WebWatch N8

Latest CRP News

24 December 2009 British drinkers will 'take the hit on minimum alcohol prices'   According to claims from a food and drink analyst, a minimum price on alcohol will have little impact on UK drinkers. Most will 'take the hit' by buying cheaper brands or simply spending more on drink. Only 21 per cent will drink less, he says. Read more here   24 December 2009 Police go on £2,500 shoplifting spree   Plain-clothed police in Portsmouth went on a shoplifting spree in the run-up to Christmas and 'stole' more than £2,500 of goods from stores in the city centre. Read more here   22 December 2009 Free T-shirts to encourage clubbers to drink responsibly   T-shirts resembling those promoting tours by rock bands are being given free-of-charge to customers in pubs and clubs in Durham who purchase non-alcoholic drinks or food. Read more here   22 December 2009 Yellow Card scheme set up in North Devon   Devon & Cornwall Police, in partnership with Safer North Devon and participating pubs and clubs, have set up a Yellow Card scheme in the North Devon and Torridge area Read more here   22 December 2009 Rape: getting the message across to young men at Christmas   One unfestive fact is that incidents of rape increase during the Christmas and New Year period. One constabulary is warning young men: Don't Cross the Line. Read more here   22 December 2009 Traffic wardens take over community policing role   Traffic wardens in central Scotland are to tackle anti-social behaviour and assist in criminal inquiries as part of an expanded role. Read more here

New documents recently added 28 November 2009 The Guide to Data Protection   Click here   to read it 8 October 2009 New guidelines on ASBO reporting restrictions   Click here   to read it 31 July 2009 Listening to young people   Click here   to read it 24 July 2009 DPP calls for more on-the-spot fines   Click here   to read it 24 July 2009 Less Crime, Lower Costs   Click here   to read it Events 10 May 2010 IFSEC   IFSEC is the world's leading global annual security event, uniting over 25,000 security professionals with more than 600 world leading companies....More   . . . .

Healthtelephone - e-petition response | Number10.gov.uk

Sometime soon we get a result! Read No 10's answer

http://www.number10.gov.uk/Page21836

Latest CRP News

---

18 December 2009
Almost half of pubs sold alcohol to underage teens

 

Nearly 50 per cent of pubs tested by Trading Standards officers in Newbury sold alcohol to an underage volunteer. Pubs apppear to have a worse track-record than off-licences. Read more here

 

---

18 December 2009
UK's under-15s are Europe's heaviest drinkers, and rank high for drug and tobacco use too

 

Whether its without their parents' permission, or without it - or unknown to their parents - UK's children drink, smoke and take more drugs than kids from any others developed country. Read more here

 

---

17 December 2009
Film of facial damage curbs teen drinking

 

Showing school children graphic images of the 'horrific' facial injuries sustained by binge drinkers has a lasting impact on teenagers' attitude to alcohol. Read more here

 

---

17 December 2009
Three new orders in November for BCRP Intranet

 

Littoralis, suppliers of BCRP Intranet, has reported that three more crime reduction partnerships have signed up for the system in the last month. This takes the number of BCRP Intranet customers to 18 since the system was launched a year ago. Read more here

 

---

17 December 2009
Yellow Card helps steer kids back on track

 

The system is being used by police in South Cheshire to identify young people who may be heading for trouble, and to divert them. Read more here

 

---

16 December 2009
Gay crime too often goes unreported, say police

 

Police in Lancashire say many sexual assaults in the gay, lesbian and transgender community are not reported. Read more here

 

---

16 December 2009
One-in-three off-licences fail under-age test

 

Almost a third of premises targeted by police in Portsmouth as part of an undercover operation sold alcohol to children. Read more here

 

---

15 December 2009
Alcohol-related hospital admissions rise almost 50% in last four years

 

According to figures publicised by the Liberal Democrats, in 2008/9 945,223 people were admitted to hospital with an alcohol-related diagnosis - 47 per cent higher than the 644,185 taken to hospital in 2004/5 Read more here

 

---

14 December 2009
New CEO of Action Against Business Crime

 

Mike Schuck, Chief Executive of Action Against Business Crime for the last six years, is stepping down at the end of the year. He will be succeeded by Bill Price, currently AABC's company secretary. Read more here

How is Lynne doing?

R8 Your Politician is an independant organisation free from any government funding or political influence. We let the public rate their politician and allow politicians to engage and interact with citizens more easily and transparently. It allows the public to ask questions to Politicians, put questions on important issues to the public and get a quick real time analysis of public opinion. E-Democracy in action, creating more accountability and transparency in government.

Festive Watch Menu

Download Thefestivemenu

Get your car ready for Winter - better late than never

With Winter well and truly upon us, now is as good a time as any to make sure your car stays safe and in tip-top condition during this time.  Our friends at Haynes recommend the following top 10 tips:

