Jubilee Park - action to be taken

 A Multi-Agency meeting was held this morning at the Fire Station in order to deliver immediate action to support the Greater Manchester Police (GMP) at Jubilee Park.

The following actions were agreed:

·         Brick walls to be  repaired by WLCT (1/11/13)

·         All gates will be locked during winter and only one opened at dawn (from 1/11/13)

·         Play area to be locked at dusk (from 1/11/13)

·         Hedges to be cut back to a lower level (1/11/13)

·         Operation Stay Safe stay to knock on and mediate with residents (1/11/13)

·         Operation Stay Safe to deliver letters to residents explaining the locking of the park gates and play areas at dusk (only one gate will be left open)

·        Greater Manchester Police (GMP) will  apply for Section 30 Dispersal order for the park and surrounding areas.

·         Restorative Justice and Voices of Engagement in the park (1/11/13) to engage and attempt to gain intelligence from young people.

·         GMP will increase presence in the park and areas over the weekend.

·         Restorative Justice will visit local schools next week based on intelligence from engagement

·         Rapid deployment CCTV to be installed (1/11/13) on Wigan Road to cover main entrance.

·         Media statement placed on LA website informing residents park about the above actions being locking etc.

·         Letter already sent to local residents regarding safe storage of wheelie bins

Anti Social Behaviour around Jubilee Park

Following the appalling incidents in Ashton last Sunday the police are taking the following action:

 1. Four arrests have been made for the incident on Sunday night


2. Other individuals already identified by the police are to be visited by them this week. The police will consider other possible sanctions against those involved and their families e.g. in the case of council tenants imposing sanctions on them or more likely the parents.

3. The police are allocating staff to work in and around the Jubilee Park early in the evening to prevent such numbers escalating and taking a hold during the hours of darkness.

4. The police will be maintaining a presence each night to Monday 4th November and review the situation through the Bonfire night week.

5. The police have arranged for additional resources such as their Special Constables to work with them in the next two weeks in light of the difficulties in covering the park.

6. Police Community Support Officers are working with the local schools to provide inputs on the implications of being present in the park.

7. The police will be going house to house in the locality speaking to residents

8. The police have met Youth Services and are linking in with them to ensure a co-ordinated approach.

9. Media messages are being put out on twitter/face book

10. The police are considering the introduction of Section 30 Dispersal Orders.

This has been a very bad few months in Ashton for anti social behaviour. As a local Councillor I have been asking for extra policing and joint working with agencies in Wigan Council, a strategy which was successful earlier in the summer when residents of Ashton Heath were subjected to similar unacceptable incidents of anti social behaviour.

I hope that whoever threw fireworks at the crew who went to deal with the fire in question are prosecuted.I also agree with Borough Commander Sheridan when he says that parents have a responsuibility to know what their children are doing in the evening.

I am asking for a meeting with the local MP, representatives of Wigan council and  the police to find some long term solution to this problem.  

Road works latest Ashton town centre

There will be road works at the junction of  Wigan Road , Bolton Road, Gerard Street and Princess Road

National Grid Gas will commence urgent works to repair a gas leak on Sunday 29 September 2013 on this junction. Temporary traffic signals will be in place until the work is complete and delays are expected.

Furthermore, traffic will be prohibited from turning right out of Bolton Road into Wigan Road and will need to divert via Gerard Street and Bryn Street.

Improving unadopted roads in Ashton

As a part of the local Labour Councillors' ongoing campaign to improve unadopted  roads and back alleys in Ashton we were happy to fund the upgrading of the back alley behind houses at the top of  Bolton Road. Unfortunately we do not have enough to fund all the improvements needed in Ashton at once but we are committed to find funding on an annual basis and will be looking to improve an area from next April in the new financial year. 

The alley as the work is being done

Campaigning to Save our Royal Mail

I was happy to join with the mayor and other Councillors in welcoming  CWU delegates to Wigan who are conducting a nationwide campaign  against the privatisation of the Royal Mail.

Billy Rotherham mayor of Wigan signs the CWU petition  against privatising the Royal Mail

 If you wish to get involved please go to  http://www.cwu.org/save-our-royal-mail.html

Changes to Ring and Ride Bookings

With effect from 5th August 2013 booking and scheduling staff will be transferred from the Wigan depot to the main call centre in Manchester. This means that from the 5th August passengers will be able to:

• Phone Wigan Ring and ride booking service between 8.00 am and 4.00 pm daily on 0845 688 3989
• Book journeys up to 7 days in advance and up to one hour before
• Book both Ring and Ride and Cross Boundary services using one telephone number
• Make requests for several different journeys with one call
•  Make general enquiries between 8.00 am and 10.30 pm daily on 0845 688 4933 

Visit to Hanover Diagnostic and Treatment Centre Leigh Hospital

In my role as Chair of Adult Health Social Care  Scrutiny Committee I think it is important that the committee get out of the town hall and see what is happening on the ground. We recently visited the  newly Hanover Diagnostic and Treatment Centre at Leigh Hospital. This state of the art building has the following services on three floors:

Ground floor - the  Women's Healthcare unit
First floor -  Urology unit
Second floor - the Endoscopy Unit.

