09/02/05

On the face of it, the draft strategy sets out proposals which would appear to improve our quality of life. However, as far as County Durham is concerned, the devil is in the detail because the draft strategy would bring about a planned decline in the county's population.

The strategy talks about improving housing but the projected housing figures for all districts within the county would not meet current demand, let alone the demand we aspire to in future years.

This has serious implications. It will restrict our ability to deliver the strategic vision for County Durham and will frustrate local plans for how our communities should develop. It will limit the number of new houses that can be built and make housing less affordable for young people, many of whom already struggle to find homes in our rural areas.

The strategy as drafted hopes to achieve regional growth by focussing development in the big towns and cities of our region at the expense of County Durham.

This logic is fundamentally flawed because limiting growth in the county will make the region less attractive to those people who would like to live and work in our distinctive communities.

If we want to redress the North South divide, our region needs to fire on all cylinders. As currently drafted, the regional spatial strategy would deprive County Durham of the oxygen it needs to do so. - Ken Manton, Leader of Durham County Council; Linda Ebbatson, Leader of Chester-le-Street District Council; Fraser Reynolds, Leader of City of Durham Council; Alex Watson, Leader of Derwentside District Council; Alan Napier, Leader of District of Easington Council; Bob Fleming, Leader of Sedgefield Borough Council; GK Robinson, Lead Member, Teesdale District Council; Olive Brown, Leader of Wear Valley District Council.

ROMANIAN CHARITY

YOUR article into the resignation of Rod Jones, the founder of Convoy Aid Romania, stated that "concerns were raised by the Charity Commission about his past" (Echo, Feb 3). The point of our inquiries into the organisation is, and always has been, to find out if it should be registered as a charity. A member of the public came to us with concerns that Convoy Aid Romania's website said it was a registered charity, so we got in touch with the organisation to see if it needed to be registered with us. We have asked for additional information to help us make a decision and it would be helpful to receive it in order to bring this to a conclusion.

Under charity law, people with unspent convictions for dishonesty or deceptions can't be charity trustees. When we learned - from the media - that Mr Jones had previous convictions we asked him to clarify whether they were for these offences. This is a standard question for all charity trustees and many people with spent convictions for these offences can be charity trustees and do an excellent job.

Our aim is to help, not to hinder, but we need to ensure that people giving money to 'charities' can be confident that the organisation concerned is accountable for their donations in an open and transparent way. That is, after all, one of the reasons people give so generously to charity. - Sush Amar, Charity Commission, London.

EDUCATION

I WELCOME the remarks by David Bell, the Chief Inspector of Schools, about the important role which schools must play in promoting tolerance and social cohesion (Echo, Feb 3), but it is hard to see why he has criticised Muslim schools in particular, given that Ofsted's own findings indicate that evangelical Christian schools are less likely to fulfil this obligation. Inspectors have found that heads of Muslim schools are keen to promote tolerance and harmony as Islamic virtues, and to teach respect for other cultures.

David Vardy assures us that schools sponsored by the Emmanuel Schools Foundation have similar aims (HAS Feb 2). He distinguishes between these city academies, which are non-selective comprehensives, and independent 'faith schools'. It is an important distinction, but irrelevant in this context.

It is cause for concern that 22 of the 55 city academies so far approved are in the hands of Christian organisations (none are sponsored by Muslims or other religious groups) and these organisations have a considerable influence on what is taught, and how it is taught.

All schools have an obligation to promote tolerance and understanding between different cultural traditions, and any school has the potential to fail in this respect. - Pete Winstanley, Durham.

Weardale RAILWAY

I HAD an unforgettable day out last summer on the Weardale Railway, having travelled all the way from Ayrshire. I could see how much benefit it was bringing to the area and its towns, especially Wolsingham. I hope that it will be saved and will able to play its part in the continuing regeneration of Weardale. - Roger Griffith, Ayrshire.

POLICING

I WAS interested to read about the scheme to provide a TV link between pubs and the police (Echo, Feb 5). I hope the next part of the package will be extra police officers to respond to incidents. The country will get 10,000 extra police officers if enough people vote Liberal Democrat in the General Election. - Robert Adamson, LibDem Prospective Candidate for Darlington.

DURHAM JOHNSTON

CAROL Woods, the LibDem Prospective Candidate for Durham City, states that the LibDems are leading the campaign for a new school at Durham Johnston (HAS, Feb 5).

This is news to me.

Parents, staff and governors of Durham Johnston School have held many meetings about the state of repair of the school and the need for investment and I believe there will be a successful conclusion in the not too distant future.

How many meetings has Ms Wood attended? As a parent, who has attended meetings, I know the answer. I find this newcomer's political opportunism breathtaking. - Lesley Catterson, Brandon, Durham.

DARLINGTON STATION

I DO not share the "disappointment" of PF O'Brien with Darlington station's car-parking (HAS, Feb 7).

Due to the growth in car and rail use, the station's Victorian facilities could never be adequate.

Darlington council has, however, provided a high quality, secure car park a stone's throw from the rear of the station at only £2.50 per full day, plus some on-street short-term parking which is free. The station itself has additional free, 20-minute parking for dropping off and collecting passengers.

For the extra convenience of parking at the station itself £5 does not seem excessive, judging by the competition to occupy every available space by keen car drivers.

Darlington does cater for a large number of all-day travellers going to London, etc. The council will need to expand its own capacity adjacent to the station and should be planning now how to do so. - Stuart Hill, Darlington.