1. Don't leave the car unattended with the engine running while the windscreen defrosts - it's an obvious target for thieves (if the car is on the road it's also illegal)
2. Clean the wiping edges of the wiper blades with a tissue dipped in neat screen wash additive. This will help stop smearing and prolong their life
3. Warm (not boiling!) water is OK for defrosting windows, but watch where it runs away to - it could form an ice slick on the ground when it freezes
4. Make things easier for the battery by not switching on headlights, heater blower or heated rear window until the engine is running.  Similarly, switch off lights etc. before stopping the engine
5. If your car has air conditioning, run it for 10 minutes or so once a month to keep oil in the system distributed and stop the seals drying out
6. Switch off the heated rear window as soon as the screen is clear
7. Winter grade diesel can cope with temperatures down to -15C. If lower temperatures are expected, use an anti-waxing additive in the fuel tank (or stay at home!)
8. When parking overnight in freezing conditions, leave the car in gear and the handbrake off if it is safe to do so.  This will prevent the handbrake freezing in the "on" position
9. Don't reduce tyre pressures in the hope of improving grip on snow
10. When defrosting the windscreen, free the wiper blades carefully - perhaps with a squirt of de-icer - to avoid tearing the rubber

For more advice on Winter preparation from Haynes please click here

The Technical Support Phone Scam

Thanks to Keith for this scam warning:

 

Extracted from "PC Knowledge for Seniors" newsletter:

 

********

Here's something many of us might wish for as a Christmas present: a company that would monitor how our PCs were working -- constantly, and free of charge -- and phone us up whenever they detected a problem that needed fixing.

Sadly, there's no such thing, but that doesn't stop scammers pretending there is. A PC Knowledge for Seniors subscriber received one of these calls and got in touch to tell us about it, and a little research reveals that he's certainly not the first to encounter this scam. (Fortunately, he was sensible enough to end the call rather than be taken in by the hoax.)

The scam starts by you receiving a phone call out of the blue from someone claiming to be an agent for Microsoft (or "your Windows service provider"). This company has apparently determined that your PC is running slowly or has been infected by malicious software.

If you allow the caller to get any further, he'll try to "prove" that this is the case by making you open certain programs or folders on your PC. In our subscriber's case, the caller asked him to open a program called Event Viewer, which contains a massive list of technical-looking entries, and asked if any of these had yellow or red warning icons beside them. When he said that some did (as some naturally do), the caller explained that these were the cause of his PC's supposed problems. (Other scam victims have been told to open a particular folder and see if it contains any files. The folder does contain files, as the caller knows it will, but he'll claim that each of these files is a separate infection and that your PC is horribly messed up.)

Having proved his point, the caller then moves on to the sting. Our subscriber was told to visit a particular website to enter his email address and other details, whereupon one of the caller's colleagues would connect directly to his PC to "clean it". And, incidentally, he would be charged £69 for the service.

You can hopefully see that by following all this to its conclusion you could end up in a right old pickle. First you've blindly followed all sorts of instructions from this unknown caller, possibly not knowing whether or not you were being asked to do something harmful. Then you've handed over your contact details, paid this fellow some money and, in the process, given him your credit card details. Finally you've allowed him to take remote control of your PC, and he'll use that opportunity to install some software that gives him permanent control over it, allowing it to be used to send spam and launch attacks on other computers.

Needless to say, if you get one of these calls, I strongly recommend that you don't allow the caller to get anywhere near that final sting or follow any instructions. As with all such scams, though, common sense should tell you fairly quickly that something doesn't ring true. Microsoft doesn't -- and couldn't -- monitor all the PCs running Windows, or appoint anyone else to do so, and certainly wouldn't waste those lovely profits on telephoning us all with troubleshooting advice.

Cheques to be bounced into history

UK banks set to vote tomorrow to phase out 300-year-old tradition of paying by cheque

• Patrick Collinson
• guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 15 December 2009 16.35 GMT
• Article history

Do you pay the milkman by cheque? Slip a surprise cheque in a Christmas card to a grandson or granddaughter? Or maybe you simply don't trust direct debits when dealing with gas and electricity companies?

In the future you'll have no choice but to pay electronically, by plastic, or go online if, as expected, Britain's banks vote tomorrow to phase out the tradition dating back more than 300 years of payment by cheque.

Cheques cost up to £1 each to process – and the number written has been falling steadily. As recently as 2002 a typical consumer in Britain was writing 31 cheques a year, but the number fell to 14 by 2008. Big stores such as Marks & Spencer have already stopped taking cheques, and the Payments Council, which sets strategy for UK payments in Britain, says they are now used for fewer than one in 25 purchases.

Scandinavian countries and Ireland have already voted to phase out cheques, and a board meeting of the Payments Council tomorrow afternoon expected to set an "end date" of 2018 for cheque clearing in Britain.

It wants consumers to switch to cheaper and faster electronic payment processing and says it will use the eight-year transitional period to ensure alternative arrangements are put in place.

"Mapping out how the UK might move to a society where, by 2018, there is no need to use a cheque for any type of payment is no small task," said council spokeswoman Sandra Quinn. "Even if the board decides to set a target date, we are clear that we would need to continue to engage with as many other bodies as possible to understand their concerns and requirements. The demise of the cheque in 2018 is only feasible if interim targets are set and met and it can be demonstrated that no one will lose out."

But the phasing out of cheques has led to intense concern among groups representing senior citizens. Many elderly bank customers are unhappy about online banking, or have sight difficulties and prefer the comfort of using cheques.

Neil Duncan-Jordan, of the National Pensioners Convention, said: "Using a cheque to settle your financial affairs is extremely important to older pensioners who might struggle in later life with the use of chip and pin. This option is effectively removing choice from a whole section of the population. The representatives of the Payments Council are completely out of touch with the needs of older consumers and need to think again."

Age Concern and Help the Aged say that 6.4 million over-65s have never used the internet, and the loss of cheques will force older people to keep large amounts of cash at home, leaving them vulnerable to theft and fraud.