Members of the committee were very impressed with the building and how welcoming it was both in decoration  and the attitude of the members of staff. They were also impressed with the fact that a patient could be diagnosed and treated in the same place without having to go to different buildings within the Trust.  

Our next leaflet

Our new leaflet is ready for  next week. One of the good things about the Labour party is that members from other areas in the north west are always willing to help. So we will be welcoming members from Salford to Ashton in the coming weeks to help deliver our latest leaflet.

Ricky Tomlinson and the Shrewsbury 24 petition

In 1972, building workers held their first ever national strike for decent pay and health & safety at work. Five months after the strike ended, 24 trade union members were charged with offences allegedly arising from picketing in Shrewsbury in September 1972. They included individuals who were convicted of conspiracy and sentenced to imprisonment. Government files relating to the strike have been withheld from the National Archives even though more than 30 years have passed.

The petition calls upon the Government to release all Cabinet minutes, documents, discussion papers, civil service notes, reports and telephone records produced from 1972 to 1976 by Government departments, agencies and prosecuting authorities relating to the strike, the building workers' unions, the arrested pickets, the prosecutions at Mold and Shrewsbury and the subsequent appeals, as well as any other material pertaining to the case that fall outside the above time period.

You can add your name to the petition here http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/35394

Allotments

Over several years I have been campaigning for better allotments for the residents of Ashton and have been helping the residents of Stubshaw Cross to get their own allotments. It has been a lengthy process to create more plots but working with Wigan Council things are beginning to improve


In Stubshaw Cross there are 24 'traditional' plots and 2 community plots. The community plots are available to the general public, community groups etc and include raised beds.

There will be a compostable toilet installed on the site in the coming weeks. This work has been progressed in partnership with The Conservation Volunteers.

There is a large plot due to be subdivided soon into several, smaller plots. Another plot will also be subdivided into smaller plots.

There are 90 people listed on the waiting list at Stubshaw Cross, around 6-7 of these people are using the community plots.

The timescales to fully reinstate all of the plots into functioning allotments is unclear and is driven by monetary resources It may be a case of reinstating plots, one at a time. This year the Council intends to clear and enclose a derelict plot containing building materials and also enclose another plot. This should turn 2 plots into at least 4 plots.

Ray Doyle

Ray Doyle with his photos remembering the Top House

I was invited to an event in Garswood House to mark Alzheimers week. Some residents had contributed to a Memory Wall where they had pictures and words which brought to life jobs and family from their younger days.

One man who I found very interesting was  Ray Doyle who was at one time publican of the Top House - a pub now demolished on Liverpool Road near the Catholic Club. I spent some time with him as he told me what it was like in those days to manage a pub. He was very proud to tell me that in those days he was also a butcher and that he paid two stamps.

Please let me know if you have any memories of Ray and the Top House please contact me on this blog.    

Street Surgery Ashton Heath

Following complaints by residents on Ashton Heath about anti social behaviour on the Heath myself and Cllr Bill Clark did a street surgery on Saturday to listen to what the residents had to say. The day before our surgery we leafleted every householder advising them to phone 101 if they witnessed any anti-social behaviour. 

During  our visit we found that residents had used the 101 number which had massively raised the profile of the area with the police and there been more police presence the night before. As a result of talking with residents we have done the following:

1. Arranged a meeting with the police today

2. Contacted Wigan Council to liaise with the police to combat this problem in the future

3. Asked the local PCSOs to visit local schools to talk to certain students suspected of being involved with the incidents

4. Asked the Council to make good the damage to trees caused by some of the  youths.

Local residents told us that they were not concerned with young people being on the Heath. It was the aggressive behaviour of some of them and the damage to the Heath which they care for so much that concerned them and that required police presence.    

Street surgery in Stubshaw Cross

As part of the Ashton Labour Councillors' ongoing street surgeries we have been on the Stubshaw Cross/Riding Lane estate over the past two weeks to listen to what the residents had to say. 



Nigel Ash with two Stubshaw Cross residents Emily Knox and  Dorothy Hesketh

 Generally most people were happy with life on the estate but there were a few problems which the Labour team will be dealing with. We also took part in an estate inspection which revealed a few more issues which we will be dealing with in conjunction with Wigan and Leigh Housing and Wigan Council's engineering department.

