Green Group Budget Proposals to Kirklees Council – 14th February 2018

Kirklees Green Cllrs Julie Stewart-Turner, Karen Allison & Andrew Cooper

The Green Party are submitting a Budget amendment to Kirklees Council that will result in a 5% Council tax rise which is 1% lower than that being proposed by the Labour Administration.


The aim of our budget
amendment is to address just some of the social, environmental & financial issues that affect the Council. What this amendment cannot do is solve all the problems faced by the Council and the people who live within its boundaries. It takes the Council forward & provides it with some of the vision & direction that it needs.

Restoring Play Areas removed for Health and Safety reasons

Play areas have recently been removed from Manor Estate in the Newsome Ward and Rufford Road in the Golcar Ward.These were removed for Health and Safety reasons but no provision was made by the Labour Administration for their replacement. This amendment addresses that deficiency.

Huddersfield Town Centre is not a family friendly area and our proposal to provide a play area on Macauley Street outside the Bus Station would go some way towards addressing this.

Mount Pleasant Primary School - Roof to Multi Use Games Area

Mount Pleasant Primary School in the Crosland Moor Ward has just had a new school building built to Government specifications. As a result it has lost the large covered Sports Hall that enabled children and local people outside school hours to play sport in all weathers. Installing a roof on the soon to be installed Multi Use Games Area would restore the flexibility the school had previously with all the benefits for health, school effectiveness and wider community engagement.

Traffic Calming measures

The provision of resources for traffic calming are insufficient. This amendment will not resolve that but will provide more flexibility to address the many calls on the Highways Service for traffic calming across Kirklees.

Provision of Electric Vehicle fleet

The first Kirklees Council Electric Vehicle was provided over 10 years ago as a result of a Green Party Budget amendment. Electric vehicles since then have come on leaps and bounds and have low servicing costs, lower costs per mile and the range of electric vehicles is well within the Councils operational requirements. The benefit to the Council is not just lower running costs but also demonstrates that we are playing our part in reducing vehicle emissions at a time when we have growing concerns about air quality in Kirklees. As the carbon intensity of UK electricity begins to fall electric vehicles will play an important role in storing renewable energy generated overnight. This will help us play our part in reducing carbon emissions in line with the COP21 Paris Climate Goals.

Public Rapid Charging of Electric Vehicles

With a growing number of people buying and using electric vehicles the Council needs to play its part in providing the infrastructure we need to allow this cleaner more efficient form of transport to grow.  Match funding is being provided for charging points so this proposal can be used as leverage.

Addressing the growing number of rough sleepers in Kirklees

There are a growing number of rough sleepers in Kirklees as the result of benefit changes, mental health issues and the lack of sufficient social rented housing. This proposal seeks to provide more support and assistance to rough sleepers to help them get back control of their lives.

Support for Community Engagement Facilities

There are a range of buildings across Kirklees from which the Council engages with the Community these include Community Hubs/Former Childrens Centres and Libraries. This proposal seeks to provide greater flexibility for the Council to work with Schools and Parish Councils to help preserve vital community facilities.