Andrew Harrop, head of public policy at the charities, said: "Many older people rely on cheques as their main form of payment and will be very worried about how they will manage if they are withdrawn.

"Our fear is that setting a date will give the green light to banks and retailers to withdraw cheques even earlier than 2018, as some already have. It is vital that before cheques are phased out, the Payments Council ensures there is a practical, safe, paper-based alternative in place which serves the needs of this group."

Small businesses point out that, despite the decline, there are still 1.4bn cheques written every year by individuals and businesses to pay bills, traders or family members.

Stephen Alambritis, of the Federation of Small Businesses, said: "This sends completely the wrong message to the self-employed, small businesses and people who run small clubs and charities.

"We are opposed to the Payments Council dictating this, at the behest of the big banks, when cheques are still hugely popular as a method of payment. We know that students and young adults are using the chequebook less and less, and the banks talk about things such as cheque fraud. But it is terribly wrong to set any date as to when they can no longer be used. They are also an important record of transactions for small businesses."

But Quinn said that most under-30s now barely use cheques, while the under-20s have barely heard of them.

She added: "So far, no group consulted has said 2018 is not feasible although all parties recognise that it would be a major challenge to get right and that currently sufficient and accessible alternatives to cheques do not exist for a number of individuals and users."

The Payments Council board is made up of 16 directors, 12 from the banks and four independents. The independent directors enjoy a power of veto, but are not expected to impose it tomorrow.

Zip it, Block It, Flag It.

The new 'green cross code' for Internet safety
Tuesday 08 December 2009 14:25:55 by John Hunt

The green cross code - Stop, Look, Listen - are the rules taught to children to make sure they cross the road safely, and the new digital code to be taught at primary schools will follow a similar pattern- 'Zip It, Block It, Flag it'. The new online green cross code is part of a government strategy called "Click Clever, Click Safe", drawn up by the UK Council on Child Internet Safety (UKCCIS). Part of this involves making it compulsory to teach online safety to children aged 5 and up in England from 2011. The three parts of the green cross code are fairly self explanatory:

Zip It - Protect yourself. Don't share personal details with strangers online

Block It - Stop unwanted emails coming to children and stop them accessing certain Internet sites

Flag It - Flag up any suspicious people or websites to the relevant person, whether parent, teacher or the police.

A Safer Internet week in February will launch the campaign which will target parents and children. More information is available from the UKCCIS website.

Comments

Posted by JeremyBoden 6 days ago
I hope they get Darth Vader to advertise the campaign.

Posted by Dawn_Falcon 6 days ago
I'm not sure (even) Darth Vader could rescue this one.

Posted by mrc99 6 days ago
So what in the curriculum is going to to be reduced/removed to make way for this? What training are the teachers (poor sods) going to get or are they just going to be given a piece of paper and told 'go teach'?

Posted by kawasakiMan 6 days ago
Not sure that Zip-it is the right term to use, pc savvy kids will be compressing stuff before they up-load it :-(

Posted by mishminx 3 days ago
Given the amount of fluff in the curriculum, I am sure they can make room for this. You would hope that most teachers would grasp the basics without training. It is rather simplified after all. Might be a problem if parents latch on to the notion that teachers are suddenly internet experts though and start asking them for info and advice.
Especially if they then blame teachers for poor advice because they are too lazy to figure things out themselves.

Posted by CARPETBURN 1 day ago
LOL you couldnt make this stuff up....... What do you say when you get a virus or your credit card details nicked??? Oh (BLEEP BLEEP BLEEP IT).
Block it... Must be joking right? Most kids know how to work around porn blocks better than dad lol
Flag it... Quite how a kid is going to identify a suspicious person when half the people they talk to on facepalm or whatever they dont know anyway remains a mystery.
About the only sensible part is the "Zip-it" bit and how they will make a whole curriculum telling kids not to tell people online your address or name will be interesting.

Posted by pigfister about 2 hours ago
this is just more scare mongering to keep us in the state of fear.
we must protect the children & woman from paedophiles, terrorists & pirates!
anyway we wouldn't want the children seeing any of them videos of UK soldiers murdering innocent Iraqis now would we, or the latest wikileaks document shows that the government was complicit in torture or the BAE systems illegal weapons deals!
what about DPI the government is going to force isp's to roll out to spy on all our private data?

Latest CRP News

14 December 2009
New CEO of Action Against Business Crime

 

Mike Schuck, Chief Executive of Action Against Business Crime for the last six years, is stepping down at the end of the year. He will be succeeded by Bill Price, currently AABC's company secretary. Read more here

 

---

11 December 2009
Changes to music licences are unnecessary says LGA

 

The Government is proposing an exemption to the 2003 Licensing Act which would allow bars, clubs and cafes to put on live music for fewer than 100 people without the need for a licence. But the Local Government Association says changes are unnecessary and could lead to problems. Read more here

 

---

11 December 2009
Liberals call for more controls on sale of alcohol to kids

 

According to the Liberal Democrats, figures show that an unprecedented number of children are being criminalised for under-age drinking. The problem, they say, is not so much the law - but the lack of determination to enforce it. Read more here

 

---

11 December 2009
Police promote 'Drunk and Disorderly Inn'

 

A brochure published by Greater Manchester Police and distributed among pub-goers and clubbers in the city, advertises unique 'award winning accommodation' specifically for drunk and disorderly people. Read more here

