by the way it's flickering in the sky before disappearing. Dont call out Mulder & Scully just yet....

marc, band c
Why is it that the parking permit vouchers are dated for the use of one year.Once you have paid for your voucher it should be up to you when to use it.Instead you end up throwing them away after a year and spending more money!! plus if you live in a parking zone and have no drive you are NOT aloud to own 2 or more cars in your name as its a permit per person, plus getting a permit is a joke. In hemel hempstead we are told to go green and have paperless bills(Do it all online)WELL thats fine if you don`t want a permit but if you do you need to prove you live at that address,you cannot use your driving or insurance documents or printed copies of your bills or passports or any bill more than 3 months old.Remember it is a permit for a car NOT the crown jewels and best of all you are paying for it.

Oli Adams (facebook group creator)
Hemel
i'd just like to say a big thanks for giving our group a mention. I really felt something had to be done to remember richard. I know its not much, but as a pupil, i know how much he meant to the school. Thanks.

derek dalton
belsize rd hemel hempstead
ref:motorist doused in fuel,what hit me first in this article was the word COMPENSATION,sure the ladies ordeal may have been upsetting but lets put this into context,the staff acted properly and nobody was hurt,but no the minute something goes wrong the shout goes out COMPENSATION!!!,it makes me sick,god help us if the people who endured the 2nd world war had this ladies attitude!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Mrs H Taylor
Hemel Hempstead
Do your readers know that: Almost ALL "Gypsy Site" objections in our Community have been "rejected" because they have been deemed as "Racist" my local neighbours have had their forms returned on this basis? Are your local Residents and readers also aware that, if a Petition is signed by MANY, it will be accepted as "One" application to object? by the Local Council? To add a Gypsy site to Featherbed Lane would, in my view,be sacrilegious to the already planned Development in Apsley. The Concise OXFORD Dictionary view of "Gypsy" states: "A Member of a nomadic people in Europe." These people would be more than Nomadic when plans to build houses on the Manor Estate in Apsley, come to fruition. Even local residents, ponder on their exit and entry routes when large plant vehicles are at work. I visualise more, at the prospect of "Traveller" vehicles trying to gain access to Featherbed Lane when Heavy Plant vehicle's plan to use Automated Traffic Signals over an aged and narrow bridge? Am I alone in thinking? The only way "Out" of the Manor Estate is via Featherbed Lane (recently closed for resurfacing?) The recent Automated Signal improvements in Apsley(sheduled for 7 weeks, taking 12) have had (as reported) Disatrous effects on Local Business. To enter London Road from Apsley, turning Right into Durrants Hill is a "Nightmare" . The Beaurocrats have decided that, we need to have a narrowed and ridiculous Automated Traffic System to enable the "Apsley Lock" Development. Durrants Hill Road has long been a major cause of conjestion in Apsley, contributing to significant congestion when travelling to Apsley Mills "Retail Park" Local buisinesses Fogmore Roag and Ebberns Road have also suffered. The recent story about the "Paper Trail" you have run, must also be affected by this system? When will our "Little" YES men/Woman awake? They MAY find that they DO NOT have to conform to Westminster, to keep their jobs and start to FIGHT for OUR Community. If Our Local Representatives can not afford to donate time to the local community that they represent, I will stand up and fight for it? Where are they? What are they doing? Do WE know them? Are we Represented? Do we feel represented? Is anyone saying "NO"! on our behalf? It is time to "Take Back" OUR Community and challenge our, so called "Leaders" When was the last time "WE" made an appointment with OUR MP? When was the last time we challenged More homes, more demand on local services? Where is Our Hospital to cope with this demand? Where will the Gas and Electricity supply come from? Oh, and Water? Water Services have not even been consulted about the "strain" it will endure?

