"I get sick of hearing the same old story, NO FUNDING. If we can afford to send our council to America to hand pick social workers to come and work in our country, we should be able to afford to care for the people we have here who are in desperate need".
It is clear that the majority are simply out of their depth. Good people (mostly) but have it neither in their DNA nor the will-power to raise the game to face the challenges that the horrendous cuts will produce. They just about cut it in the good times but last night proved that as a group (with some noted individuals exempt) they were embarassingly and disgracefully out of their depth.
YourThurrock welcomes Charlie Key to our growing band of bloggers. We first met Charlie when he was standing as a candidate for the local elections as well as being one of the campaigners whose hard work ensured that Jackie Doyle-Price was elected MP. Charlie has just graduated with a 2:1 in Politics from the University of Greenwich.
I have enjoyed almost a year on my allotment, which was very overgrown when I took it on. For someone who doesn’t like creepy crawlies, I haven’t done bad. I’ve sat in my shed and watched a mouse outside running back and forth. Funny, but outside they don’t seem so frightening; indoors I’d have been terrified. I’ve kept my head whilst digging up potatoes and unearthing red ant nests full of eggs and hundreds of ants. I haven’t jumped when finding a creepy crawly on my arm, but flicked it off calmly and carried on. Though I still run when confronted by a wasp.
Mum sheds a tear as the children head off back to school. "This morning like many parents I took the traditional first day back at school photos of my children that are then circulated to all the family. It is scary how quickly your children grow up and as I looked at my photos I felt a lump in my throat".
Over the last few weeks I have had the pleasure to be part of a group of businessmen and women to attend Ormiston Park and Grays Convent to conduct mock job interviews to help prepare them for the big wide world of employment
He tells us that his case has been dealt with and he is now allowed, once more to walk amongst the people of Grays. However, John tells us that he is a reformed character: He supports the booze ban in Grays and looks to the reform of the criminal justice system.
The line-up was incredible with iconic acts such as Madness getting the over-whelming audience skanking, Florence and the Machine bringing people to tears and Faithless creating a sea of hands raised and pumping the air. Kasabian closed the festival on Sunday and went out with a major bang, with their lead singer declaring ‘This is why you came!’ to their audience.
Then we had a go at some side stalls but lady luck had already shone on us for one day, so we settled for using some pocket money to buy a cuddly Hong Kong Phooey (do you remember him?) which was very good as you do not find characters like him in the shops anymore.
If you would like to come on board then please drop us a line. You can write about anything and everything. We would want an article once per month but the more the merrier. We only check for spelling, punctuation and grammar. Oh and libel as well.
In a few weeks time I will be starting University, where my three years tuition will begin, as well as my £6,000 debt. I don’t know whether or not I will end up benefiting from my time there, but only time will tell. If you live your life worrying about the future, you will only find yourself always standing still.
Let's look at why alcoholics are drinking, why people find solace in hurting themselves and why drug addicts and dysfunctional individuals want to leave reality: what happened to them to make this happen? Once we heal that part of their life, the rest falls into place, and with the help and support of like-minded people, they can find their way out of the box they have been put into, and there will be hope for their future.
If the long game is the way the Coalition Government wants to play it then acting on this report is of paramount importance because in the long run it will save the country money at a time when we desperately need to be saving it.
I have taken this opportunity to decide upon a direction for this column. I will still have the odd purely personal column but I have decided that I will look at issues in adult health and social care, giving my personal opinions and raising concerns where they jump out and try to throttle the life out of me.