 

---

9 December 2009
Retailers accused of unfair pursuit of shoplifters

 

According to a report from the Citizens Advice Bureau, retailers are using a 'deceitful' and 'unfair' system to seek hundreds of pounds in compensation payouts from petty shoplifters. Read more here

 

---

8 December 2009
Use of illegal dogs soars as guns and knives get too hot to handle

 

Seizures of pit bull terriers have soared to record levels as young men and gang members increasingly use them as weapons. Read more here

immobolise - FREE service

With the support of the Police, Councils and many large retailers the FREE Immobilise service now has over 22.7 million members. Many have only one item registered, perhaps just a phone, sat nav or similar, so we would like to remind you that it is FREE to add as many items to the system as you like. The FREE system assists Police forces nationwide with the identification of owners of lost & stolen goods thousands of times a day, which is just one good reason to keep your details and registered items up-to-date.

In this message: > Special offers & deals for Immobilise Members > Thieves steer clear of security marked goods! > What is Immobilise? I don't remember registering?

Special Offers & Deals for Immobilise Members Thanks to the ongoing support of the Public, Police, Government, Insurance, and Retail Industries we are pleased to be able to offer Immobilise members a wide range of special offers and discounts. In the coming weeks we will be contacting you again with details of these offers, please rest assured though all messages will come from us, and you will not receive more than one message per week.

Whistleblower pays price for criticising Haringey's childcare

10 December 2009


A WHISTLEBLOWER who raised concerns about Haringey's paediatric services a year before Baby Peter died claims that she was hounded out of her job and offered a pay-off to stay silent.

Dr Kim Holt, a senior consultant paediatrician who lives in Muswell Hill, was one of four consultants who wrote a letter to the management at Great Ormond Street, detailing problems at the Child Development Centre in St Ann's, a year before Baby Peter was examined there.

The consultants warned that the clinic - which was run by Haringey Primary Care Trust and managed by Great Ormond Street Hospital doctors - was understaffed and patients' lives were being put at risk.

Dr Holt, 50, said that after the letter was sent, she resisted further plans to make £350,000 cuts to the service.

But she claims that her concerns were ignored and she was bullied by managers. She says that when two of her four colleagues resigned, she was forced to take stress-related sick leave because of her workload. When she tried to return to work in August 2007, Great Ormond Street would not allow it, she says.

It was in August 2007 that Peter Connelly was examined at the clinic by a temporary locum consultant who failed to spot that he had a suspected broken back.

He died two days later in his blood-splattered cot in Tottenham after suffering months of abuse.

Dr Holt told Broadway: "When I heard about Baby Peter's death, my initial thoughts were that Haringey's health services would have been implicated in some way because I'd been in the mind-set that something was going to happen within that department. Child protection is a multi-agency response it's not just social services.

"When I saw all the reports about Peter I felt angry because I knew that the health side [of child protection] had collapsed and my concerns had not been addressed."

Dr Holt claims that at a meeting in November 2007, after Peter had died, Great Ormond Street offered her £88,000 - her annual salary - to leave her job and remain silent.

She said: "If I'd taken that money no one would know about the failings in the paediatric services in Haringey. No one has taken responsibility and all the managers are still there.

"Since Peter's death, there has been investment in paediatrics but it shouldn't take a child to die for managers to listen.

"The scandal is that for the past two years I've been on full pay but I've not been allowed back to work in Haringey even though there is a shortage of paediatricians.

"This is what happens to whistleblowers in the NHS. Your career is damaged and patients lose out."

Dr Holt has been working part time since May 2009 in Camden and at Great Ormond Street while she waits for the matter to be resolved.

She decided to speak to Broadway after an independent NHS report concluded that cutting the number of consultant posts at St Ann's from four to two in 2006, had created an "excessive workload" for doctors and had been inadequately thought out by managers.

It described Dr Holt as highly intelligent and committed, and concluded that these issues "could have been managed more effectively in the interests of patient care".

But the authors concluded that while there was a negative atmosphere between clinicians and managers, there was no bullying regime."

The British Medical Association said on Tuesday that it would be seeking Dr Holt's reinstatement to St Ann's.

A spokesman for NHS Haringey said that St Ann's now has four more doctors as part of an on going investment in paediatric services. Great Ormond Street Hospital denied that it had tried to silence Dr Holt with a pay off and said that it was trying to resolve the employment dispute.

 

---

HFRA letter in 2008

From: suehessel@hotmail.com
To: charlotte.newton@hamhigh.co.uk; geoff.martin@hamhigh.co.uk
Subject: response to yesterday's Ofsted report
Date: Tue, 2 Dec 2008 11:29:54 +0000

In only two weeks inspectors have gleaned enough information on services in Haringey to know that something has gone very wrong. But most of the criticisms damn every agency – health as much as childrens’ services, and baby P will have died in vain if we leave it there.

There will be a huge temptation for the nation to sit back now, having watched an absolutely historic display of Haringey Council heads being fired, and sigh "so that’s alright then."
 
But things are not all right in Haringey and there are too many unanswered questions in the Ofsted report about the role of the Haringey health authorities in this sorry case.
 