Mrs P Wilson, Headteacher, St. Anthony's RC School
Our school was shocked to read the article in the Gazette, Wed 17th Dec, reporting that The Paper Trail project was under threat. We had been looking to recycle our paper for some time when we came across the Paper Trail. We have been involved in the scheme Since September 2005, saving our points in order to take a class on a visit to the excellently preserved paper mill. A member of their staff came to our school and gave an interactive assembly showing the children why it is so important to use resources to the full and then recycle wherever possible. Our older children now collect and sort our waste paper daily with minimal supervision. The centre has developed into an amazing resource for the county and it would be a tragedy if it had to close.

2 young lads, Hmel Hempstead
We think it is a travesty to even begin to think about building a travellers camp in Hemel Hempstead. Please for the sake of the town, and its residents, please reconsider the idea! Thankyou

Anon, Hemel Hempstead, Herts
Dear Editor I am a parent of a child who attends Galley Hill Primary School and Nursery. In September I was concerned that the amalgamation of the two schools would cause distress and upset to my child. I am extremely pleased to say that this hasn't been the case. The support, care and hard work of all the staff has made the transition as comfortable and succesful as anyone could have wished. I would like to take this opportunity to say a big thank you to all staff on behalf of myself and my child. Kind regards A thankful parent.

Alex Caulder, Greenfield, beds
Congratulations Mark You may now be loaded but you still cant beat me over a 1500. HA HA

John, Hemel Hempstead
Waste disposal. May I point out that here in England we have rubbish whilst in the USA they have trash.

Mrs D Branson, Hemel Hempstead
I am rather frustrated maybe a little angry about the lack of gritting to our local pavements,i need to go to work every day as do others, but i do not own a car so do a lot of walking that i enjoy and like to think it helps keep me to keep fit i am not in my prime nor a pensenior just yet (59)but i risk slipping outside my front door in Boxmoor villiage and also in the town centre where today at 0800 just by our new monument by Riverside the ice was calling to me to break a limb, surely the council could spare a little grit for us pedestrians or maybe local traders could make thier fontages a little more safe and inviting.vent over.Regards D Branson

Richard Ward, LEDBURY, Herefordshire
dickieward@hotmail.com
Heathbrow Prep School. For whatever reason, I decided to instigate a search for Heathbrow and came across this website. I attended Heathbrow from 1959 until 1962. I have a group school photograph taken in June 1961 showing pupils and staff. The Headmaster Seth-Ward, another teacher David Ward, Mr. Elliot taught mathematics, my Latin Master was Mr. Exall. If I remember correctly, two of the students on the photograph were brothers from Liberia, Jayu and Nathaniel Johnson. Other fellow pupils I recall were Nigel Clark, Peter Wilson and a chap surname Bleech. I recall a teacher named Mr. Dixon - big burly chap - who played for Camelots. My Uncle, Howard Robinson, also attended Heathbrow shortly after it opened. I would be happy to supply a copy of the photo I have mentioned to anyone interested.

Mr. F. Wimpress
further to your article on household waste not being picked up- we in
leverstock green have not had our bins emptied for over 2 weeks and now
see on the dacorum website that they are still not going to collect them
due to the 1/4 inch of snow that has fallen.

Over the past few years it has become more of a problem with collections
less frequent. the services we want have been reduced. The amount of
money we pay to the council has increased dramatically - so we are
getting a poorer service and paying much more for it.

So where is our money going. Not to services we want and need - thats
for sure. I understand that the council is employing more middle
management at £50,000+ a year. I think that this must be stopped and the
whole situation reversed.

Aaron Lord
Apsley
Re: Penny Gore's letter on London Midland trains. As a regular commuter from Apsley into London Euston I couldn't agree more with her comments. The firm's continued delays, cancellations, crowded trains, lack of information, staffing problems (the Apsley ticket office is often closed at peak times) and recent annual extortionate rise in fares is scandalous. Despite dozens of complaints to them and our local MP, I've given up. What's the point? London Midland is free to make huge profits while in return delivering a Third World service with absolutely no checks on it. A disgraceful state of affairs.

