Going off the rails

It took a year, but the report about the derailment last August of the Trams on  the Orme is finally out.  And it makes worrying reading. From the report:

Immediate cause
71    The immediate cause of the collision was the lower points moving under tram 6 directing its rear into the path of tram 7 (paragraph 34 and Recommendation 1).
Causal factors
72
A causal factor was the wheel forces overcoming the tumbler’s holding force and changing the position of the points (paragraph 37 and Recommendation 1). This was a result of three factors:
l the effectiveness of the holding force on the points had reduced due to wear and degradation of the points (paragraph 46);
l the points did not have a facing point lock (paragraph 54), and l there were no procedures in place to routinely measure the condition of, or undertake remedial actions upon, the points (paragraph 56).

Perhaps the management of the tramway might care to explain why they seem to place greater emphasis on the drivers' ability to converse in Welsh then they appear to on passenger safety. 

The Great Orme Tramway  is probably the biggest attraction in Llandudno besides the Orme itself;  to ensure it maintains its tourist pulling power, there can't be any shortcuts taken with safety.

Catching the cheats

It's a truism that many blogs take an unmitigated delight in heaping derision upon the last government, and that those easily led souls also glean a lot of their information from that bastion of xenophobic bigotry and right-wing propaganda, the DFM.  But in their haste to condemn the benefit cheats and scroungers, the Tories (in particular) seem to have forgotten something: that the biggest single loss to the UK economy today doesn't emanate from benefit cheats and 'scroungers'.

In fact, there's an estimated £71 billion missing from the UK's exchequer - £71bn that's been taken by criminals from the pockets of every UK Tax payer.   That's seventy-one times the estimated fraud (£1bn) of benefits cheats, about whom the DFM gets so exercised.

So who are these criminals and why haven't they been caught? The answer is fairly simple;  they're tax dodgers.   Read on...

Working for the Public and Commercial services Union and using HM Revenue & Customs data, I estimated tax evasion in the UK to be at least £70bn a year in March 2010. Recent World Bank data on the size of the UK shadow economy suggests a slightly higher figure. In the year to March 2010 HM Revenue & Customs cut more than one in eight of its frontline staff who might tackle this issue.
Beating tax evasion and the £25bn a year UK tax avoidance industry is the best way to rebalance the government’s books. So why is no one in this government willing to embrace this issue and devote the resources to it that would create new jobs, enhance the quality of law and order in this country, uphold democracy and in the long run result in tax cuts for all honest people while maintaining essential public services we all rely on?
Richard Murphy
Director, Tax Research

Interesting stuff.  Perhaps those who roundly condemn the less fortunate in our society might look at who is really fleecing the UK econmy.

Greed and Gormlessness

The Pier pavilion site is causing a lot of consternation in Llandudno at the moment, with significant efforts being made to get something done about what has become an 18-year long eyesore on the front. A lot of myths abound but the reality is actually pretty simple.  The site owner refuses to negotiate on any plans for the site that don't involve him getting a huge amount of money based on its potential for residential planning which - as it's a conservation area - isn't going to happen.  

Over the past few years, numerous attempts have been made to get him to agree to something and - although he has professed interest at the outset - at the last minute he's pulled out and refused to meet with anyone.

Many folk think Llandudno and the WAG should take a compulsory purchase order on the site, but there's a big snag: Llandudno isn't a designated regeneration area.  The entire coast from Rhyl to Colwyn Bay is, and then from Conwy to Bangor but Llandudo's been left out.

So - because of one person's greed and the WAG's refusal to consider Llandudno as a necessary part of their regeneration strategy, the town is stuck with an eyesore that cannot but put visitors off visiting again.  Time to start lobbying the WAG, perhaps...

Be not afraid of greatness

As we slither towards the new school year and the looming A level and GCSE results' days we thought it might be a good idea to compare the most recent inspection reports of the three main English-medium secondary schools that serve the area - Ysgol John Bright, Eirias High and Ysgol Bryn Elian.

Running a comprehensive school is a complex business, but the person responsible - the Head Teacher - is paid extremely well to do the job, so it seems reasonable to expect that they take responsibility for the quality and results the school produces.