Ten new health visitor posts have hastily been advertised. Residents in our part of Haringey will not be surprised. In the past two years Fortis Green clinic has been sold and Highgate clinic has been closed, with no services at Hornsey Central Hospital for nine years. A litany of budget cuts and reorganisations, privatisation plans and foundation status applications have been the dominant concern of our Haringey health bureaucrats. When they transferred administration of child health services at St. Ann’s Tottenham, several miles away to Great Ormond Street, signed off only this year, their only risk assessments were financial. Experience of community health, the need for health visitors and the medical training of practitioners in vulnerable children did not feature.
 
When your reporter last week asked how many times the health visitor had seen baby P over seventeen months, the answer was five, with gaps and a change of health visitor towards the end of his life. Appointments had not been kept: "This is absolutely typical of the families seen" the health spokesman added. His response spoke volumes. How on earth did management think a vital trusting rapport between health visitor and mother could even begin when there was so little inadequate contact? The health authorities have a duty of care. Of course these families will be tricky. It comes with the territory. They wouldn’t be requiring close supervision otherwise. Regular missed appointments in these cases should ring alarm bells.
 
Baby P was a baby. He had no language. Social workers had to rely on medical assessments. But where were the meetings with health officials to discuss this? What really happened with Haringey's GPs, the Health Visitor and the Paediatrician. Is it true that it took months to obtain a medical assessment at St. Ann’s Hospital and that the paediatrician here was not properly informed that this was a child at risk?
 
The Ofsted report is littered with criticism of the health service management: Here are just some examples:
 
"Frequent unacceptable and extreme delays" in communications between health, childrens’ services and the police.
 
"Health service files are often poorly organised and the process and planning of individual cases is difficult to follow. (They) include hand-written notes which are sometimes illegible and do not identify the author. The standard of record-keeping in the health records of looked after children and young people is poor and some entries are inaccurate. There is insufficient evidence of managerial oversight and decision-making on case records."

"The quality of health assessments for cared for children is poor."
 
"There is insufficient guidance for and oversight of the work of general practitioners who undertake the majority of assessments."
 
Individual management reviews provided by the the North Middlesex University Hospital/Great Ormond Hospital NHS Trust, Haringey Teaching Primary Care Trust, were "inadequate. "
 
It is no wonder baby P was left to die.
 
Although heads have rolled in Childrens’ Services, the fact that so many of the criticisms are of all the agencies, and particularly health, means that we cannot leave things there. The residents of Haringey deserve a Public Inquiry. Haringey services need more than a fresh coat of paint. If our vulnerable people are to be protected in the future, all the wallpaper needs to come off this time, and that includes looking at what is underneath that thick layer of the health department, Haringey's Primary Care Trust.
 
Sue Hessel
Haringey Federation of Residents’ Associations (Vulnerable Groups)
2.11.08

Save the Whittington

Joint boroughs campaign planning meeting
Monday 14 December - 7pm
Whittington Park Community Centre
Yerbury Road, Upper Holloway N19 (5 minutes walk from Holloway Road, via Rupert Road).
Called by Camden Keep Our NHS Public and the Defend Haringey's Health Services coalition, backed by the 'Save The Whittington' public meeting

On Wednesday over 220 people packed into a hastily arranged public meeting called in response to the threat to close the Accident & Emergency Department at the Whittington Hospital.

Despite a half hour long 'explanation' by the head of the North West London NHS on why the Whittington should be downgraded, those at the meeting were absolutely livid and unanimously opposed. More than 25 of those present made moving and powerful speeches against the proposals.

The feeling of the meeting was to mount a massive campaign linking the concerned people and organisations in all the affected boroughs, to defend the Whittington and all the other North London hospitals facing similar threats (including the North Middx, Barnet General and Chase Farm). To that end the Chair (Jeremy Corbyn MP) called on people to attend the joint-boroughs campaign meeting on Monday...

We call on all those who want to see a united, inclusive and effective campaign to save the Whittington to come along on Monday.

See below for some press reports of the public meeting....

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Two out of three options would axe Whittington Hospital A&E
nlnews@archant.co.uk
11 December 2009

TWO out of three planned options for the future of The Whittington Hospital will see its busy A&E department axed, health chiefs have admitted.

The hospital, in Magdala Avenue, Archway, has the only A&E department in Islington and the neighbouring borough of Haringey. But by 2013, health chiefs say it will either:
- Only provide medical assessments and no emergency services
- Only provide medical assessments but with minimal emergency services
- Stay the same but with specialist heart, stroke and trauma services moved to other hospitals

The shocking news was revealed at an emergency public meeting called by Islington North MP Jeremy Corbyn on Wednesday - where more than 200 angry objectors vowed to mount a massive campaign to save the A&E, which is used by 80,000 people a year.

Rachel Tyndall, head of the North West London NHS, told the packed hall at Archway Methodist Church, in Archway Close, that she had to save money. She said: "We have to change the way services are provided. We have to keep up with technological advances. And we have to keep up with the money we have got to spend. No political party is going to be able to put more money into the NHS as they have in the past. That puts more pressure on us to make sure we get the best value out taxpayers' money."

The Whittington's services are under threat because health bosses are downgrading it to a "local" hospital in a massive reorganisation of healthcare in the boroughs of Islington, Camden, Haringey, Enfield and Barnet.

If the A&E department closes, people would still be able to use a new "Urgent Care Centre" - but it will only open during the "waking hours" of 6am and midnight and will only treat relatively straight-forward cases such as bone fractures.

Ambulances would be forced to take seriously ill patients to "major acute" or "specialist" hospitals such as University College Hospital (UCH) - three miles away in Euston.