B Streater
Recycling Adviser, Wastewatch, London EC2
Your article on Christmas rubbish, (HeraldExpress 1 January 2009), reports that a Bovingdon resident has attacked festive collections for not taking account of the extra waste produced at Christmas.
The bin of each household had a waste-collection-date calendar attached recently. The very first line of the calendar reads: "This year your green wheeled bin collection will run throughout the Christmas period to ensure that all your festive waste can be recycled." From this, I deduce that Dacorum Borough Council is fully aware of the mountain of waste produced at Christmas. Their collection crews only had the three bank holidays off; most of the rest of us had more holiday than that.
Most collection periods have been slightly lengthened by a maximum of five days over a period of five weeks so that the crews can catch up, while some have been shortened to help the crews get back in step. The Council has also had five extra green bin collections in my district during the Christmas period, (and I expect elsewhere as well), to help with the recycling. So, I don't think the blame lies with the Council.
I am surprised that some people are still finding that they can't fit all their waste in their bin. Seventy-six percent of people I have surveyed, (and I have spoken to thousands), have told me that their fortnightly waste now only fills about a quarter of their black bin. This is because they recycle a good proportion of their waste into their green bin. They have also become "smart shoppers" and only buy what they really need. One third of all food bought in England is thrown away. Smart shoppers also avoid buying products that are over-packaged, which saves space in the bin and can also save money.
Your report also mentions "rotting rubbish". What sort of weather have they been having in Bovingdon? Here, the temperature outside has been colder than in my refrigerator.

Q Jones
BerkhamstedI've been reading with interest the comments about bin collection over Christmas. Yes, we all make more waste over this time, but we make that waste so should maybe take some responsibility for it. My family has managed OK with the black bin being a few days late in being emptied, and have placed food waste and in particular the turkey carcass in our green bin - because it reduces landfill and because that was the next bin to be collected, this way we don't have food waste sitting round for days on end.

L Blake
Far too much rotten rubbish is being left to fester. Our black bins were lasted emptied on 24th December and will not be emptied again until 12th January - 19 days later!!. With turkey carcases and waste foods left out for such a long time this is not a healthy situation. Black bins should be emptied more frequently.

Jean
Adeyfield
what is wrong with people? so they have to take excess rubbish to the tip!!. after Christmas/new year i had both bins filled(paper/ cupboard waste i left in large bags in house). Green bin was the one to be emptied next, so i nearly emptied my grey bin and took the rubbish down the tip plus other rubbish. So when it is next emptied i will just have rubbish in the bin, at no time did i have any rubbish out of the bin on the ground!! If you have not got a car ask relatives/friends for help! if you have none of those then you wont have much rubbish! cant people do things for their selves anymore?

Cyrille Jegu
Whilst I agree with the poor level of service provided by Dacorum Waste Management services, I disagree with the lady from Bovingdon mentioned in your article. Britain is producing the largest amount of waste per capita in Europe with relatively low recycling levels. It is everyone's duty to reduce the amount of waste produced and if too much waste is produced, it should be taken care of by the producer. We are a family of 4 and we had another family of 4 visiting us during the Christmas period and we still did not manage to fill up our bin. Our recyclables containers were full but we still coped.
When it comes to the Recyclables collection scheme, I can only express my disappointment at the limited scope of products collected by the Council and the utterly ineffecient and ineffective way used to collect them. Many products are recyclable and yet we are forced to throw them in the wastes (black) bin. We also have to throw very valuable cardboard material with the (green) organic waste.
It is a shame that we have to "throw away" very valuable material because the council is not competent or equipped to deal with it. I have contacted the council myself to offer my help, as a council resident, but it has shown little interest and no pro-activity on the matter. Shame!