These street surgeries will be on going  and we aim to cover all of Ashton during the next year.    

ALZHEIMER’S SOCIETY DEMENTIA CAFÉ’S IN THE WIGAN BOROUGH

The Ashton-in-Makerfield Café is held at the Diamond Club, Grey Road (Off Old Road), Ashton-in-Makerfield, WN4 9QW on the first Tuesday of the month from 10.30am to 12.30pm.

The dates of the meeting are 4 June, 2nd July, 6th August, 3rd September, 1st October, 5th November

Community Activities

FUN, FAMILY CHALLENGE

A new Family Fun Explorer programme will take place at venues throughout the borough on Saturdays in May & June. It’s an ideal way of introducing basic map reading skills to children whilst having fun as a family.


Saturday 1st June – Mesnes Park (meet at Café)

Saturday 8th June – Pennington Hall Park meet at Park Lodge)

Saturday 15th June – Alexandra Park (meet at Play area)

Saturday 22nd June – Three Sisters (meet at Rangers Office)

Saturday 29th June – Pennington Flash (meet at Picnic Area)

All events run form 11 am till 1 p.m. at a cost of £1

Further details from Kim McBride on 01942 488483 or k.mcbride@wlct.org

the Youth Zone - the Big Opening Saturday June 8th

Wigan Youth Zone cordially invites you attend its official launch party….The Big Bang Opening!!!!

Starting from 1pm in Mesnes Park on Saturday 8th June, the event really will be a day to remember, and will include loads of fun for all the family.  On the day, we’ll have a packed itinerary, so please find a brief running order below so you can decide which parts of the event you’d like to attend:

1pm – Mesnes Park activities including bouncy castle, face-painting, inflatable assault course, paintballing and if by then you haven’t already, a chance to sign up as a member!

3pm – A short parade through the streets of Wigan, led by our capital sponsors, Martin Ainscough, Bill Ainscough & Dave Whelan, with the FA Cup trophy leading the way!

4pm – Official ribbon cutting at the Youth Zone

4pm – 7pm – Loads of regular activities that you’d expect to see every night at WYZ including climbing, dance, football, arts, music, pool tournaments, hot food and much, much more.

7.30pm – A showcase of local talent in our Sports Hall, culminating with our Battle of the Bands!

Everybody is welcome

Major Roadworks Bryn Road Ashton

As part of the ongoing North West Electrification project by Network Rail the railway bridge on Bryn Road will be reconstructed.

This means that the road will need a complete closure whilst the operation is undertaken on Monday 3^rd June 2013 until Monday 9^th September 2013 (14 weeks). Access will be available for pedestrians at all times because a temporary bridge footbridge will be in operation.

Also, works from utility companies will be undertaken prior to the closure removing their infrastructure from the bridge then returning same after the closure.

The diversion route for access on the east side of the bridge will be Wigan Road, Bolton Road, Bryn Road South and the route will be signed.

Network Rail also has a 24 hour national helpline if the public want more information on 08457 11 41 41. 

Beat it Team results

The following areas were cleaned up last week

1. Passage way from School Lane to Diane Road and Riding Lane from Avon Road

2. Golborne Road park - fenced areas marked Willow Grove and St Wlilfrids

3. Warrington Road in Ashton outside Byrchall and Edmund Arrowsmith schools.

4. Hilton Street, Bolton road

Thank you to those residents who contacted me to ask for areas to be cleaned up. Your information is very much appreciated.

Cubjam

One of the things I do as a Councillor that gives me a lot of satisfaction is to fund voluntary groups who support young people to take part in activities, sporting or otherwise. That is why I was particularly  happy to make a contribution towards the local Cub group who are going on Cubjam.  34 Cub Scouts from the Wigan area are about to embark on a once in a Cub-lifetime opportunity - a pirate themed week long jamboree held at Gilwell Park, London.

The aim of Cubjam is to offer Cub Scouts from across the UK the opportunity to join together for a week of ‘jamboree’ style fun reminding the Cubs that they have much in common with each other - no matter their background or where they are from. The wide range of activities offered during Cubjam will help the Cub Scouts learn new skills, try new experiences and make new friends. Scouting is open to all, breaking down the barriers of race, religion or ethnicity. The location of the jamboree is a great way for parents to give children a bit of freedom to gain their independence in a safe environment in the National Centre for Scouting.the local  

Looks like a lot of fun  and I hope they all enjoy their time in London.      

On the doorstep

On our latest Councillors' doorstep surgery in Stubshaw Cross, of the forty or so people we talked to only one thought that Europe was an issue - and that came behind changes to welfare benefits.