Ms Tyndall said that as a local hospital, the Whittington would be "like the workhorse of the NHS in Islington". But she admitted that the Whittington's staff could end up "demoralised".

She said: "I don't know what the answer is going to be. There is a real concern that [downgrading] demoralises staff at the Whittington. They think they are undervalued which is not what this is all about. It may impact on recruitment."

Campaigners called on Ms Tyndall to "see sense".

Archway community campaigner Jan Pollock, a diabetic, said a daytime Urgent Care Centre would be no good, adding: "This year I've been in A&E twice and I've been brilliantly looked after. My emergencies strangely happened at night. I'm obviously not quite right."

Martin Klute, chairman of Islington Council's health and wellbeing review committee, said the entire quality of the Whittington would suffer if its A&E went. He said: "The quality of staff at The Whittington is driven by having an A&E department. If you lose A&E we lose the best staff. That's an accepted fact. Even with the compromise solution we'll lose some of our best staff. How does that contribute to an improvement of our health services?"

Angela Sinclair, of Islington Pensioners Forum, added: "In the last few years £30million has been spent on the Whittington being refurbished - who makes these extraordinary decisions?"

Labour MPs from the three neighbouring boroughs of Islington, Camden and Haringey have united to save the A&E department.

Emily Thornberry, MP for Islington South and Finsbury, said: "We know in our heart of hearts that if the A&E is cut back it's the beginning of the end for The Whittington. And if we already have 130,000 people a year going to UCH, where are the 80,000 that use the Whittington going to go - and what effect is that going to have on UCH?"

Ms Tyndall vowed to provide written answers to every question she was bombarded with during the two-hour meeting - and to address a follow-up meeting in mid-January.

A full consultation on the options - which only came to light after an internal letter from Ms Tyndall was leaked - will start in autumn 2010.

Closing the meeting, Mr Corbyn said: "This is a microcosm of the strength of feeling that exists all over north London. We've got main roads and railways and two major football stadiums in Islington and Haringey. We need to keep the A&E facilities.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Fight to save Whittington A&E rolls on
Haringey Independent - Thursday 10th December 2009

HUNDREDS of protesters campaigned yesterday to save the Whittington Hospital's Accident and Emergency department. Protesters rallied at Archway Methodist Hall in a meeting organised by Islington MP Jeremy Corbyn, to oppose plans to close or curtail the unit which serves residents in Haringey, Islington and Barnet.

Campaigners opposing the plans heard from MPs Emily Thornberry and Tottenham MP David Lammy. Karen Jennings, head of health at UNISON and Labour's prospective parliamentary candidate for the Horsney and Wood Green seat, also spoke at the meeting.

Trade union councils in Barnet, Haringey and Islington who have united in a joint campaign to save the A&E will host a meeting at the Whittington Park community centre on Monday, December 14, at 7pm.

NHS Haringey will answer objections to changes at a further meeting scheduled in January.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The fight is on to Save Our Whittington
Islington Tribune

About 250 people packed a public meeting on Wednesday night after thousands signed online petitions opposing the threatened closure of the Archway hospital’s accident and emergency department.

Labour MPs Jeremy Corbyn, Emily Thornberry and higher education minister David Lammy challenged NHS bosses to “come clean” about proposals to strip the hospital of its casualty unit.

Fears about the long-term future of the hospital were sparked by a series of internal emails leaked last month. MP Jeremy Corbyn raised his concerns that loss of the A&E department could result in complete closure with Health Minister Mike O’Brien during a parliamentary debate on the “Future of the Whittington”.

North Central London NHS Trust chief executive Rachel Tyndall – who will be responsible for making the final decision on the hospital’s future – told the meeting in Archway Methodist Hall that “no decision had been taken”.

But she admitted for the first time publicly that A&E closure was an option being considered by the board.

She said: “We are all very concerned about the future of public sector funding. We have been really lucky in recent years and have had above-inflation uplift – we know now that is going to stop. We have too much debt as a nation. No political party is going to give the NHS as much money in the future as it’s had in the past. It means we have a greater responsibility to find the best value. We are looking at three models for the Whittington. The first is where there is minimal change, the second where it provides a ser­vice with medical assessments and less support for surgery and the third where it would not have an emergency service. There are three options for A&E – one where there are minor changes and it is open 24 hours a day; when it is open during ‘waking hours’, around 16 hours a day; another, when there is no A&E."  She added: “Any proposals would be subject to formal consultation.”

The announcement provoked a storm of protest from patients and health care professionals inside the hall.

Mr Lammy said: “I was born in the Whittington and so were my two sons. Many people from the West Indian community feel they built these NHS hospitals. It is unacceptable for residents of Haringey and Islington to go without proper acute services. That cannot be right.”

Ms Thornberry, Islington South MP, said: “We don’t believe cutting Whittington A&E makes us healthier. We want a consultation that listens to what people say.”

Angela Sinclair-Loutit, from Islington Pensioners’ Forum, said: “The A&E is very good. There’s no need to close it. The Whittington has spent £13million on refurbishment. One minute improve, the next downgrade. Who is making these extraordinary decisions? I’m sure the developers are having a whale of a time.”

Islington resident Jan Tucker said: “My granddaughter had swine flu and they thought she might have meningitis. We were ushered into the children’s A&E, which was wonderful – there were no alcoholics or screaming. They’ve built this and now they are thinking of closing it? We are putting older people at risk too. This must be stopped. It is disgusting.”

