A couple of months ago I was passing the Children's Society project in Deptford and dropped in to find out what they had been doing.  The project provides advocacy for children and young people in Lewisham's care and I've worked with them on a variety of corporate parenting things.fficeffice" />

As it turned out my visit was timely.  Care leavers (young people between 16 and 21) were up in arms and had organised a petition of their peers.  The issue exercising them was the lack of Personal Advisors, a requirement under the Leaving Care Act, and the council's decision not to priorities their introduction despite it being a statutory duty.

I organised for the petition to be presented at full council and for some of the young people to meet with the Mayor and cabinet members with responsibility for this area, along with the senior officers. 

At the meeting the young people impressed on us the importance they placed on independent advice and we promised to look at the situation and meet with them again in six weeks. 

We have now done that and they are working with us on introducing the Personal Advisors; they are meeting on a weekly basis to develop a person specification and will then be involved in the recruitment as well.

The Council is meeting this evening to do pieces of business that, even with the executive mayoral model that we have in the borough, we are required to make formal decisions on.  It is also an opportunity for members of the public to come and ask questions of the Mayor and Cabinet, and for backbench councillors to do the same.

This evening I have 4 questions in areas that I have responsibility for; three on aspects of recycling and one on health and safety.  Not only do we provide a written answer to the questions but there is then the opportunity for follow up questions.  I quite enjoy the challenge of trying to guess what my questioners are going to come back with, but it is also slightly nerve wracking in case you guess wrong and look stupid.

This evening we are also debating the Mayor's priorities for action  for the next two years.

Didn't quite guess that I was going to be asked to compare the recycling of car batteries here and ffice:smarttags" />Belgium, but there you go!  (And that was from one of my Labour colleagues - no soft questions here!)fficeffice" />

There was a very good debate about the diabolical decisions the Strategic Rail Authority are in the process of making about rail services in the borough.  Good contributions from almost everyone and rare political consensus about the things we would like to happen - but some very painful puns from our favourite Lib Dem blogger.  The question remains as to whether the SRA are in listening mode.

I have been out and about with our Environmental Enforcement Officers, the people who fine people for littering, take forward prosecutions against fly tippers, taggers and fine the supermarkets for failing to control their trolleys.fficeffice" />

Over the last year these are the figures which have come through their actions:

Prosecutions                             106

Cautions                                   297

Fixed Penalty Notices                446

Each FPN is a fine of £50 and prosecutions where the council wins the case can cost the defendant in the region of £1,000.

I’m proud of their work, reminding us all that it isn’t acceptable to litter, fly tip, and graffiti.

I've added recess monkey to my blog role.  Having spent 8 years working for an MP in the palace I only wish that blogging had been around then.  Oh the stories; Derek Draper annoying everyone he ever met, who really defaced the portrait of Margaret Thatcher in 1 Parliament Street.  But those days are long gone, and no one remembers...

South London Press have noticed I'm doing this blog and wished me a speedy recovery from my quinsey, which was nice.  They have also noticed that Fiona Colley, the Labour councillor for Nunhead in neighbouring Southwark, is also blogging (and so now have I).

The SLP do mention that Fiona's blog is mostly about the stuff of local politics, but does take the mickey out of a picture she has posted of her husband.  Not that hurtful, but it does confirm me in my decision not to talk about my family here.