Many students will be wondering which schools do best for their sixth formers and, to those who have children, few things will matter as much as the secondary school they will eventually choose. In the past, that choice was non-existent, the Secondary being decided largely on the choice of Primary.  Things have been changing for a long time, however, and now parents can choose the secondary school they want, within reason.  To add to the local natter about what the schools are like, however, the government made it possible to see the inspection reports and it's from the 2008 and 2009 reports that this blog is taken.  

Inspection reports aren't simple things to read, so we've extracted the most pertinent aspects and shown them below.

The first thing to read is the summary. This shows the overall grade, if you like, that the inspectors have awarded the school.

Eirias: Eirias High School is a very good school which has many outstanding features.

John Bright: Ysgol John Bright is a good school with some outstanding features.

Bryn Elian: Ysgol Bryn Elian is a good school with potential

Probably the next thing to check is how they perform against all the the schools in Wales.  Inspections use a standardised scoring method to assess schools:

Grade 1 good with outstanding features
Grade 2  good features and no important shortcomings
Grade 3 good features outweigh shortcomings
Grade 4 some good features, but shortcomings in important areas
Grade 5  many important shortcomings

so that - in effect - the more 1s and 2s, the better.   So how did the three schools score on the critical Key Questions?

But the most important aspect of the inspection - and that which matters most to parents - is the assessment of the quality of teaching and learning.   Here, the inspectors mark the lessons observed against the Welsh averages using percentages. Again, they grade with 1 (Best) to 5 (worst).

Across Wales 19% of lessons get a grade 1, 57% a grade 2 and 21% grade 3.  So how did our three schools do?

From the table above, it can be seen that Eirias had a massive 41% of lessons judged as  good with outstanding features, while John Bright had 12% and Bryn Elian managed 9%.

Finally, it's always worth looking at the statements made by the inspectors about the same sorts of areas in each school.

Perhaps the most telling statement is made about how learners progress.  About Eirias, for example, the inspectors note that

"the attainment of learners shows outstanding progress when compared to their abilities on entry. They fulfil their potential and are well prepared to move on to their next stage of learning. This, too, is an outstanding achievement." 

while about John Bright they state

"The quality of guidance and support is outstanding. Teachers and support staff encourage pupils to give of their best and give very good pastoral support. The provision for pupils with special needs, and for all pupils at KS4 when preparing for external examinations, is extensive. They are well supported at this time and their progress against their targets is closely monitored."  

In Bryn Elian's report they say

"In KS4, the school has managed to address the fall in performance in 2007, producing a significantly improved set of results in 2008. The standards of attainment in GCSE in 2008 are such that they return to an improving trend established over the three years prior to 2007."

Inspection reports only offer a snapshot into the work and quality of any school.  Nonetheless, it can be seen that the main English-medium secondary  provision in Llandudno and Colwyn Bay is far above average.



  

Bite not the hand

Jason Weyman's current blog entry mentions, among other things, his expenses. Recently, a few posters on Oscar's blog have been making somewhat negative remarks about Jason and expenses and that's something which is fairly easy to do. Jason - after all - is a public figure and expects the flak along with the plaudits, even if most emanate from anon.  But it's worthwhile reading his blog, because Jason is a great deal more open about his intentions and reasons than most.  Most importantly, however, Jason is telling people what's happening - something of which - in a Council obsessed with secrecy and covert actions - many other councillors might do well to take note.

We need more like Jason Weyman.

Sick of what?

Now here's an interesting one.  Apparently, sickness and absenteeism cost  Conwy CC  (and hence all of us) over £1m last year.  Is it that stressful working at Bodlondeb?

Hurry, hurry, hurry!

Hi Carneades,

  To celebrate 150 years of Britain’s most loved and outrageous couple, we’re working with Visit Llandudno to host the wedding of the century at the smallest church in the UK, St. Trillo’s Chapel in Rhos-On-Sea – Thursday 5th August at 10am.

I found your Llandudno and Colwyn Bay blog and, as someone interested in the area, I wondered if you’d like hear more about it for the blog? We’ll also be producing a short spoof wedding video, which should be really good fun – which we’d be happy to share if you’re interested.

We're waiting with baited breath for more news!