Many carers spoke up about the dangers of closing accident and emergency, even during the early hours of the morning when it is not used so regularly.

Islington resident Rita McLoughlin said: “Carers often use the A&E at times like 3am. If these people have to travel further, will the hospital pay for taxis?”

Chairman of Islington Carers’ Centre Shirley Franklin said: “I know Holloway and Pentonville prisons are very worried about this. We already have the highest suicide rate in the ­country.”

Resident Janet Pollack said: “I am insulin dependent – all my emergencies are at night.”

Councillor Martin Klute, Labour chairman of Islington Council’s health and wellbeing scrutiny committee, added: “If you take out an A&E you lose all you best quality staff.”

Gary Heather, president of Islington Trades Union Council, said: “You are going to have a hell of a job convincing people about this – you will have a major fight on your hands.”

The meeting heard calls for Ms Tyndall to “resign” and for a series of occupations, marches and demonstrations to be staged.

Ms Tyndall said she would answer all questions raised at the meeting and send an “answer sheet” to Mr Corbyn for distribution.

The MP said: “I am very pleased that we called this meeting. It is very important. The NHS is the most civilised thing about this country – it requires our support, love and protest.”

A campaign meeting will be held in Whittington Park Community Centre in Yerbury Road on Monday from 7pm.

Malware suspected of 'Black Screen' issue

Windows 7 was released in October

Malware has been blamed for a problem with the Windows 7 operating system, dubbed the 'Black Screen of Death'.

Some Windows users are confronted by a totally black screen after they log on to their system.

Initially it was thought that Microsoft's own security update could have caused the problem but that has now been ruled out.

The software firm that suggested the security update was the problem has apologised for its claims.

Reports suggest the problem also affects Windows Vista and XP.

In a blog posting on its security site, Microsoft said that it had investigated the claims and "found that our November Security Updates are not making changes to the system that these reports say are responsible for these issues".

The firm said that the behaviour was associated with malware, such as Daonol, and that this was probably the root cause.

Software firm Prevx, who had said the November update may have been to blame, have since retracted their statement, saying it had been a "challenging issue" to identify the cause.

"Having narrowed down a specific trigger for this condition we've done quite a bit of testing and re-testing on the recent Windows patches including KB976098 and KB915597 as referred to in our previous blog," the firm wrote on its website.

"Since more specifically narrowing down the cause we have been able to exonerate these patches from being a contributory factor."

Prevx apologised to Microsoft for "for any inconvenience" its earlier claims may have caused.

The firm has issued a fix for the problem, which it says could affect "millions" of computers.

"Users have resorted to reloading Windows as a last ditch effort to fix the problem," the firm's David Kennerley wrote in a blog post.

"We hope we can help a good many of you avoid the need to reload."

Unknown problem

The firm said its fix did not work in all cases.

"There can be many causes," said Mr Kennerley.

"But if your black screen woes began in the last two weeks... or after running any security program (including Prevx) to remove malware during this time, then this fix will have a high probability of working."

Mr Kennerly said the firm had identified "at least 10 different scenarios which will trigger the same black screen conditions".

"These appear to have been around for years now," he said.

The firm reports that the problem affects editions of Windows 7, Vista, XP, NT, and Windows 2000.

Microsoft said that people who are affected by the problem should contact its customer service line.

The "black screen of death" moniker is a play on the "blue screen of death", which appears when Microsoft operating systems crash.

Latest CRP News

 

---

---

5 December 2009
PubWatch evidence supports first Drink Banning Order

 

A man who had presistently ignored a ban by a local PubWatch has been given the first Drinking Banning Order in England and Wales. Read more here

 

---

4 December 2009
Balloons get the message across: watch out for sneak thieves

 

Police in Humberside have been pushing helium-filled balloons through open windows and doors as part of a publicity campaign to warn against sneak-in burglars. Read more here

 

---

3 December 2009
Wigan shoplifting team jailed for £300,000 thefts

 

A gang, estimated to have stolen designer clothes worth more than £300,000, has been jailed. The success is down to information-sharing between Business Crime Reduction Partnerships. Read more here

 

---

3 December 2009
New York bans roll-down security gates in bid to reduce graffiti

 

New York City Council has voted to ban security gates that completely shield commercial storefront windows and doors from view. They are too often a canvas for graffiti. Instead the council is encouraging gates which allow passers-by to see inside. Read more here

 

---

2 December 2009
Traffic Light system for problem pubs extended to Welsh vallies

 

A scheme, already estabished in Cardiff, to prevent pubs and clubs from being the centre of crime and disorder, has now been extended into the Merthyr and Rhondda Cynon Taf areas of south Wales. Read more here

 

---

1 December 2009
Decade sees 400% increase in female prisoners over 50 in Scotland

 

Drink-fuelled violence on the streets and a sharp rise in shoplifting are partly responsible for a substantial increase in the number of women imprisoned in Scotland, according to crime experts. Read more here

 

---

30 November 2009
Big Issue sellers to be registered

 

Bournemouth Business Reducing Crime has agreed with The Big Issue office in the town to register all their sellers to ensure that only genuine sellers are permitted. Read more here

 

---

30 November 2009
New 'scaled approach' to young offenders could increase social work load

 

