5 October 2016
The Green Party’s newly elected co-leader Jonathan Bartley is set to visit Norwich on Wednesday 5th October to support local campaigners in their efforts to highlight issues surrounding accessibility in Norwich.
Mr Bartley plans to meet with disability group members at 3pm on Wednesday before joining them on an ‘access walk’ in the city centre.
The aim of the walk is to highlight access issues which those with mobility issues or visual impairments can face when walking around Norwich. The route will start at the Erpingham Gate entrance to the Cathedral (opposite the Maid’s Head Hotel), before crossing Whitefriars and then coming back along Tombland and London Street towards Gentleman’s Walk.
Bartley, who job shares the Green Party leadership in part so he can care for his disabled 14-year-old son Samuel, has long been a staunch advocate for disability rights and said he was “delighted” to be coming to Norwich to support the local party in continuing to raise awareness about this important issue.
In July, local Green Party councillor Lesley Grahame helped organise a similar ‘access walk’ with members of local disability groups on behalf of Norwich City Council’s Scrutiny Committee in an attempt to highlight problems with accessibility in the city centre.
Councillor Grahame said:
“I’m really pleased that Jonathan Bartley will be joining us to hear from the experts – those who are affected by ill-considered schemes and thoughtless barriers that make the city a no-go area for visually-impaired and less mobile citizens. Then we need to act on what they tell us, not by fighting over every crossing, but by planning accessibility into every scheme in future and repairing the damage of not doing so in the past.”
Councillor Martin Schmierer, leader of Norwich City Council’s Green Group, added:
“The council could and should do so much more to help those affected by visual impairment or reduced mobility. Green Party councillors on both Norwich City and Norfolk County Councils will continue to do all they can to remedy issues, such as uneven surfaces and the loss of signalled crossings, which representatives from disability groups have expressed concerns about.”
After meeting disability groups, Jonathan Bartley will be appearing at the UEA at 6:30pm to discuss the notion of a ‘progressive alliance’ between the likes of the Greens, Labour, the SNP, Plaid Cymru and the Lib Dems. The Green Party leadership has floated the idea of an alliance – which could take various forms – as a way to take on the Conservatives and implement a fairer voting system.
