The results of our Climate Change Survey

With over 100 responses from our recent climate change survey we wanted to feedback on what you have said so far, and what we plan to do to enact your views.

We are still receiving survey responses but if you have any ideas that you feel we have missed, please do get in contact. We are here to listen to your views and work for you.

Climate Change

We asked residents if they support declaring a climate emergency and asked how concerned they were about climate change. Unsurprisingly, the responses showed people were very concerned about the issues of carbon emissions, air quality and how we recycle.

95% of respondents said they felt the government was not doing enough to tackle climate change.

There were a lot of comments about air pollution, issues with traffic and congestion and the issues we face with electricity production.

Traffic has been a real issue of late, whether in Pershore, Malvern or the surrounding villages. So Cllr Dan Boatright in Pershore has bought an air quality monitor. During April and May he will use it to monitor the CO2 levels, particulates and NO2 to see how our pollution levels fare. We will report back as we get the data.

The consensus was again that not enough was being done.

A number of people pointed to the issues we face as a result of development in the area, and a lot of Pershore residents showed their support for opposing any development by Tiddesley Wood. While the government sets the building targets, the council does have the overall responsibility to choose the locations.

We are also happy to see that there is a positive response to our suggestion of a National Park in the Malvern Hills area. Cllr Paul Bennett has been publicly driving this idea for some time and has been working with different community groups to make this project a serious possibility.

We are proud of our record of voting against unsustainable development will continue to do so. We will also push for more green spaces and protected spaces in the county.

There was a more mixed response to this question, with people noting that we have a number of protected spaces. Several people suggested extending green spaces we have and others welcomed the idea of a local national park or new wildlife area.

In February 2020 and again in February 2021 Cllr Charles Tucker proposed an extension to Tiddesley Wood on Wychavon Council owned land but the Conservative ruling group refused. Cllr Paul Bennett continues to push for more Green Spaces at Malvern District Council. We will continue to make the case for increasing our green spaces and building a buffer between our built environment and our wildlife.

It is great to see so much support for new footpaths and cycleways. We fully endorse any new active travel route and will always ensure this is a top priority.

Respondents rightly pointed out the dangers of shared spaces for pedestrians and cyclists and it is clear we need to give enough space to both on any new route.

There were also concerns about cyclists sharing the roads with large lorries and high speed traffic (especially on the A44 between Worcester and Pershore and the A449 between Malvern and Worcester).

It is clear that we need to focus on joining up our villages and towns so that people can safely walk, run and cycle between all our towns and the villages. This will be a priority for us and our Chase candidate, Jack Satterthwaite is keen to put his experience in town planning to good use.

There was approval for a weekly food waste service and this is in line with the planned changes in the next few years. Some respondents pointed to the fact they could compost so saw no need, while others were keen to promote local composting and techniques to reduce waste overall.

We wholeheartedly support all strategies to reduce waste and will continue to work with the community to do this. We will also investigate local community composting to help those who do not have the space to have their own composting. We will also investigate the viability of hot box composting locally.

Continuing to Talk about Waste

Over the past year our local Liberal Democrat councillors have been looking into how we can improve our recycling rates in the area.

Dan Boatright has been representing our area on the Liberal Democrat climate group, working with Liberal Democrat MPs, members of the House of Lords and councillors from across the country to ensure we effectively reduce our waste and ensure a zero climate future. The latest data on recycling rates was released at the beginning of the month. It has shown a huge increase in recycling rates across the country, but not in this area. We remain at 43.6%.

What has been great to see is 4 of the 5 best councils in the country for recycling are Liberal Democrat so the work undertaken by the Climate Group is producing positive results. If you want to know more about our plans for increasing recycling in the county, you can watch Dan's video here.

Your Key Areas of Focus

Below are the key areas you want to see change. We will continue to support any projects that support these views.

Our Pershore town councillors are currently working with the council to investigate the potential for an outdoor exercise circuit in one of our parks, and we have also supported a town council campaign to support young people getting lower prices on trains and buses.

At District Council we will continue to push for more air pollution monitoring, and will monitor it ourselves in the coming weeks to show it needs addressing. We will also continue to contest building in areas that are not suitable.

At County Council we hope to continue to push for better recycling rates, and will look to renegotiate the contract with the current provider. Similarly, there is a need to build more footpaths and so we will push Highways to focus on joining up our towns and villages so we can travel safely no matter how we choose to travel.

Join us on Wed April 7th for our next Action Day in Pershore

Liberal Democrats have been representing Pershore for over 35 years. Our record speaks for itself as hard working and engaged members of our community.

Dan Boatright is standing to become our next county councillor as Liz Tucker stands down. Can you help us win? We will be running an action day on the above date from 10am and would love to have you join us.

Whether it is stuffing envelopes, making calls, delivering leaflets or providing admin support, we would love to hear from you. If you can help then let us know by calling 07752438210 and speak to Dan or email dandboatright@yahoo.co.uk.

The Liberal Democrats rely on volunteers and we hope you can help us continue our tradition of supporting Pershore and the surrounding villages.