Youth offending teams fear workload will rise Youth offending teams (YOTs) fear that the launch, this week of a 'ground breaking' intervention system will add to their workload. Read more here

 

---

29 November 2009
Partnership warns against goods bought in pubs

 

Customers who buy goods offered to them in their local have been warned that they may face prison if their purchases turn out to be stolen. Read more here

 

---

29 November 2009
Most licensed premises sold booze to 15-year-olds

 

Two 15-year girls were able to buy alcohol in 13 of 15 licensed premises in a 'sting' operation run by North Wales police over a three-day period earlier this month. Read more here

 

---

29 November 2009
Offenders in A&E to be banned from local pubs

 

A new scheme has been announced in Swansea to exclude people who assault hospital staff from the cty's pubs and bars. Read more here

Receiving updates on highways repairs - Haringey wants to know your thoughts

• Posted by Liz on December 8, 2009 at 5:02pm in Harringay
  

From the Haringey Council website
Have you ever phoned or emailed us to let us know of a problem, or used the www.haringey.gov.uk/report_a_problem page on the Haringey Council website? If so, the chaps at the council would like your opinion about a new automatic update they' re developing that works with their report a problem page.

They would like more people to report problems, using the online report a problem page.

They are developing the computer system that supports the highways maintenance work so that it can automatically send progress reports or updates back to the person who filled it in.

This will mean that if you provide an email address when you fill in the report a problem page, you can receive up to 4 emails updating you of progress with your report.

They would like your feedback on how useful you would find these updates. Please complete this online survey by 8 January 2010.

Please note this automatic response is currently only planned in response to reports of problems with the public highway, such as a pothole, trip hazard or blocked drain

The 8th Wood Green International Short Film Festival is now open for submissions

• Posted by FilmExposed on December 4, 2009 at 3:54pm in Harringay - Community Information & News

Closing date for entries is Monday 4th January 2010

The festival will be running from 25-28 March 2010. We’re accepting films from International, UK and Local filmmakers - maximum running time 20 mins.

Submission form can be found at www.woodgreenfilmfestival.co.uk

The main screenings will take place at Cineworld Wood Green with an awards ceremony and closing party at Alexandra Palace – plus more workshops and fringe events to be announced.

The Youth Film Day will be returning for a fourth year, with a full day of events & screenings representing 13-21 year olds - details can be found at www.fastforwardyouth.com

Two more local networks on the scene

• Posted by Hugh on December 6, 2009 at 11:45am in Harringay - Community Information & News
• Send Message   View Discussions

I came across two new local networks

CHATI2009

CHATI stands for the Crouch end and Hornsey Area Transition Initiative. We are a grass roots movement which aims to raise awareness about climate change and peak oil, the idea that we are fast approaching the end of cheap and plentiful oil. Our response to these challenges is to build a stronger local economy and community. We are developing projects, linking up with other groups and tapping into borough and national initiatives, such as 10:10 and Ecoteams. Our vision is a low energy, resilient and self-sustaining society, one which draws on the collective genius that already exists within the community.

Have a look here for more about the group. I couldn't find it on their social network.

Stroud Green Reservoir project

The group's aim is to create a space where the local community can get together to develop a sustainable community garden. The focus will be on growing herbs, vegetables and fruit, particularly a vineyard along the slopes of the reservoir. A few people are also interested in bee keeping.

The project would link with local schools to provide recreational and educational activities, supplying them with produce for their school meals, to encourage healthy eating.

NEW SPEED CAMERAS TO BLITZ 20MPH ZONES

Drivers face plans for new high-tech cameras to police 20mph zones in suburban streets

Monday December 7,2009

By Padraic Flanagan

THE war on drivers is moving up a gear with plans for new high-tech cameras to police 20mph zones in suburban streets.

Networks of average speed cameras, which link wirelessly and operate in clusters, will track cars for up to 15 miles on main roads and can catch vehicles whichever route they take.

The technology, approved for use by the Home Office, has angered privacy campaigners and motorist organisations.

But yesterday it was welcomed by road safety groups. Councils which oversee the country’s 2,000 20mph zones believe the cameras will be an effective way of restoring calm to residential areas without using road humps and chicanes.

But critics say the plans are inflexible and more traffic police in urban areas are the answer.

They see cameras as a revenue-raising threat to civil liberties.

Dylan Sharpe, of Big Brother Watch, said: “The introduction of average speed cameras into residential areas is yet another intrusion into the lives of the assailed British motorist, making it ever more possible for the state to track and log our journeys.”

The cameras will be installed in Camden, Southwark and Waltham Forest in London.

Portsmouth and Norwich may also soon choose to use the new technology.

Department of Transport research shows that a 20mph limit makes areas safer for cyclists and pedestrians. One in 40 pedestrians hit by a car at 20mph dies, compared with one in five at 30mph.

Hornsey Depot proposals 'put on hold'

• Posted by Liz on December 8, 2009 at 4:41pm in Haringey - News & Views about the Borough

From the Haringey Indy

PROPOSALS to build a major rail depot in Hornsey have been put on hold after the Government refused to give them the green light.

The site, off Hampden Road, was earmarked not only because it was large enough to accommodate the structure, rumoured to be 250 metres long and 13 metres high, but because the land is already owned by Network Rail.

It means the company has permitted development rights and has the option to by-pass normal Haringey Council planning procedures, if necessary.

But local Government secretary John Denham MP has blocked the plans following fierce opposition from Haringey councillors.