The statutory consultation on the Council’s proposals to close St George’s RC High School comes to a close this Friday, 30th November. There is still time to contribute to the consultation by visiting the Council website and completing a consultation form.
Archive for November, 2007
I am heading back to my old University stomping ground of York for the coming weekend to attend the University of York Conservative Association’s annual dinner – I am loathe to call an event on the 24th November “Christmas Dinner” even if it is technically the last Saturday in November.
It is always a great event and a chance to meet up with old friends and new members alike, but it does mean of course that as far as this website goes blogging will be light. Have a good weekend!
The next meeting of the Walkden & Little Hulton Community Committee will be held this Monday - 26th November - at Mesne Lea Primary School here in Walkden. The meeting starts at 6pm and usually lasts around two hours. All local residents are welcome to attend and have their say.
You can find the agenda for Monday’s meeting here. Local residents in Walkden might take a particular interest in item 7 (the crime and disorder update from the Neighbourhood Inspector, Andy Sutcliffe) and item 12, an update and discussion on the Building Schools for the Future process.
Hope to see you there!
I’d like to do a bit of video-blogging, but my technical knowledge doesn’t extend to digital video cameras. If anyone can advise me on purchasing an inexpensive but suitable video camera for this purpose I would be very grateful! What do you think?
Some good news at last for local residents living near Parr Fold Park – the Environment Directorate has finally agreed to erect new fencing around the park’s play area, which will now be locked at night. Both myself and Cllr Turner (pictured left – the more astute of you will already have noticed that the picture isn’t me) have been lobbying for this development for some considerable time.
This is excellent news for local residents on Rutland Road and Broadway who have suffered from the anti-social behaviour of a small minority of young people, and for the parents and children who make use of the play area, as it should stop the littering and occasional vandalism which sometimes blights the use of the park by families.
Further to this I am glad to hear that the disused air-raid shelter – another hot-spot for anti-social behaviour on Parr Fold Park – is set to be demolished, and also that a new fence is proposed for the “barn” on Bedford Avenue. All these developments are both very welcome and long overdue.
I passed briefly through Manchester city centre yesterday evening, and caught my first glimpse of the new Town Hall Santa. To be honest, it’s a bit disappointing.
It’s not the new design or the lights. The whole “wow-factor” of the Town Hall Santa was that he was climbing on the town hall roof. The new Santa is sat on a silly plinth. He could be anywhere – St Peter’s Square, Bury Market, Piccadilly Gardens, the centre circle at Old Trafford.
I think that rather defeats the object.
My Labour ward colleague, Cllr Stan Witkowski, has resigned today due to ill-health.
Stan and I were never likely to agree politically, but on a personal level I always found him friendly. I wish him a speedy recovery and all the best for the future for both himself and his family.
For the political hacks amongst this blog’s readers, there will be no by-election as the seat occupied by Cllr Witkowski is due for election in May next year.
There’s a piece – sadly not online - in this week’s Advertiser about the consultation meeting held last Wednesday for parents at St George’s High School.
Along with two of my colleagues – Councillors Turner and Gray – I went along to that meeting to listen to what the parents had to say. It was fairly evident that the Children’s Services Directorate did not want us to be there, but we were eventually admitted into the meeting, which is one step further than Channel M managed. None of the Conservative Councillors there turned up to cause a fuss or grandstand – we were simply there to listen to the views of parents. None of us spoke at the meeting nor indicated that we wished to speak.
I sincerely hope that the Labour Cabinet of Salford City Council will take the views of these parents – and others within the local community – into account, and alter their decision to close the school, although I remain immensely sceptical about that.
As long as the views of parents are taken down properly and considered as part of the decision-making process, then last Wednesday’s meeting will have been worthwhile.
Unfortunately it was still an immensely frustrating meeting. The decision to close St George’s has been made by the politicians – by Salford’s Labour Councillors – and council officers cannot answer questions about the political justification for any decisions, nor should they be expected to do so.
Sadly, neither Councillor Warmisham nor Councillor Merry has had the guts to show up to any of the consultation events to answer questions. It is absolutely appalling that our Labour Councillors are not prepared to stand up before the public to answer questions about the decisions they have made which will have a devastating effect on the local community.
Just a quick reminder for local residents who wish to contribute to the Council’s budget consultation that the deadline for representations is this Friday, 16th November.
A New Conservative MEP
I was delighted to learn that local residents in Salford and across the north-west of England have a new Conservative Member of the European Parliament, as former Liberal Democrat MEP Saj Karim has now joined the Conservatives.
Karim’s comments on his defection are very pertinent:
Here in Salford and across the country, only the Conservatives are providing a real opposition to discredited Labour administrations at a local and national level.