David Marrow
Hunters Oak
Our black bin was emptied on 11 Dec, 29 Dec, 13 Jan, 29 Jan – gaps of 18, 15 and 16 days. Ridiculous at Xmas.
The green bin will be emptied every week for three weeks, w/c 5, 12, and 19 Jan!
When I phoned Dacorum, I was told there was a lot of complaints last Xmas over the gap between green bin collections.
Surely it would have been more sensible to empty the black bins instead of green the last round before Xmas?
If the green bin becomes full, it is hygienic to store the cardboard, etc in the garage but not black bin refuse.
I think Dacorum is a good council but I think they got the refuse collections wrong this Xmas.

andy
hemel hempstead
its a shame that the council dont crack down on people that also dump there rubbish in other residents communal bins and recycling which means unless we complain they wont empty them when it is others that are fulling our binns with the wrong kind of bottles/rubbish

Nicola
Hemel HempsteadLooking around the local area, it would appear that there are many households who have really struggled with the holiday delay in bin collections. Many bins are overflowing and are surrounded by additional bags, which I understand will not be collected. Fortunately, we are a small family and have just about coped with the 19 day build up of non-recyclable waste (last grey bin collection: 17th December, next collection due: 5th January). However, I really feel for larger families for whom I feel that 19 days is an unacceptable number of days to wait for a bin collection over the Christmas period. The fact that the council are not willing to take any additional bags of waste is, in my opinion, disgraceful. Many residents in the area do not have access to a car, may be elderly, disabled, or with young children. It is not always possible to take additional rubbish to the dump. Surely, that is what we pay our council tax for??

c baldwin
apsley hemel hempstead
I am writing to express my frustration at the dangers of icy roads on school routes and the lack of support from the highways agency or local council. My children attend Two Waters School, which for those of you who know the area is situated on a residetial estate in Apsley. There is one road serving the school .Highridge Road. Despite numerous requests by the school and parents asking the council to grit this road , they are unable to do so as it is not a proprity route. It's a very steep hill, with over two hundred children attending the school and cars regularly slide in icy conditions. Aparently we can get a grit bin situated on the road.. but who will take responsibility to grit the whole hill ? I can't understand why they can't grit the whole hill.. surely we don't need to wait for a serious accident involving a child for them to make it a priority route ?

dave beatt
hemel hempsteadwhat is happening with the traffic lights at two waters ??? they have spent 12 wks putting new lights in , the traffic that flows to the outlets are always on red and this causes traffic jams and traffic is always at a standstill on the london road with the traffic coming from the town / magic roundabout way . the traffic lights at dunelm mill dont help to this probelm surely someone has got this wrong somewhere ? maybe a roundabout should have been put there


Keith
Hemel Hempstead
A notice just in, suggests that Russia is to hold war games in Greek Air Space, is this an attempt to threaten us here in Europe, surely Greek Air Space is Europe Air Space controlled by NATO. I cannot beleive the Greek government would aloww Russia room to act out war games in their area and over the Mediteranean Sea. Some yearsd ago I was aboard a Brittania flight over Yugoslavia when the Bosnia war was on our p-lane a civilian airliner was bussed by three fighter jets. Is this dangerouse situation going to be allowed to happen to other civilian flight over and around Greece. !!!

Sue P
Apsley
What a whinger sarah robinson is! Were a family of 4 & also had many visitors over Xmas & new year but fitted all our waste in our wheelie bin. If we hadnt i would HAPPILY make a trip to the tip or buy some excess waste bags. Why should the council incur extra costs for us all just because a tiny number of residents dont want to inconvenience themselves when they generate too much waste to fit in their bins ONCE a year?

Marilyn Jacobs
Hemel Hempstead
I don't understand why at the time of year when people have the most trash, there is less pickup. Are people off for the holidays? Do other services stop during the holidays?

We are new to the area and I remember how awful it was last year. I never heard why it has to be that way. I hate to call and ask them because I am sure they have so many people fussing at them about it. I wish the paper would investigate it and write about it in the paper. It might help if we understood the reason.

Sally Devine
Boxmoor
We had a collection on the 15th December 2008, our calendar supplied by Dacorum Council stated our next collection would be on the 31st December that makes 15 days not including the day of collection and not 11days as stated by the Dacorum spokesman, then our next collection would be on the 19th January 2009 now waiting 18 days not including the day of collection, so we have had two collections in five weeks, so Dacorum Council should have taken the excess and the spokesman needs to understand his own calendars, and maybe a trip back to school to help him with his counting.

