HONLEY, OLDFIELD AND BROCKHOLES TO BECOME "NO GO ZONES" FOR DOORSTEP TRADERS (Kirklees Liberal Democrats)

Kirklees Liberal Democrats <info@kirkleeslibdems.org.uk>

HONLEY, OLDFIELD AND BROCKHOLES TO BECOME "NO GO ZONES" FOR DOORSTEP TRADERS

September 1, 2008 2:58 PM

Cllr David Woodhead, Chair of the Area Committee and Liberal Democrat member

Holme Valley North Area Committee has allocated £6,000 to make Honley, Oldfield and Brockholes areas of the ward no go zones for doorstep traders.

At its meeting on Tuesday 2 September 2008, members of the area committee approved spending which will see the "No Cold Calling Zone" initiative - created by Kirklees Community Safety Partnership and West Yorkshire Trading Standards - being rolled out later this year.

The scheme has already been in operation in Meltham for nearly 2 years.

And according to an official report presented to the committee on Tuesday, not a single report of a bogus caller committing an offence has been reported in that time.

Cllr David Woodhead, Chair of the Area Committee and Liberal Democrat member for the Ward says:

"The creation of "No Cold Calling Zones" in Honley, Oldfield and Brockholes areas of the ward will be extremely beneficial to residents.

"The investment will see the formal creation of the zone with widespread advertising, publicity and signage so that all residents are made aware. The larger companies who tend to operate in this way will also be informed."

"Once the zone is up and running, it makes residents more alert to trusting people who appear on the door step offering services. It also gives them the ammunition to turn them away by saying "regardless of what you want, you are not allowed to do this in my area, I am going to report you to trading standards".

"We have all heard terrible stories of people who are overcharged for tiny pieces of ground work or guttering repairs on their homes. Even cases where people are frogmarched to the bank to withdraw money. This scheme should help to eliminate the threat of this happening to people in our area which is a very good thing for everyone."