Whither Hertford? A Report

Thank you to those of you who attended our "Whither Hertford" forum in March 2007and in particular to our three speakers who gave great insights into life in Hertford, how it was, what is has become and what it could be.

We can all take an active role in making sure hertford is a safe, secure town caring for young and old in a sustainable way, making it a location of choice for people to work, visit and live

Jed Griffiths

Living

painted a potentially gloomy picture for the future of Hertford - an over crowded and congested town, polluted by the Stansted and Harlow North developments, littered, vandalised and divided. But, there is an alternative - a clean and green town, offering new forms of energy saving, water efficient housing, and an improvement of local facilities.

Jed demonstrated the the need to preserve the green belt and Hertford's green fingers, to promote diverse housing using natural materials, for us to be conscious of the wasteful use of energy, water and other commodities and to recycle waste with a view to conserving our environment and preserving our heritage

Working

Getting About

Hertford at Play

These objectives could be achieved by adopting more live/work accommodation, appreciating the importance of the third sector; creating a connected society with local jobs for local people.

Pollution could be overcome by enhancing rail links, giving pedestrian priority and cycle links; the promotion of eco-friendly vehicles with underground car parking and better use of public spaces.

Jed cited the extension of the Lee Valley Park, opening up countryside links, catering for youth, sports clubs for all and an indoor leisure centre as ways to improve local facilities.

Creating the Vision

David Kirby

In closing, Jed said that we have an opportunity to influence the national and regional agenda with real community involvement. Under the new planning framework there is a role for town councils, parish councils and civic societies to present their views to the public

But most importantly, he urged "Keep it Green!"

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Respected local architect, opened by saying that he has become increasingly concerned not just about Hertford but about the whole system "For every law there is an equal and opposite law" It is regrettable that so many good intentions, so well expressed, are then restricted by legislation.

He cited many examples of unwieldy legislation, in particular design and access statements that are at best ungrammatical and at worst incomprehensible. he mentioned the wonderful opportunity the Olympic games and the white water rafting facility in Broxbourne might represent, but - he asked - how will we accommodate tens of thousands of tourists in the region? What will be the environmental cost?

In closing, David expressed his concern that whilst we can continue to improve building designs we are still unable to legislate for quality - the key to good design

Mary Sykes-Mitchell

Introduced herself as a commonwealth immigrant who has been a Hertford resident for 18 year, a parent of three children, a part time employee of a local business, a member of several local societies/committees, a wife, friend, neighbour, taxpayer, voter, student and volunteer.

When she came to Hertford, she was charmed by Hertford's castle, picture postcard river scenes, green grocers, butchers, tea room, antique shops, a fish monger, iron monger, milk floats, market traders and, best of all, a traditional confectionery shop. Add to this ivy covered cottages, splendid architecture and wide open green spaces, Hertford was a county town of which we could be proud

Mary quoted an article by Sheila Goldsmith

"George courted Ella whenever he was home on leave (From the war) over the next 8 years, they used to go walking, attend dances at the Corn Exchange, go to concerts at the Bluecoats School and on a Saturday evening take the dog for a walk to Railway Street where there were many pubs"

Life has changed dramatically since George and Ella's days for the better and for the worse. Hertford is now a thriving town made up of thousands of people, many of whom are under 18.

Mary recently attended a meeting with East Herts District Council regarding their Cultural Strategy as related to play for our children (birth to 17 years)

This is what they had to say:

"Cultural Services (including sports, arts, museums, heritage, parks, open spaces, children's play, tourism) are all discretionary services and the Council does not have a statutory obligation to provide them. "

"However, clearly cultural services have value and contribute greatly to quality of life and it would be a mistake to think the council does not value culture. In fact, we are currently consulting on a new cultural strategy 2007 to 2012 and are looking for ways we can work together in partnership to encourage more things to happen in local areas. For the first time, access to opportunities to take part in sport, leisure and cultural communities' activities is a directly stated objective in the Council's corporate objectives, under the priority of improving life, health and well being"

Mary feels passionately that what young people need are places to meet and concentrate their energies. In 2007, organising activities and play areas for young people should, in her opinion, be a top priority in Hertford and to parents.

Other contributors

were keen to see local government employ "joined up thinking" between departments, councils and other organisations; they should carry out quality control on work carried out by and for the council and make it easier to get action from the correct department. Poor litter collections, maintenance and caring for flowerbeds were also cited as causes for concern.

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