Dee Cook
Grovehill
I was stunned in disbelief to be told by Dacorum Borough council that no extra bags outside the bins would be taken this week (29th December). I was also told by them to take them to the dump yourself or to buy extra bags. The last grey bin collection in this area was the 11th Dec, so by the time they collected on the Mon 29th Dec we had already gone four days over our normal collection dates, which in total was 18 days worth of rubbish to collect. It is an absolute cheek by the council to suggest the two alternatives, we pay enough council tax already without paying more for extra bags and for most people over the christmas period a little rest is needed, not more stress queing at the local dump, thats if you have a car. I fully agree that we need to stick to the rules at any other time of the year but there is extra packaging on so many items, many of which we cannot re-cycle. The council need to recognise this problem instead of blaming us for the excess rubbish with a punishment of either more of our money or our precious time. The council should take full responsibility for this problem and stop giving us a second class service.


Mrs S Bourne
I have to say that the statement from Dacorum Borough Council that 'the longest any resident would wait for a collection in the festive timetable was 11 days.' is not truly correct. Our black bins in this area , the HP1 2LL area, were collected on Friday 12th December and were not collected again until Tuesday 30th December - a gap of 18 days. I particularly object to such a withdrawal of a fundamental service over such a busy time of year.
Without a trip to the dump several days before Christmas with our rubbish for the 10 days from the Friday, we would not have managed. We had relations over Christmas who were able to take away some of our paper wrappings as their rubbish was collected weekly over this period. Our black bin is not always full after two weeks but families with more family members and without transport have probably struggled.

Penny Gore
Piccotts End
I wasn't remotely surprised by the story of the enraged commuter which you featured in your Dec. 31st issue. I'm sure anyone who is forced to use London Midland trains travelling into Euston would have many similar incidents to relate. London Midland are, quite frankly, a disgrace. While boasting pompously of their planned 'host of improvements' and promising a 'new era' (to quote their Managing Director, Stephen Banaghan) they don't mention the fact that almost every single train has been delayed for weeks, if not months...that is, when they aren't actually cancelled. Station staff at Hemel Hempstead no longer bother to keep passengers updated about the inevitable delays, perhaps because they've given up on trying to find excuses, and if you need to be in London by a certain time, it's wise to get the train before the one you actually need, or even the one before that, otherwise you're asking for trouble. Delays are now so commonplace that stacks of complaint and compensation forms are prominently placed at Hemel station, although the company's 'Delay-Repay' scheme only kicks in for a delay longer than 30 minutes. This, of course, doesn't address the fact that the constant hold-ups of 15 minutes here, 20 minutes there - which seem to happen on every single journey - all add up to huge stress for those of us who are desperately trying to get to work on time each day.

Last night I was on a train to Tring that left Euston late. It ground to a halt outside Wembley and there we sat...and sat...and sat. At least, thanks to a conscientious and helpful guard, we were kept updated - usually no-one bothers to say anything about any delays. We finally reached Watford some 50 minutes late, and on departure were told by the guard that he and the driver had been told to terminate the train there, but had managed to argue that the service should continue, because they felt so strongly that passengers should be able to reach their destinations. That seems to say everything about how London Midland regard their customers - purely as a nuisance, to be treated with contempt.

I might add, commenting on the letter you printed in the same edition, that the new car-parking arrangements implemented by London Midland are indeed grossly unfair to occasional rail users. The abolition of the existing barrier system and the switch from season tickets which allow a set number of entries to ones which expire after a certain number of months has ensured that many of us with flexible working arrangements are now forced into paying full-price for daily entries, while 5-day-a-week commuters enjoy something like a hefty 50% discount. London Midland refuse to acknowledge this fact, let alone come up with a more equitable system. But then, why should they bother? They're only interested in grabbing as much of our money as they can for increasingly inefficient and piecemeal services.